Table of Contents
Weeks Archive
Use this space to review lesson plans and activities from earlier in the semester.
Week01 | Week02 | Week03 | Week04 | Week05 | Week06 | Week07| Week08 | Week09 | Week10 | Week11 | Week12 | Week13 | Week14
Week 01
Tuesday
1. Introduction writing
Where are you, where did you come from, and where are you headed?
- Metacritical discussion
- genre,
- style,
- structure
- and medium/format
2. Part episode “OnPoint” (NPR) - “First Person” Daniel Herman on ChatGPT listen
- Summary
- They Say …. (but) I Say . . .
3. Syllabus overview
Homework: read and comment on Roose “The Brilliance and Weirdness of ChatGPT”; access via D2L Link.
Thursday
A note on D2L deadlines. Some of you may have noticed that the reading homework deadline was this morning at 8am. I have three sections of ENGL 101. I mean for you to do this kind of homework before class. If you are in the 11:10am class and you complete it at 9am, I'll be happy! I set one deadline but for homework of this type, you can submit it a few hours late.
1. Creating “Writers Log” via Office.com
- Sharing online Word docs
- Spreadsheet and Template
Brief in-class Writing Where are you, where did you come from, and where are you going? Revisit your answer from the first class and revise it as your first entry in the journal. If you answered very briefly or very literally (I'm in Leonard 318. I came from Zink. I'm going to lunch), please expand a little and use it to tell something more about yourself. This will be your introduction to me, your professor, and does not need to be shared with anyone else.
2. Discussion of homework reading
Last class we very quickly wrote a succinct summary of the “first person” audio commentary from Daniel Herman. Understanding a topic and preparing to write about it often requires this kind of first step. I have finished listening or reading, and I can check my understanding by asking myself: “So, basically, what was that all about? ” We'll do the same with this article, but we'll also begin the important second move–the “I say.”
- ChatGPT and writing (orienting questions?)
- Summary
- Specific questions or issues with the essay?
- They say …., but I say …
3. Syllabus questions? (Note, if a question occurs after class, you can email me or ask it in the version of the syllabus on Perusall, and I'll answer it there.
4. Introduction to Inquisitive (Norton)
- Access via D2L Link
- There will be some assigned activities; and I will give some grammar mini-lessons in class. Based on the “Editing the Errors that Matter” activity, you will receive a “diagnostic” of some of the areas you might individually work on this semester. (Note bonus opportunities in the syllabus.)
Homework
1. InQuizitve Assignment via D2L: Editing Errors that Matter.
2. Listen to “How AI chatbots are changing how we write and who we trust” On Point listen, and make some notes or write a brief response in your Writers Journal so you can be prepared to discuss and write a summary in class on Tuesday.
3. Read “Preface” and “Introduction” in They Say I Say, pp. xiv-18
Week 02
Tips and Announcements: 1) Each week, I'll “archive” the prior week's lesson plans and replace it with our current work. You can also look back by visiting the Prior Weeks Archive above. 2) The bookstore has run short on They Say/I Say. But you should be able to access online materials for InQuizitive with a temporary account. According to Logan, “When first opening the site, it gives you the option to use the free trial and you just type in your school's name and student ID number. ” Thanks! 3) Sometimes, I'll make an optional reading available via Perusall; it will be in the Library. Only required and assigned readings will be in the D2L/Assignment area.
Tuesday
1. Logistics
- Trouble with access to Perusall?
- Trouble with access to InQuizitive?
- Can you access the ebook content with the trial code?
- Discussion of self-diagnostic. (What do your results look like?)
- Trouble with Writers Journals?
How is learning to improve as a writer similar to the way one practices to get better in other areas like music or sports?
2. In-class Writing
Please visit your Writers' Journal . Create an entry for today entitled “Writing Goals - Mechanics” Discuss one or two things you learned (from the homework) about your writing skills and why it might be worth giving one of them some specific attention. What difference would it make if you could achieve a goal of improving in this area (if you could avoid comma-splices, write catchy and clear topic sentences, always choose the right word, etc)? If you have an idea as to specific steps you might take to improve in this area, mention that too.
Hopefully in 12 weeks, you'll look back at the goal(s) and see they've been met!
3. Continued discussion of Chat GPT - What is it? What are possible effects or consequences? What are things some people might welcome? What are some things that might be worrisome?
- On Point. “How AI Chatbots are Changing How We Write and Who We Trust” - link
Let's explore key ideas shared in the podcast. Group brainstorming. Generation of ideas.
Moving from reading/listening to notetaking/outlines to paragraph summarization.
Homework: In your Writing Journal, write a compressed (100-150 word) paragraph in which you summarize an important, complex set of ideas about Chat GPT. Please use one of four sources below; obviously make clear in the context of your summary what source you are using discussing.
Log in to Perusall via this D2L link before trying to access these materials
You can use the On Point podcast or read “How Chat GPT Will Destabalize White Collar Work” by Annie Lowry link, Ian Bogost's “ChatGPT is Dumber than You Think” link or Kally Huang's “Alarmed by A.I. Chatobs, Universities Start Revamping How they Teach. link. You can aim to write a comprehensive summary or be selective; don't feel you need to capture every trivial point or difference of opinion. Part of the goal is to practice choosing what is salient and then phrasing it in your own words. Finally, follow your paragraph with a one-sentence question of your own – something you would still don't understand, disagree with, or need more information about in relation to the topic.
Thursday
Announcements:
- Many of you put an impressive amount of time into InQuizitive. Thanks! Future exercises should be shorter. D2L grading should be working for Perusall but not yet InQuizitive. (Remember that you can always answer additional questions to earn 100% on InQuizitive.)
- I've fixed the math error in the syllabus! Final essay and Other Activites are each worth +5%
- A scan of the They Say chapter for homework reading is accessible via D2L if you don't have your book yet.
1. Discussion of homework writing.
What works? What's easy? What is challenging about summarizing?
Peer response. Have a look at your classmate's summary. Use “comment” to make notes. Is there an overarching idea? Do details support it? Could someone unfamiliar with the source understand based on the summary? Is it aiming to be selective or comprehensive?
2. Academic writing as conversation
Observations on They Say/ I Say “Introduction.” See passages on the importance of others' ideas (3), how templates are relevant to entering a conversation in writing (2). How is using templates as guides anything more than low tech version of ChatGPT? (12-13)
3. The Template of Templates
The first “template” - or the template of templates, page 11 (They Say, I Say). Recasting summary in the form of an explicit dance between various views, including your own.
In class writing ( if time allows) use a Listen Before You Leap template (p. 10) to take a position in relation to one of the things we have read or heard. The goal is to fairly present or acknowledge someone else's idea, fact, position or view and then articulate your own view and how it differs. Word Online Edit Space
Homework:
1) Please read “They Say - Starting with What Others Are Saying” Chapter One in They Say Say (pp. 19-31).
2) Also read one of the other articles (above from Tuesday), or choose any other source from this list of recently published articles, or something you've found that speaks to ChatGPT or AI.
3) In D2L, use one of the templates from Chapter One as a guide. Write a paragraph where you articulate an argument starting with what your source says and then shifting to what you say. You should be certain to name your source. We won't worry about a bibliography yet .
Week 03
Tuesday
1 - Discussion of TheySay (Ch1)
link to Ebook via D2L, works in Firefox IF you're logged in!
- What are the advantages of substituting more specific signal words for the simple “They say…” when introducing others' ideas?
2 - Review of homework writing activity
- Good summaries must clearly indicate the source, represent the information or opinions accurately, and come across coherently.
- Are there some challenges in doing this?
3 - Review of Summary/Response Assignment
A draft of your first formal essay is due next Tuesday, and a revision on Thursday.
Summary and Response Essay - Assignment Description
In class writing:
Please use Word Online through your IUP Office 360 account. This will allow for backups, tracking progress, and easy sharing with classmates.
a. Create a Word Online document titled “RD and Plan - Essay 1 - Your Name.”
b. Create a heading (Name, Course, Date) on page 1
c. On page 2, begin a topic outline.
Homework:
Read They Say (Ch02) “Her Point Is - The Art of Summarizing” (32-46). Pay special attention to the importance of “playing the believing game” (33), summarizing “in light of your own agenda” (37), and using specific signal verbs (41-43)
Thursday
Online work today - no face-to-face class.
1 - Complete the Online Tutorial
- TheySay online “Tutorial” on Ch 02 via D2L direct link. This will reinforce some key ideas about writing a summary.
2-Writing
- Develop your outline into a full draft.
- Add to the online document you created on Tuesday: “RD and Plan - Essay 1 - Your Name.”
Homework: Drafting
A full, rough draft of your Summary-Response essay is due Tuesday. You should complete the draft in the Word online document, so that we can do a peer editing activity in class Tuesday AND use the D2L assignment link to upload a copy for homework completion credit.
Please note, for credit in completing homework on time you are sharing this twice!
Stuck? Check out the Little Seagull online resource Section W4 Writing Processes or stop by the IUP Writing Center (Stabley Library, 2nd Floor).
Week 4
Tuesday
Peer Revision Workshop
You have a completed a solid draft of your first essay. This is an important step, but you can actually develop your writing ability the most in this next step – revision. Once we've met the page count, it can be tempting to want to “print” or submit our work and be done with it. Yet, if time allows, this is the juncture where you can zoom out and review what you've done. You can try to see it from the perspective of readers who don't know your intention and only have your words in front of them. One of the BEST WAYS to get insight on the strengths and weaknesses of your wriitng is to get feedback and comments from another writer. (And, of course, giving this feedback to others is not just about returning a favor but should also make you a better editor of your own writing.)
What should you look at when reading a peer's essay?
Peer Feedback Process
1- In Word Online, open your draft. Go to the FILE/SAVE AS menu and change the name from Draft to Revised.
2 - Go the SHARE menu and change the permissions so that your partner can REVIEW this document.
3 - Use the SEND LINK tool to message them so they can easily find your draft.
4 - Read your classmate's draft
5 - Using our guidelines as a prompt, respond in the margins
6 - Discuss your comments with your classmate
Homework
Review your classmate's comments. Make a brief entry in your Writer's Journal “Revision goals for essay 1.”
Make revisions to your essay. Complete revisions by class time Thursday
Thursday
Extension: Your essay is due by midnight, Friday.
We will spend class time today proofreading. There will not be time to add ideas, develop new paragraphs, or make major changes. But we will look to correct grammar and mechanics.
Are there particular errors or weaknesses that showed up when you did the Inquizitive activity Editing the Errors that Matter?
Overview of Class
Rename your essay in Word Online ( Save an online copy , subsitute “final” for “revised” in the title .)
Print your essay.
Reread slowly, two or three times.
1) Be on special alert for a few key types of errors (fragments, run-ons, wordiness and wrong words).
2) Review the format instructions for the assignment. Also look for irregularities, like type-font changes or inconsistent spacing.
Editing Emphases
Sometimes, trying to edit for everything can lead us to miss things. If you concentrate on a subset of issues, you are more likely to identify and fix the problems. Let's review these; Little Seagull has additional information and exercises.
Little Seagull - Resource for Grammar and Mechanics Requires authentication via D2L
- Editing to Correct Sentence errors (and Little Seagull chapter abbreviations)
- E-1a Fragments
- E-1b Comma Splices ( run-on)
- E-1c Fused Sentences (run-on)
- Editing to Correct Wordiness
Editing Checklist
1- Review for sentence completeness and punctuation issues.
2 - Review for word choice, especially “Words that are often confused” (eg. it's/its); see [E-6.
3- Check formatting and assignment description (300-500 words; 12 point font; single-spaced;)
4- Check for a proper header
5- Source information is listed at the end of the essay
6 - Any summary, paraphrase or quotation must be clearly attributed to its original author in the body of the text.
Questions on editing? Always have a handbook or style guide like this one to consult: Little Seagull - Resource for Grammar and Mechanics
Submitting Essay 1 - Summary Response
Your essay is due by Friday, midnight. It must be uploaded to D2L
1.) Attach your “Final” version of essay 01 as a docx or PDF in D2L
2.) Separately, via D2L please include the Word Online / Onedrive share links to the rough draft of essay 01 and the revised draft of essay 01 , so I can review the revision history. Be sure that your draft and revised word files are accessible to sherwood@iup.edu. I need to be able to see the online version so that I have the option to review your edit history.
For Tuesday, please also complete the InQuizitive activities on quotation and read chapter 3 “As He Himself Puts It” pp 47-56 in They Say/I SayItalic Text.
Week 05
Tuesday
1 - Quotation and They Say I Say Chapter 03 link via D2L
- Choosing a relevant passage to quote
- Framing every quotation (“quotation sandwich” 51)
- lead-in which introduces the source and indicates why the quotation is being shared
- quotation
- discussion and interpretation, which explains and makes clear what you think about the source
Note authors' sense that it is very difficult to over-explain in academic writing! They say that “it is better to risk being overly explicit about what you take a quotation to mean” than the opposite (54). See also How Not to Introduce Quotations on page 55!
2. Group writing activity
Let's review a summary-only paragraph related to a source. We'll then choose a quotation and consider how to edit the paragraph and integrate it, introducing it well and blending the author's words with our own.
link to Office.com shared document
3. Practice with your last essay
Sometimes summary is more, sometimes it is less effective than quotation. Choose a passage from your Essay 01. In your Writer's Journal, revise a paragraph by selecting and effectively integrating a quotation from the source that you originally discussed! (If you already quoted something in your first essay, was it an example of “hit and run quotation?” Reconsider how you integrated it; can you revise to blend it more effectively, making sure it speaks to your purpose?)
- Finish the entry in your Writers Journal which we began in class.
- Read chapter 4 “Yes, No, OK But … Three Ways to Respond” in They Say I Say
- Take this poll: link
Thursday
Subtheme: A majority of students were interested by issues in two, related areas. So we'll do some reading in the next few days about social effects of time spent online, social media, gaming, and remote work. This links with the other popular sub-theme, specifically how our focus/attention, our minds, productivity and even mental health might be impacted by forms of digital work and play. I suppose if I wanted to put this on a bumper sticker, I'd summarize it as “digital wellness.” Of course, this doesn't mean we have to jump on the bandwagon and campaign for destroying cell phones or banning TikTok. There are many possible responses, from the personal, to the legal, to the commercial; and there is still plenty of debate about causes and effects!
As a side note, please know that I'll be interested and encouraging of your taking our readings and discussion in your own direction through your writing. I consider what we read and discuss together as starting points.
Digital Wellness Zotero Bibliography (in progress)
1. Group listening and reading
Vedantam, Shankar, ‘Screaming Into The Void’, Hidden Brain https://hiddenbrain.org/podcast/screaming-into-the-void
Zimmerman, Julie Irwin, ‘I Failed the Covington Catholic Test’, The Atlantic, 2019. https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2019/01/julie-irwin-zimmerman-i-failed-covington-catholic-test/580897/
2. Writers Journal
What experiences have you had with digital outrage? Have you found yourself jumping on the bandwagon? Have you been on the receiving end? Do you have friends or family whose social-media interactions cross the line for you? Does this seem to have to do with political divisiveness (just being reflected in our online communications) or does online interaction seem to feed it? Are some platforms more involved than others? Is there a positive side to arguing, protesting, shaming and “cancelling” online?
3. Discussion and relation to They Say I Say: Chapter 4 “Yes, No, OK But … Three Ways to Respond”
Agree, Disagree, and (both)
Disagreeing
- See pp 60-61, Disagree and Explain Why
- See templates, p. 62 - try one
- Trying not to be afraid of disagreement (63)
Agreeing
- It's not necessarily easier to simply agree in writing; “it's important to bring something new and fresh to the table, adding something that makes you a valuable participant in the conversation” (63)
- See templates, p. 64
- try one
Homework:
1. InQuitizitive: Documenting Sources MLA Style . D2L link
Note, I will teach you MLA format directly. But if you are in a major that uses APA, you can use that system – just no mixing and matching! (There is an optional InQuizitive tutorial on APA)
2. Listen to or read one additional source from the Zotero bibliography on Digital Wellness and make notes in your Writers Journal for class discussion on Tuesday.
3. Then write a short paragraph in your Writer's Journal in which you agree or disagree with some part of what you read (using the templates from the chapter as a guide).
Week 06
We'll be working towards our next essay this week, an “Argument … that develops the student’s unique claim, in reference to a context of multiple perspectives (summarizing and quoting effectively from sources).” Thursday we'll be outlining; a draft will be due next Tuesday.
Tuesday
1. Source Use and Citation
Discussion of InQuizitive on MLA “in-text” citation. Note that the conventions of citation are updated very few years. MLA version 9 is the 2021 revision. note on changes
- What are the two basic parts involved in crediting a source using in-text citation?
- Why does the format change for different kinds of sources?
- What are some questions or problems you may have?
Citation helpers
Why do I need to know this? Can't Easy Bib, Endnote, Zotero, do this for me?
See our group library via Zotero. Do the sources export correctly?
2. An Argument Worth Making - discussion
What interests your, puzzles you, or leads you to a new perspective in your reading? Orally summarize what you read over the weekend for a classmate or pair. Then explain whether you're inclined to agree or disagree and with which points. Can you find an important point where something needs to be added to the conversation? That could be your purpose.
Homework:
1. Read a second source relevant to your potential essay topic. You might choose it from our group library via Zotero. However, if you feel like something is missing from your first source (further information, an opposing point of view, etc.) you might seek out a reliable source of your own. Please email me for a second opinion on its reliability.
2. In your Writer's Journal, again write a paragraph that summarizes this source. You may intersperse selective quotation. Then write a second paragraph in which you use They Say I Say moves to structure your response to specific ideas from this source . Make sure you are framing your quotations (see Ch 3).
3.Optional - Read the section in the Little Seagull (W-8) on Arguments pp 53-58 link via D2L
If you are not happy with the articles you've selected, please choose another or talk with Sherwood. We are moving towards the topic for Essay 2!
Thursday
1. Discussion of sources.
Evaluating a quality source. Need a new source (maybe not)? Working deeply with your current sources. Use how others set up arguments as a model. LA Times via Perusall
2. Essay 2 - Assignment
Review
Argument Essay 2 - Assignment Details
Structure an Argument - Outline
You will use summary and quotation from your sources to help advance your own essay. But an argument (or thesis-driven) essay must be structured to advance your own perspective (the “I Say”) and use the source information as support or object of discussion.
See Little Seagull for tips on structuring an argument; link via D2L
- W-8a Key Elements of an Argument:
- clear and arguable position; centered on a “claim”
- necessary background
- good reasons
- convincing evidence
- consideration of other positions (counterarguments)
- W-8b Tips for Writing and Argument
- Drafting a Thesis
- Ways of Organizing
3. In class Writing
Starting with: Outline; thesis statement; and working Title
Homework:
Drafting of your argumentative essay. You will upload a complete draft before class time on Tuesday. It should be at least 400 words long and have both an introduction and a conclusion. Even your draft should have an Original Title and conclude with a list of Works Cited. Please include your outline below the Works Cited (page 3) of your draft. D2L Link
Week 07
Our focus this week will be revising Essay 2 - Argument. argument_essay_2_-_assignment_details
Tuesday
1. Revision emphases
Revision means radical change. I should see 30%+ new material, obvious deletions, and dramatic rearrangements!
- Thesis: a clear, debatable claim
- Paragraphs:
- Each with a singular, coherent focus
- Topic sentences
- Transitions
- Order/sequence
- The paragraph topics proceed with an order that is logical AND that supports the thesis; (paragraph three isn't third because you thought of it after number two but because it belongs there!)
- Development: important ideas get appropriate space to explain; split them and give them two or three paragraphs if necessary!
- Sources:
- Framed or introduced appropriately;
- Each use of a source via quotation or summary fits the topic of the paragraph
- Each quotation is fully explained and interpreted (no drive by quotation)
- Templates
- Where might the student employ a *They Say I Say* move to better signal the position of the source or the student?
2. Peer revision activity
Share your draft via Word online with two classmates.
Classmates, give your peer suggestions on what changes they can make in the areas above.
3. Debriefing Notes on Essay 01
- There were some very original responses and clever arguments
- Most of you really learned something about AI and demonstrated that
- D2L grade is scaled on 40 points (Content:10; Organization: 10; Mechanics: 10; Revision: 10) with an A>= 35, B>= 31, C>= 27, D>= 23.
- No one earned a 10/10 on revision; I was generous; many revisions really should have earned between 0 and 5.
- At least 1/5 of students omitted the appropriate attribution of at least one source; in Essay 2 that will result in a serious penality!
Homework:
1.) Review your and digest the feedback on essay 1; make a short entry in your Writing Journal listing three goals for essay 2.
2) Make revisions to your draft essay 2 based on feedback; (if you didn't get excellent feedback, visit the writing center!)
3) Read They Say I Say Ch 6, “Skeptics May Object: Planting A Naysayer in the Text.
—
Thursday
1. Naysayer Class Activity
In chapter 6, They Say I Say explores how you can enhance the credibility of your argument by anticipating objections (82-3). These can be imagined, as in the case of the Kim Cherin writing about an imagined “skeptic” or they can be actual critical points from another source. Introducing a naysayer effectively requires you to also represent them accurately and then answer the objections.
<html> <iframe src=“https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vRkZpJ7wxKrGnYRimlPuAEsM1CxuDeXfcxDCJhQDQeJ4tfBQ0xd26LPh7nVscer9W-Pc-F9lC9ZAnZz/pub?embedded=true” height=“300” width=“800”></iframe> </html>
2. Workshopping your Draft
- Identify an aspect of your argument that some readers may struggle with or reject
- Choose the place in your draft to insert this “naysayer”
- Write a paragraph to explain the objection or issue clearly, using the templates in C6 as inspiration
- Follow this with a paragraph answering these objections and reaffirming your own position
3. Editing exercise
Mechanics: : editing for commas
D2L - Little Seagull on Commas E5, E5a, E5b direct
Apply it. Check your revised draft and make corrections. Add missing commas; remove commas you do not need.
(In Essay 2, I will expect that you are still avoiding fragments and run-ons. But I would also like to see good use of commas.)
Homework
1.) Check the assignment. Review your essay for content. Is there any further revision you need to do.
2.) Read Little Seagull section E-6 (Editing Words that are often Confused) direct link D2L link and L-4 Words Often Confused direct link
3.) Make a first round of “edits” to draft 3; avoid comma errors and word choice errors. You have the option of doing the “Comma” InQuizitve via D2L if that would help you.
We will proofread your final draft in class on Tuesday. You will upload it Tuesday, by midnight! D2L Link for Final Draft Submission - read instructions carefully
Week 8
Tuesday
Essay 2 - Submission tips: Revision includes major additions, deletions, and restructuring. Make sure that major additions are highlighted yellow, deletions red. If your rough draft on 2/28 was partial, you might choose to
Proofreading
Never submit a written assignment or share a formal written document without proofreading it twice for errors.
Reference: Little Seagull Handbook online, via D2L
Review of some common errors that you can fix in proofreading: Proofreading Bingo Cards Link
Proofreading - round one
1. Share your revised draft with a partner
2. Identify an error
3. Get the prof. to verify and share with class
4. Repeat
Proofreading - round two
1. Review your own revised draft
2. Identify an error
3. Get the prof. to verify and share with class
4. Repeat
1.) Please finish proofreading your argument (Essay 02) and upload both the rough and final draft via D2L before midnight today.
2.) Read Kim, Lindsey “Understanding and Maintaining Your Privacy When Writing With Digital Technologies” via D2L Perusall. Note we haven't used Perusall in a few weeks, but this is the tool that asks you to comment in the margins as one way of showing you've done the reading!
Thursday
Privacy, Writing, Digital Technologies.
Basic conceptions of privacy have been revolutionized in a generation, largely by changes in technology and our acceptance of them. In 1995, most US households had a single phone and no internet. There were 90 million landlines but 20 million of those were unlisted NYT. An unlisted number meant your name was not printed in the telephone book; only people to whom you shared your number could contact you. When someone called, anyone in the house knew; if you were speaking with a friend, your parents or little brother could pick up the phone at any time.
Think about how things have changed. In the year 2000, just over 50% of American's owned a cell phone; by 2014 53.6% of Americans had a smart phone Statistica, a number which has reached 86% today Statistica.
TikTok reports they have 138 million users in the US in February, 32% of whom are between 10 and 18 years of age, using the platform to communicate with a few friends or with thousands of followers. On Twitter, the average user has 700 followers Social Pilot. Instagram has 1.22 billion monthly users, “equivalent to the population of the EU and North America combined” Social Pilot
What difference does it make when one is writing, speaking, photographing, or video taping for oneself, a few friends, an audience of friends and family, or the whole world? What's the difference between a Tweet and an email, between a memo and a text message, between a Wikipedia article and a viral TikTok? The third essay you write for ENGL 101 will be a rhetorical analysis . You will write, an an academic way, about the relationship between message or content and the style, format, and audience for a piece.
Lindsey Kim,
Let's begin by talking about the message and the style of the piece you read last night
How is this similar to or different from other pieces you read for class or in your research? What is its “style” and audience?
D2L link to Kim reading in Perusall
1.What does the author suggest are some of the benefits of “privacy” in a traditional sense?
2. What is “information” privacy? (Where does Kim explain this?)
Orienting Questions? Before we dive deeply into the reading, are there some things that surprised or puzzled you? Is there anything you feel like we explore together for clarification before we go deeper?
Groups
3. Reread and prepare to explain what the article has to say about data (how we generate it, and how it influences what we see and understand)?
4. Reread and prepare to explain how agency works online. What are the complications that filter bubbles create?
5. How does the meta-data classifying us as we travel the web impact us?
6. Why does Kim think it is important for us to think more about information flow?
Whole class
Is the information Kim provides and the argument she makes surprising, provocative, common sense? Have you had the occasion to think deliberately about what you did or did not want to write, photograph or share online?
Activity: Explore, Write in Writer's Journal, Discuss
1. Log in to Google if you have a gmail account, then visit: https://myadcenter.google.com/u/0/. (*You may do this on your phone. Consider what Google “knows” about you because of your search and browsing history.
2. Visit the home of a social media tool, game or other site your frequently use. Search for their terms of service. Can you understand it? Are you comfortable with it? Does it seem to protect your privacy, threaten it or …?
Enjoy your break. We'll be thinking some more about rhetorical situations when we come back. Please read and comment on Laura Carrol's “Backpacks versus Briefcases: Steps Toward Rhetorical Analysis” via D2L Perusall. You should see it as an assignment for your section of ENGL 101.
Week 09
Before break, we discussed Kim, Lindsey “Understanding and Maintaining Your Privacy When Writing With Digital Technologies” via D2L Perusall and I asked you to read and comment on Laura Carrol's “Backpacks versus Briefcases: Steps Toward Rhetorical Analysis” via D2L Perusall. Over the next week, we will be building on these readings as you work towards your third essay. The overall frame , “rhetorical analysis,” will lead you to focus on the ways that “good writing” can only be described in relation to specific contexts. This has always been true. However, the growth of different digital platforms and formats makes this even more relevant than ever.
Tuesday
Peer Discussion, Writers Journal
Pull up the homework reading. Choose two of the bullet points below, discussing with your partner and then writing a brief response in your journal. Quick link to Writers Journal
Open Discussion of Backpacks Versus Briefcases
- Judging people / books by their cover link
- Terms: ethos, pathos, logos quick link
- Four dimensions of why we should understand advertisements and other messages as rhetorical link via D2L
- What is the “rhetorical situation”? link
- Alternative version: What is the “rhetorical triangle”? D2l Link
Part 2 - Practicing Rhetorical Analysis
See the summation and bullet points in Backpacks vs. Briefcases: D2L page 55
Examples
- Video advertisement: “Get in the Grove” (IUP) link
- Video advertisement: Seton Hill link
- Advertisement Tweet - Samsung Mobile Twitter live, PDF
Homework
1. Read and prepare to discuss Amicucci “Four Things Social Media Can Teach You about College Writing – and One Thing it Cannot” via Perusall/D2L link
2. Choose either Discussion Question 3 or 5 quick link and respond in your Writers Journal. Be prepared to discuss in class .
Thursday
Discuss Reading
Amicucci “Four Things Social Media Can Teach You about College Writing – and One Thing it Cannot” via Perusall/D2L link
Key terms: Intertextuality / Interdiscursivity
- The (Tiktok/Writing) “Challenge”
- #Audiences
- Choosing a filter
- Using symbols
- NOT - posting without explanation, answering why
Option of Assessment
Writing / Sharing / Connections to Reading
Tweet punctuation and emoji use.
Writing as form of Self Presentation - The Snapchat Filter
Homework
Preparing for your rhetorical analysis essay, you should 1) read section W-9 in the Little Seagull Handbook (via D2L pages 63-71, including the sample essay; 2) find a website, Tweet Thread, advertisement, song or other digital media object you want to analyze; 3) choose several key terms from Amicucci “Four Things,” Caroll, “Backpacks vs. Briefcases” or Kim, “Understanding and Maintaining Privacy” (such as “rhetorical situation,” “exigence, audience, constraint” or “pathos, ethos, logos.” 4) Compose a planning entry in the Writers Journal with a draft outline.
If you have trouble accessing the Little Seagull, you should log in to D2l first or try to access it via this link:
https://d2l.iup.edu/d2l/le/content/3561436/viewContent/35718547/View
Note - your essay will use at least two sources, listing them in the Works Cited: 1) the text or media object you analyze; and 2) one of the three essays we read. Depending on your topic, you may decide you need additional sources, a decision I can help you make.
Week 10
This week we will focus on composing the first draft of the Rhetorical Analysis essay
Deadlines: Partial Draft, Thurs 3/30; Full Length Draft, Mon 4/3 midnight - D2L for participation check; Final Draft for in-class proofreading, Thurs 4/6; Uploaded for a grade Fri 4/7 Midnight
Tuesday
Assignment
Review Assignment Description
Group Brainstorming
1 What are the key elements needing discussion in a rhetorical analysis of “My Mother's Feminism”?
class-brainstorming-for-rhetorical-analysis
2 Rhetorical analyses should have purpose and a thesis: Would an essay about this work better as an “interpretation” that explains how its message is conveyed to the intended audience, an “evaluation” of how the elements combine effectively, or …?
3 Would one of these two critical perspectives be more useful to apply? carroll-exigence-audience-constraint-quote.png amicucci-interwhat-quote.png
In class Writing
Planning: Do you have further planning to do? Do you have an outline? Have you developed a good list of features/elements to be analyzed? Have you chosen at least one critical source and identified what you will use from this? If yes, move on to drafting; if not, finish your planning notes in the Writer's Journal.
Drafting: Work from your outline and begin drafting. Consult with the professor if you are unsure about your choice of text/object to analyze, how to organize your essay, or what critical sources to include.
Homework
Begin drafting. Bring a 300+ word draft to class on Thursday.
In order to encourage all students to get maximum Revision Points on this essay, I am asking for your Rough Draft to be LONGER than your final draft. You must produce a draft from which 150-500 words can be cut. Your revision grade will be based on this.
Thursday
1 Why Draft and Revise
Over-length drafts allow you to be critical in your deletion and revision. Your goal this weekend is to generate a strong but also a LONG draft, then you can cut things that don't work as well.
Use your outline and try to fully develop each idea.
Ex. Outline, One Paragraph → Writing About “My Mother's FEMINISM”
- Title Significance as message and visual signs
- Title has two parts
- Shift from cursive, ALL CAPS BLOCK PRINTING
- Personal words, Political Words
- Title Surprises reader
- Meets expectation at first, since a sentimental gift of an embroidery might stereotypically be titled: Mother, Daughter, Grandmother etc.
- Mixes in an unanticipated political idea
- ?Does it also surprise in that we associated mothers with being more traditional and daughters with being more modern or progressive? Is Feminism progressive? How does expectation about what an embroidery (interdiscursive practice) should say effect the way this message is received?
2 Sources
Your draft will be analyzing the rhetoric of a another text/video/image. That needs to be cited.
Source One
The text (or media object) you analyze should be in your bibliography. How you list it will depend on what it is (Youtube video, Tweet, etc.) Purdue Owl should help you figure out the format.
Source Two
One of your sources for essay three should be an essay shared via class. Access via Perusall can be tricky. For convenience, here are the citations and the original links.
<html>
<div class="csl-entry">Amicucci, Ann N. “Four Things Social Media Can Teach You about College Writing—and One Thing It Can’t.” <i>Writing Spaces: Readings on Writings</i>, vol. 4, no. 2, 2022, pp. 18–34, <a href="https://writingspaces.org/past-volumes/four-things-social-media-can-teach-you-about-college-writing-and-one-thing-it-cant/">https://writingspaces.org/past-volumes/four-things-social-media-can-teach-you-about-college-writing-and-one-thing-it-cant/</a>.</div> <span class="Z3988" title="url_ver=Z39.88-2004&ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fzotero.org%3A2&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.atitle=Four%20Things%20Social%20Media%20Can%20Teach%20You%20about%20College%20Writing%E2%80%94and%20One%20Thing%20It%20Can%E2%80%99t&rft.jtitle=Writing%20Spaces%3A%20Readings%20on%20Writings&rft.volume=4&rft.issue=2&rft.aufirst=Ann%20N.&rft.aulast=Amicucci&rft.au=Ann%20N.%20Amicucci&rft.date=2022&rft.pages=18-34&rft.spage=18&rft.epage=34&rft.language=en-US"></span> <div class="csl-entry">Carroll, Laura Bolin. “Backpacks vs. Briefcases: Steps Toward Rhetorical Analysis.” <i>Writing Spaces: Readings on Writings</i>, vol. 1, 2010, pp. 45–58, <a href="https://writingspaces.org/past-volumes/backpacks-vs-briefcases-steps-toward-rhetorical-analysis/">https://writingspaces.org/past-volumes/backpacks-vs-briefcases-steps-toward-rhetorical-analysis/</a>.</div> <span class="Z3988" title="url_ver=Z39.88-2004&ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fzotero.org%3A2&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.atitle=Backpacks%20vs.%20Briefcases%3A%20Steps%20Toward%20Rhetorical%20Analysis&rft.jtitle=Writing%20Spaces%3A%20Readings%20on%20Writings&rft.volume=1&rft.aufirst=Laura%20Bolin&rft.aulast=Carroll&rft.au=Laura%20Bolin%20Carroll&rft.date=2010&rft.pages=45-58&rft.spage=45&rft.epage=58&rft.language=en-US"></span> <div class="csl-entry">Kim, Lindsey. “Understanding and Maintaining Your Privacy When Writing with Digital Technologies – Writing Spaces.” <i>Writing Spaces: Readings on Writings</i>, vol. 4, 2022, pp. 239–53, <a href="https://writingspaces.org/past-volumes/understanding-and-maintaining-your-privacy-when-writing-with-digital-technologies/">https://writingspaces.org/past-volumes/understanding-and-maintaining-your-privacy-when-writing-with-digital-technologies/</a>.</div> <span class="Z3988" title="url_ver=Z39.88-2004&ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fzotero.org%3A2&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.atitle=Understanding%20and%20Maintaining%20Your%20Privacy%20When%20Writing%20with%20Digital%20Technologies%20%E2%80%93%20Writing%20Spaces&rft.jtitle=Writing%20Spaces%3A%20Readings%20on%20Writings&rft.volume=4&rft.aufirst=Lindsey&rft.aulast=Kim&rft.au=Lindsey%20Kim&rft.date=2022&rft.pages=239-253&rft.spage=239&rft.epage=253&rft.language=en-US"></span>
</html>
3. Third Source
Ideally your additional source helps provide background information you need or authority and specific detail that supports your rhetorical analysis. You may choose to get information on the genre/type of work or its maker, history, or anything else that seems relevant.
What would be a useful source to have for an analysis of “My Mother's FEMINISM”?
4. In class Drafting
Continue developing your draft. Talk with Sherwood if you are having difficulty generating ideas.
Homework
Full Length Draft is due to be uploaded to D2L by Mon 4/3 midnight. It should be 750-1000 words long.
Week 11
This week we are finishing up our rhetorical analysis essay. essay3-rhetorical-analysis-assignment-description
Full Length Draft, Mon 4/3 midnight - D2L for participation check; Final Draft for in-class proofreading, Thurs 4/6; Uploaded for a grade Fri 4/7 Midnight
Tuesday
1. General Questions and Reminders
- Questions about rhetorical analysis?
- Questions about sources?
- Reminders about revision – (you should cut at least 150 words from your RD, maybe more! You should also add words and move things around). A decent revision probably requires at least 30% change. It is more about quality than quantity, but if 70% of your final essay is original, it's only half cooked. Put it back in the oven.
2. Track Changes
You will need to demonstrate your changes again with this essay for revision credit. MS Word Online allows you to automatically record changes visually.
3. Use “Revising Substantially” Ch11 They Say I Say
See Ebook Link to Ch 11 via D2L - Use Firefox
This chapter includes 10 tips for revising. Review each one and then use it to implement one or more changes in your draft.
1. Think Globally; 2. Still Sweat the Small Stuff; 3. Read Your Own Writing; 4. Have Others Read Your Own Writing Too; 5. Go Back to the Text; 6. Does Your Example Say What You Say it Says? 7. Keep Asking 'As Opposed to What?'; 8. Move it Up!; 9. Take Your 'Uh-oh' Moments Seriously; 10. Don't Let the Mess Show
1. Re-read your work and revise
2. See Revision Checklist on page 165; check again!
3. Review your feedback on Essay 2 in D2L. What lessons or issues might apply to this essay?
4. Bring a complete revision to class Thursday
Bonus Option: Submit proof that you have attended and incorporated feedback from a Writing Center Tutoring session? You will receive a 10% bump to your essay grade AND a deadline extension to Sunday midnight
Thursday
Proof Reading Essay 3
Format and required elements
Review the assignment, insure you have a proper header, page numbering, Title, and Works Cited page with at least three properly documented sources. Use MLA style citation for sources unless you indicate otherwise. Follow MLA guidelines in other areas link with one exception: please use single spacing.
Proofreading Strategy
See these tips from the Purdue Owl. Good editing of your own work requires practice and disciplined attention.
Read Once for Common Errors
See the following guide to common errors. Make sure you have no run-ons or comma splices.
The Little Seagull has more extensive resources on Editing the Errors that Matter (section E) Link
Read Again for Consistency And Clarity
Did you use many statistics? Make sure you are spelling out numbers like 1,000,375 consistently.
Did you refer to the first author of a source by his last name? Then make sure you don't switch and refer to the second author by her first name.
Read Again for Quote integration
Is every source cited clearly in the body of the paper and listed, accurately, in the Works Cited page? Do you appropriately mention the author's last name? If you mention titles, do you properly put the “Article Title” in quotation marks and a publication title like The New York Times in italics?
Do you consistently frame your quotes with an introductory sentence or phrase that leads smoothly, and grammatically, into the quotation? Do you then comment upon or interpret the quote?
NOT: In the article by The New York Times it quotes as “something brilliant.”
BUT: Kevin Roos accurately describes “something brilliant” about ChatGPT in his New York Times article “My Thoughts on Chat GPT” which was published in 2022.
Read Again for Paragraphing
Does each paragraph have one clear, main idea?
Does each paragraph have a topic sentence that crystalizes that idea and links to the thesis?
Transitions: Is each paragraph integrated into the whole with phrase or sentence-long transitions (ending one paragraph or beginning the next)? (“Additionally, …” or “Also, … ” or “Another example…” are not sufficient transitoins.
Read One Last Time for Your Personal Blind Spots
What are mistakes that your Prof or other teachers have often noted in your writing? Do you have a weak area or make a common mistake? Take a moment to review how to fix it, then look for instances in your writing.
Do you use passive voice or over-use verbs like “is” and “are”? Do you
Finish your essay, uploading 1) draft and 2) revised, proofread version by Friday midnight. (You have until Sunday midnight if you earned an extension by seeking Writing Center feeback; be sure to upload confirmation of your writing center visit).
Week 12
Un-Essay
The last big writing assignment for ENGL 101 is the “Un Essay.” From the syllabus:
Audio podcast script, proposal, Powerpoint (with speakers notes) or another specific genre of informative writing chosen by the student and approved by the professor. It should demonstrate They Say/I Say awareness and appropriate style. This is a chance to write something that reflects the norms in your prospective major or to practice transferring your skills into a new domain.
Concept: The idea behind the un-essay is that you begin to use the skills you've developed in sentence-making, paragraph-formation, grammar, style and voice – combined with the “rhetorical awareness” you practiced in assignment 3 – to transfer these skills to another writing situation and genre.
In the next few classes, you'll explore formats and choose one, then develop your guidelines for what good writing should look like in that genre.
Consider the ways in which composing a piece of writing might be like cooking a new dish. Eating a five-paragraph essay every day would get a little boring. In fact, people read and write lots of different kinds of dishes every day. So your challenge is to find a new (to you) type of writing, study it, then emulate it by composing your own.
Tuesday
1. Class Activity - Mapping out the Recipe for a Piece of Writing
In other classes and in your future work, you will almost certainly be asked to do a kind of writing that we have not learned in this class. Over the years, I have written and helped others write grant applications, recommendation letters, advertisements, project proposals, course proposals, scripts, wedding vows, donation campaigns, mission statements, program evaluations, eulogies, etc. (None of these were taught to me in a class.) I had to reverse engineer the recipe by studying the situation and audience expectations, then looking at models to understand the required elements as well as the organization and style.
What is the “recipe” for an online recipe?
Look at these examples? What do they have in common? What are the key features? What is the expected order of elements? What distinguishes them from other kinds of writing?
Class notes in the Word Online workspace below.
2. Group Activity - Writing Recipes
Choose one of the following examples to study with a partner (max groups of three). You are going to “reverse engineer” its recipe. What would someone need to know in order to make a piece of writing like this? What are the features you normally see in the best examples? (Are there some features or unwritten rules of the genre?) How is it organized? Does it use formal English, casual English, or special jargon?
Workspace: 8am Class Workspace External Link; 9am Class Workspace External Link; 11am Class Workspace External Link
Purpose or Goals:
Ingredients:
Steps (outline a sequence or usual order of key elements):
Groups
Start with one of these samples, choose another text of the same type, or identify another type that would interest you:
Wikipedia article https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chatbot
Wiki-how article https://www.wikihow.com/Build-a-Fire
Ted-talk Video https://www.ted.com/talks/sir_ken_robinson_do_schools_kill_creativity
Short Podcast (Radio Headspace, Dora Kamau, Motivation and Our Future Selves Radio Headspace
Product Unboxing Video I Phone
Product Review https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-creamy-peanut-butter/
Homework
1.) Finish group notes above for class presentation
2.) Choose a kind (genre) of Un-Essay that you might want to learn more about. (Almost anything that is informative and persuasive can work. It does not have to be a traditional text.) Find a good example. Study it. Then write its “recipe” in your Writers Journal.
For example, if I were interested in writing doing a Ted Talk style piece, I would analyze one to understand what is required and what makes it good. For my Un-Essay - Assignment 4, I might end up writing the script and choosing the visuals for my own Ted Talk on the topic I choose.
Thursday
Three Minute Presentations
What is the “text” you analyzed?
- What is the “text” you analyzed?
- What is its “recipe” (ingredients and procedure)?
- How would its audience judge a good one?
Exploring an Un-Essay Format and Topic
Consider your own Un-essay recipe (from homework). Can you imagine following this recipe to cook up your own project? If so, what topic or subject would you address? (A humorous audio podcast would not be a good choice if you want to explain the history of “Take Back the Night.”)
Consider the examples your classmates shared.
Begin writing your “un-essay proposal” – homework for Tuesday.
Homework:
Write a one-page, 250 word Un-essay Proposal and upload it to D2L for participation / homework credit. Your proposal should: 1) Name your topic or subject and your purpose in writing about it; 2) Name the genre or type of un-essay you are writing; 3) Explain why the topic and genre are good match; 4) describes what steps you will need to make and how the work should be evaluated (in other words, what makes a good wiki-how article, Ted Talk, podcast, etc..
On Tuesday, we will look at the assignment and the rubric in more detail. I will invite you to help me write the grading rubric in a way that makes sense for your work.
Week 13
This week we will focus on drafting our “un essay” projects. Different from our prior essays, this work requires each of you to make some decisions about how you want to approach it.
Tuesday
1. Discussion of Un Essay Requiremetns
Goals, Process
Let's review the assignment (and edit it if necessary). What questions do you have? What ideas are you exploring?
You can still make a change to your topic or genre. If you do make a big change, you should also revise your proposal and document that on your Writers Journal as part of your process. (You don't need to resubmit it to D2L).
2. Status Report and Feedback
Review your project proposal (submitted for participation/homework). Do you need to make changes? What might you clarify?
Provide a summary via this online form
Share your plans with a classmate and get their feedback. What seems promising? What might be difficult?
3. Rubric
Discuss and collaboratively edit the grading rubric.
Review Summary Feedback
Homework
Begin composing your un-essay.
Bring a draft to class for Thursday.
Thursday
1. Review of Un-Essay Rubric Criteria
Writers Journal: how would these apply to your type of un-essay? How would you describe a 10/10 for each of the four criteria?
Discuss how this can apply to different types of un-essay.
Crowd source and edit the rubric to include descriptors for excellent, good, adequate, and unacceptable results.
2. In class feedback and writing
Share your draft with a classmate. Give and get feedback here. Then continue working on your draft.
If your feedback isn't showing, use this link
Consult with the professor individually with any questions, problems, or need for feedback.
3. Looking ahead
The Un-essay is due at the end of class, one week from today (last regular day of class).
You will upload two or three things to D2L:
a) The final Un-Essay (as document, media file, link, etc.)
b) Self-reflective process document
c) (Optional) Proof of tutoring from the IUP Writing Center (10% bonus IF documented with upload AND some evidence that revision advise was incorporated!)
Finishing Out the Semester
Revise and edit your Un-essay.
Look ahead to week 14, the next and final week of the class!
We will not meet face to face on Tuesday. Final regular, face-to-face meeting is next Thursday
Final Exam Schedule:
Reflection Letters Due. You may submit online via D2L or come to class to write and discuss with me.
003: Tues 5/2 @8am
004: Thurs 5/4 @8am
005: Tues 5/4 @10:20am
Week 14
Tuesday
No meeting in person today.
Revise your Un-essay and prepare for submission Thursday.
See further revision / editing feedback from the Writing Center for a 10% bonus.
Thursday
- Un-Essay Project completion
- Get professor's assistance in uploading and submitting your project (Word File, Video, post image etc.) and process document
- Review of “Final Exam” writing assignment: reflective professional cover letter
The cover letter may be written in class or at home; it is due via D2L at your final exam time. You may opt to come to the classroom to write/revise it here and get professor's feedback.
Final Exam Schedule:
Reflection Letters are your final exam. You may submit online via D2L or come to class to write and discuss with me.
003: Tues 5/2 @8am
004: Thurs 5/4 @8am
005: Tues 5/2 @10:20am