Bunch o' Info!

I made so many announcements today! Here's a recap:

• Please give me a clean printed copy of your Project 3 (annotated bibliography). Steven the Librarian and I will both be very grateful.
• Get some blue books! Final's on Friday; you may need two books. Pick 'em up for free at the Student Union.
• Tomorrow, I'll ask you guys to share the most helpful bit of info/advice/criticism you got out of peer review. Think of something to share!
• Tomorrow's also the last day you'll be able to ask me paper questions in person. Get your questions ready!

That should cover it.

Oh, yeah, and send me drafts today if you'd like comments/revision suggestions. I can't promise I'll get to them tomorrow (thus the 24-hr rule on the syllabus).

Project 4 Peer Review

The BIG Stuff

1. How clear is the thesis? How debatable is it? Does it make a positive claim?
2. Does the thesis accurately preview the paper? Are any parts of the paper not a clear fit with the thesis?
3. Can you follow the argument clearly from start to finish? Does the paper's organization help you understand the necessary background information? Does the paper build up the argument and evidence persuasively?
4. Does everything in the draft lead to or follow from one central thesis? If not, which ideas appear to be out of place?
   Are the claims backed up with evidence? Is the evidence appropriate? Is it sufficient? Does any evidence need further explanation or context?
5. If there's an image, does the text explain it? Does it help you understand the argument or illustrate an important point?
6. What's the absolute awesomest thing about this paper? What do you think could use the most improvement?

The Pickier Stuff

1. Does the writer provide necessary background information about the source, including author and/or title for sources?
2. Throughout the essay, when referring to sources, does the writer supply necessary documentation?
   Are there clear transitions or connectives that connect the writer’s own ideas to those of sources?
3. Are there transitions between paragraphs? How smooth are they?
   Is the organizational plan or form appropriate for this kind of paper? If not, can you suggest another format?
   Does the writer open the paper in a way that catches the reader’s attention?
4. Does the conclusion amply restate the main idea? Does it offer new insights? Are the new insights too much for a conclusion?
5. Do the sentences flow? Is there a variety of lengths of sentences?
6. Is the word choice effective? Are the same words used to begin and end sentences? Are there positive or negative words or phrases that will make an impression on the reader?

Finally...

1. What 2 things most need improving about the paper?
2. What did you like most about the paper? 

London

I'm having a hard time grasping the extent of the London riots. It's London, after all. Certainly the city has deep-rooted social issues, but I still find the images of fires, looting, and violence to be completely surreal.

Imagine this scene around UNLV. It just seems so unlikely.

There's a connection to our class, too, in the stern rhetoric being used by British officials to discuss the situation. Even as they condemn the rioters, something about their rhetoric feels less inflammatory than what we might see on this side of the ocean. Maybe it's the quote about "fancying a new pair of trainers."

...and Week 5 Begins!

I do hope everyone's had a productive and not too stressful weekend!

Just a quick overview/reminder of what's left to do this week:

Monday: You're bringing in a Project 4 draft and will be going over it with a class-mate, who'll act as your first reader.
Tuesday: Bring in a draft of Project 4 with any revisions you needed to make after yesterday's peer review.
Wednesday: Last day before the paper's due, so last chance to talk to me in person about any questions or concerns you have. We'll also be sharing some of the common issues that have cropped up in peer review, so be ready to talk about whatever you've corrected, noticed, praised, etc.
Thursday: After collecting your Project 4 (It's done now!), I'll tell you all about the final. Assignment: For class, be sure to have read the Timed Writing Appendix in your textbook.
Friday: The final!

Please let me know if you have any questions about this week, or if there are any topics you'd like to cover.

I Wouldn't Lie to You...

See!

NY Times Vending Machine Story

Homework due 8/4

Today in class we discussed arguments in terms of claims, reasons, evidence, etc.

Your assignment is to start prewriting your paper by writing out 3 claims you will make and adding the reasons, evidence, or appeals you will use to support them. By prewriting in this way, you will have a bank of your own writing to draw from when you draft your paper.

I won't be collecting this homework, but that doesn't make it a free pass to not do it. By writing out claims, you'll start to recognize trouble spots that we can address before you have to produce a final paper. Trust me, this step in the process is to your benefit.

In-Class Reading 8/2

Here's the article we're reading in class today to discuss. A quick preview:

The article's long, but bear with me. I hope it's really interesting, and not just English-teacher interesting. I've been known to mistakenly assume that articles about gene-spliced seeds and organic farmers will be fascinating to the average person.

Research Woes

If you're still having any troubles with your research, don't forget about Steven the Librarian. Even if you don't need to contact him directly, the site he made for us (linked here) lists a couple more databases and has instructions on how to do various library/internety things.

Homework due 8/3

Oh my, the home stretch! Time to flex your pens (ok, so maybe that saying doesn't work...) and start filling up some pages with ink!

Don't worry, though. We'll start off slow.

For tomorrow, just...
Write an introduction for your final research paper. Incorporate a refined version of your working thesis. Remember, your introduction might be more than just one paragraph. If it takes you two-ish paragraphs to work up to the thesis, that's a-ok!

To get some ideas of how to go about writing the introduction, check pp. 109-112 of your textbook.

Peer Review!

Critical Annotated Bibliography: Peer Review Sheet

The Basics—Circle ‘y’ for ‘yes’ and ‘n’ for ‘no.’ Make explanatory notes if necessary.

1.      Is there a header with both name and page #?                                           y          n

2.      Does the heading have all 4 required lines in the correct order?                y          n

3.      Is the title correctly formatted (“Annotated Bibliography: Topic”)?                       y          n

4.      Is the intro at least 1 full page?                                                                  y          n

5.      Is the text (intro and entries) double-spaced?                                                         y          n

6.      Is the font 12-point Times New Roman or comparable?                            y          n

7.      Are the margins 1” wide on either side?                                                    y          n

8.      Are there 8 bibliographic entries?                                                              y          n

9.      Are all 8 bibliographic entries scholarly sources?                                      y          n

10.      Are bibliographic entries correctly indented (hanging indent of ½”)?                    y          n

11.      Are the bibliographic entries alphabetized?                                                           y          n

The Intro

1.      Does the introduction hook you? If so, how? If not, what could be used as a hook?

2.      How well does the thesis meet our five criteria? How could it be improved? Make specific suggestions.

3.      How does the author make clear why this topic is worth researching? How? How could the author make it clearer?

4.      Does the intro provide a plan for how the research will be incorporated into the final paper? Does this plan sound doable and effective (e.g. is it too ambitious, not ambitious enough, will it provide enough background, will the organization build the argument effectively)?

5.      Does the intro explain how the author will address opposing viewpoints?

6.      Does the high-level organization of the introduction make sense? Use the sentence outlining technique to help explain why or why not.

7.      Does the sentence-level organization of the introduction make sense? Use the hook-and-eye technique to help explain why or why not.

The Bibliographic Entries—For each bibliographic entry: 1) Circle ‘y’ or ‘n’ to note if the MLA citation is correct and if the entry includes all 3 parts (summary, evaluation, and consideration of how the source will be used). 2) Jot down a brief evaluation of the entry. Does it fit in with the paper overview provided by the intro? Is there too much or too little of any of the 3 parts? Is it well-written? What could be done to improve it?

Entry 1

1. Correct MLA citation:    y          n    Includes all 3 parts:  y        n   Scholarly:  y                       n

2.

Entry 2

1. Correct MLA citation:    y          n    Includes all 3 parts:  y        n   Scholarly:  y                       n

2.

Entry 3

1. Correct MLA citation:    y          n    Includes all 3 parts:  y        n   Scholarly:  y                       n

2.

Homework due 8/2

Nothing's due! Yay! Go run through the streets!

Or, work on your Project 3 draft...

You know. It's your call.

Homework due 8/1

We'll just be passing around annotations to give lots of people feedback from lots of other people. So write that critical annotated bibliography! Bring a hard copy to class on Monday, and you're good to go.

Welcome to the End of Week 3!

The bad news is, that means you have a bibliography and final research paper to write in the next two weeks.

The good news is, my brand new (refurbished) Dyson vacuum arrives tomorrow, so I can stop breathing dog hair.

Seriously, though, folks, way to make it through the slog until now. Two more weeks and two more projects, and you'll be able to look back and say things like, "Really? It's already over?! That felt like five days!"

You know what they say about when you're having fun...

Homework due 7/29

So we're sort of both on- and off-track with our projected syllabus assignments. Our reading of the "Sociology of Discrimination" article has fallen by the wayside, but I'm comfortable letting that go and focusing instead on your writing. Your reading skills seem sharp already, and we can pick back up with best practices for reading academic writing next week, if you feel you need it.

Given all of that, here's your assignment for tomorrow:

1. Write 2 more annotated critical bibliographies for 2 new sources that you haven't written on yet. Be prepared to share those entries with other folks in the class.
2. Come to class with a working thesis, if you didn't already have one drafted for today.
3. Skim pp. 307-319 in your textbook for a quick intro to academic argumentation.

See you tomorrow!

Homework due 7/28

We're deep into bibliography/paper-writing territory at this point. I can't decide if hiking or spelunking is a better metaphor. When you hike, you have a destination, but sometimes you end up someplace you didn't expect to go. That's definitely been happening to me as I work on my sample discrimination topic. When you spelunk, though, (or is that, "go spelunking"?) you have to needle up the courage to delve deeper and deeper and deeper into possibly uncharted realms. Ok, both of these metaphors could get out of hand, so I'll quit now.

At any rate, the important thing to know is that the rest of the session's homework will focus almost exclusively on your individual work. For example, tonight's homework...

Assignment

1. Please write an annotated bibliographic entry for each of 2 of your sources. Please format it correctly so that I can let you know if there are any MLA issues. Formatting is a quick-fix kind of problem, so better to catch it now than when you turn in your final Project 3 next week.
2. On the same page(s) as your bibliographic entries, please write down your working thesis. It doesn't have to sound pretty yet, and it may change, but it should be getting clearer and more specific with each passing day.

As any issues crop up with your research, please email and let me know!

Project 2 Advice, Since It's Due Tomorrow and I'm Reading Drafts and Things Occur to Me

One rule of thumb to make sure that you're writing an analysis and not a response is to watch out for phrases like "I agree" or "In my opinion."

Awesome. But what I asked was, "What was Chris was saying, and did he do a good job saying it?"

Even if you don't use those phrases exactly, if your paragraph, thesis, or other paper component could easily include that phrase, be on the lookout for response overshadowing analysis.

   Don't let response pull a Kanye on your well-intentioned Taylor Swift-like analysis.

When you find response rather than analysis, hunt all traces of the response down and excise them cleanly and heartlessly from your paper.

Generally, get rid of any first person singular (i.e. "I" or "me") that shows up in the paper and make sure it doesn't leave any opinions about the topic rather than the article behind.

Steven the Librarian and Question-Answerer

Steven the Librarian just emailed me to announce that he's answered everyone's questions on our class library page (linked to the right of where you are currently looking, as well as in this entire parenthetical statement). There are also tips for where to find things and contact info for Steven if you'd like to ask him more questions.

Happy source hunting!

Homework due 7/27

As of today, we'll start getting back on track with the syllabus' listed homework assignments, though there will still be a few differences. I'm getting a good idea of what will be most helpful to you guys and what we can spend less time on, which is why I've been making changes.

For tomorrow, please do the following...

Assignment:

1. Read the "Annotated Bibliographies" and "Documenting Sources" appendices in the back of your textbook. Some of the information will seem repetitive, but it always helps to see or read or hear the important information multiple times.
2. Be prepared to discuss your final paper topic 1-on-1 with me. That means you should be able to articulate clearly not only the general topic, but the specific subtopic you will be writing about, as well as what you've discovered as you've started looking for sources. Additionally, it would be great if you're able to articulate your anticipated argument or thesis.
3. Continue looking for sources for your bibliography and final paper!
    
4. And, of course, Project 2 is due!

Stuff to Bring to Class: You'll have time in class to work on your research, so please bring any materials you might need for that.

I'm excited about this part of the class. You get to start doing deep research and I get to start learning from all the things you'll teach me as you do research. Win-win!

Homework due 7/26

I hope you guys had a fun and productive class today! I'm excited to get back to it and see you tomorrow.

Speaking of, for tomorrow, please bring 1 source that you're considering using for your final paper. A scholarly article, book, or web source are all acceptable. Please let me know if you need help finding anything!

Also, please feel free to email me paper drafts for Project 2 if you'd like some comments this afternoon. I like feeling helpful, so I like looking at drafts!

Homework due 7/25

Just write your rough draft of Project 2! Bang that sucker out, and you're good to go.

Homework due 7/22

We're gonna stay off-track from the syllabus for another day or so, for various reasons involving my getting a better sense of what we need to cover in class and what you need practice with.

So for now, let's keep it light...

Assignment:

• Write a 1-2 page (typed, double-spaced; if you handwrite, make it longer) analysis and evaluation of the article you DIDN'T pick to write about in class yesterday ("The Student as Profit Center" or "Teachers, Not Librarians"). If you weren't in class to get the hand-out, you can find it on WebCampus in the Readings folder.
• If you haven't already, read "College for the Lucky" (the article you're writing Project 2 about). Be prepared to discuss it briefly in class.

That's it! See you tomorrow, when we will analysis and evaluate all things that cross our paths from 8-9:30. Mwahahaha.

Homework due 7/21

Since tomorrow's Library Day, the actual assignment shouldn't take you much time, because I want you to spend time thinking about your final paper topic. If you got comments back from me today about your topic, read and consider them. If you didn't, still consider the topic and ask yourself things like, "Is that too broad? Could I write a whole book about it?" "Could I write a thesis about that?" "Do I know enough to get started searching for information?" I'll finish handing back comments to everyone (who's given me a topic, that is) tomorrow at the start of class, so you'll be able to use them as we embark on our research journey during class.

To help with the thinking process today, I recommend spending some time on Wikipedia and checking out encyclopedia articles. Get a sense of what other people are talking about, as well as what the important dates, terms, events, people, etc. are for your topic.

On to the Assignment! 
Please complete the online tutorials "Finding Books" and "Finding Journal Articles" (found here). Complete and print the quizzes for both.


Note: Tomorrow, I will be collecting the analysis questions that I forgot to collect today. Epic fail for me. Help me out and bring that homework with you. THANKS! :D

Library Day THURSDAY AWESOME FUN

I just met with Steven Hoover, the nice instructional librarian who'll be leading our session on Thursday. Can I just say, I'm stoked? It's going to be engaging, informational, and perhaps a wee bit silly--perfect for our class.

We'll be in the Pioche Room (map of Lied Library here) in Lied Library, right down the walkway from our classroom building (campus map here). Get your research hats on, 'cause research is coming your way!

Homework due 7/20

Since we didn't get all the way through talking about analysis today, I'm going to truncate the homework a bit. Please pay attention to the homework here, not what's on the syllabus!

Assignment:
Answer the following analysis questions about the Heilbroner essay:

1. Is there a clear organizational pattern? If so, what is it?
2. Does the language make the topic and argument clear? Could more precise language have been used? Give 1 or 2 examples.
3. Does the author use vivid details, words that appeal to the sense, and words with emotional intensity? If so, give examples.
4. Are the sentences concise? Lengthy and complicated? Something else? Give 1 or 2 examples.
5. Is the voice appropriate for the topic? How does it seem: friendly, adversarial, pompous, formal, something else? Why?
6. What is the persuasive piece of evidence, example, or claim Heilbroner uses?

You can review analysis on pp. 254-267 in your textbook. You don't (yay!) need to read pp. 6-12 of "Sociology of Discrimination."

Don't forget! Project 1 Final Draft due tomorrow! Hard-copy, stapled, all that good stuff!

Homework due 7/19

Speaking of stereotyping and rhetoric, I have an article for you to read: "Don't Let Stereotypes Warp Your Judgment," by Robert L. Heilbroner. If you didn't get the hand-out in class today, please print it from the Readings folder on WebCampus.

Assignment:
Read the article and be prepared to discuss in class tomorrow. (Look up words, note comments, etc.!)

Note: You don't have any writing homework tonight, so use the time to revise your paper using comments from peer review. The paper isn't due until Wednesday, but you'll have other writing to do tomorrow night, so don't procrastinate!

Homework due 7/18

On Monday, 7/18, we'll do our first peer review of each others' papers. The rough draft due is for PROJECT 1, which I gave you the assignment sheet for last week. The assignment sheet can also be found in the Writing Projects folder on WebCampus.

Some reminders:

• Your draft MUST be at least 3 pages. Try and have all the parts, even if you haven't finished writing them: intro, thesis, meat, conclusion.
• Bring a HARD COPY.
• The essay you're summarizing and responding to is in the back of the textbook. The title is on the assignment sheet.
• Make sure your response tells me YOUR ideas, not just where you agree and/or disagree with the essay.
• Peer review is something I consider heavily when assigning participation grades.
• I'll have directions for you on Monday, so don't worry if you haven't done peer reviews before!

Thanks, and I'll see you Monday!

Homework due 7/15

Dum dum duuuum! Topic day is imminent! How can I prepare and fortify myself, you ask? Easily, comrades, if you follow the instructions below!

Assignment:
Part 1: Choose 2 potential topics for your final paper. You DO NOT need to have a fleshed-out thesis or argument for them--a general thing you're interested in is plenty! For example, the articles we've read this week about discrimination are things that I found as I got interested in the topic of subtle discrimination, especially discrimination with "disparate impact." At this stage in the game, I haven't even narrowed down that topic, let alone come up with an argument to go with it. On Friday, we'll talk more about how to evaluate topics to see if they'll be good for a research paper. The key idea though, is to always start with something you're interested in.
Part 2: Briefly describe the rhetorical situation for you and that topic. The questions below can help you get started in your description.

• What occasion brought you to the topic (if there is one, other than just being interested)?
• Who are you? Why are you or will you be qualified to write about this topic?
• Who is your target audience (people who disagree, people who can implement change, etc.)? This one might be tough--just think about who you would want to listen to you on this topic.
• What genre will it be? (Well, this one’s easy—an academic paper. BUT are you imagining it as a narrative essay? A scientific report? A polemic?)
• In what context are you writing (21^st century America, lots of people talking about this, etc.)? This will probably be a hard one to write--if it helps, think of it as overlapping with the author question. What is your context that will affect how you write about this topic, as opposed to how other people write about it?
• Why are you writing? Describing your purpose may overlap with describing your occasion. Either way, just think deeply about what you get out of writing about this topic. Since you likely don't have an argument yet, you can't tell me your persuasive purpose, but you can tell me why this topic appeals to you or what kinds of change you hope to see arise from exploring and explaining this topic to others.

I'm super excited to hear what you guys are thinking about~!!!#!@

Homework due 7/14

Welcome to hardcore academic reading! (That's my secret way of saying, "Give yourself enough time to read.  Six pages doesn't sound like a lot, but sometimes it is.")

Oops, I'm getting ahead of myself and haven't actually written what the reading assignment is yet. Without further ado... 

Assignment: Read pp. 1-6 from "Sociology of Discrimination" (up until the "Is Discrimination Still..." header). As and after you read, please complete the following:

• Circle words you don’t know and look them up.  (dictionary.com can work for most standard vocabulary)
• Note questions and/or comments about the text.
• Identify a potential thesis from the abstract on the first page.
• Based on the abstract, write a new version of the thesis using your own words—don’t worry about sounding all scientificky and academic; that’s the beauty of paraphrasing!

Thanks and email/comment if you have questions/concerns/comments!

Homework due 7/13

For Wednesday, you've got a couple of things to do based on what we discussed in class on Tuesday. Check out the two assignment headlines below, as well as the reminder.

Assignment 1: Plagiarism Quiz
To get some practice recognizing plagiarism, complete this handy-dandy online quiz. After you ace it, get me the confirmation certificate in some way: print it out, take a screenshot, ESP mind-beam it, etc.

Assignment 2: "Mr. Boyd" Response
Choose one of the 3 major types of elaboration and respond to the article accordingly. There's no length requirement; just aim to say something you're happy with and that gives me enough information to follow your viewpoint. The 3 types are:

• Developing ideas already stated by the author.
• Developing critical viewpoints.
• Producing new ideas.

See pp. 96-97 for more specific strategies for developing responses.
Update! Please include at least 1 quote from the article in your response.

Reminder: Wednesday's homework reading comes from a long article ("Sociology of Discrimination...") that's posted on WebCampus. I won't be handing it out, so you'll need to print a copy for yourself. I do not recommend reading it on the computer screen! It'll be easier if you can mark up an actual document.

The Onion's like the Internet

Not really, but I made this sudden connection tonight after our discussion today. The whole internet-Nobel thing is like the current campaign for the Onion to win a Pulitzer!

Well, sort of. On the one hand, the internet is, as you guys pointed out, a big amorphous technology, while the Onion is an actual news organization with a directed purpose and certain ethos. But on the other hand, giving the Onion a Pulitzer would definitely make the Pulitzer Prize more interesting to a lot of people. If nothing else, a lot of famous people suddenly have things to say about the Pulitzer. What do you think?

Homework due 7/12

This article from the New Republic immediately grabbed my attention because of the story's intersection with so many issues: socioeconomic class, race, privilege, corporate America, and the legal system, to name just a few. Any one of those issues could provide a starting point for responding to the article, and give you a platform to express your ideas about what it means to get by (and sometimes get screwed) in America today.

Additionally, there are other sides to this story: What would you say about the bank teller who made the call to police? What about Chase's refusal to issue an apology? What about the police who made the arrest?

Finally, there's author Jonathan Chait's takeaway argument to consider:

"You have to be very smart, hard-working, and/or lucky to move from the bottom to the top, and very dumb, lazy, and/or unlucky to fall out of the upper tier if you've arrived or even been born there."

He uses the story of the man cashing his check as evidence of how economic and social systems are not only stacked against, but even punitive of, certain people (generally poor minorities). This argument speaks to a much bigger conversation about the free market, the role of government in addressing inequality, and whether inequalities even exist in the marketplace due to factors other than any given individual's gumption, skills, motivation, and hard work. This conversation in turn has everything to do with our fundamental views about how society, and America in particular, works, and if it's working the way it should.

Assignment: Read the article linked above (I also handed it out in class). Using the sentence-outline technique, write a paragraph summarizing the article. Then choose one of the following questions. Write a one-paragraph response to the question that expresses your own views. You may use your personal experiences in your response.

• How else can one bad event lead to a cascade of others?
• In what other situations are minorities (e.g. according to race, gender, sexual orientation, or group affiliation) at a disadvantage in public and/or commercial settings?
• Is there anything else we need to know to be able to judge whether the bank teller and the police acted appropriately?
• Is it possible that the man who was arrested was just unlucky?
• Is it harder to make money if you're poor than if you're rich?
• Should Chase take some kind of action in response to this incident? If so, what? If not, why not?

Due: In class, 7/12. Hard copy.

Welcome to the Blogosphere!

Welcome to our ENG 102 Research Blog Home for the Spring 2011 semester! This page will act as the central home page. You can come here to find homework assignments as well as links, tips, highlights, etc. that can help you research, write, and/or enjoy a bit of amusement.

Each post's title will identify what it is: homework due on a particular day, a fun read, a suggestion, etc. On the right side of the page, I'll provide helpful resources, articles, fun distractions, etc. Feel free to comment on/question/laugh at/laugh with anything I post here.

Without further ado...

....onward, intrepid travelers!