Supplement Lecture Text:
Refer to Chapter 7 in From Inquiry to Academic Writing for more on summary writing.
To further develop your summarizing skills, complete the “Practice Sequence: Summarizing” from Chapter 7.
Also, for examples of strong summaries, check out Chapter 7.
Add comment December 20th, 2007
Supplement Lecture Text:
Here are a few examples of proper citations. Note where the punctuation goes!
Author’s last name, first name. Book Title. City of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication.
Author’s last name, first name. “Article Title.” Magazine Title. Date: pages it appears on.
Author’s last name, first name. “Article Title.” Academic Journal Title. Volume.Issue (Year): Page Numbers.
Author’s last name, first name. “Article Title.” Website date published. Date you accessed site.
For more information on the Works Cited page, refer to pages 572-598 in your Simon and Schuster Handbook for Writers.
Note: Titles can be underlined or italicized; just be sure to be consistent with either one you choose.
Hot Tip!: For Essay 1, we’re using an Article in a Collection of Reprinted Articles.
If you look in the RED section of our Simon and Schuster Handbook for Writers, which is the MLA section, on what page can you find how to cite this article? What number is it? Look to the clue I gave you beside Hot Tip!
Add comment December 19th, 2007
Supplement Lecture Text:
Hard copy example: In his article “Creating Common Ground: Common Reading and the First Year of College” Micheal Ferguson, AAC&U senior staff writer and associate editor of Peer Review, argues, “Common reading programs also supplement small-group discussions with other orientation activities. Campuses sometimes introduce new students to library research by showing them how to locate resources related to the common reading, its author, and the issues it raises” (9).
Online example: In his ONLINE article “Creating Common Ground: Common Reading and the First Year of College” Micheal Ferguson, AAC&U senior staff writer and associate editor of Peer Review, argues, “Common reading programs also supplement small-group discussions with other orientation activities. Campuses sometimes introduce new students to library research by showing them how to locate resources related to the common reading, its author, and the issues it raises.”
Hot Tip!: For this essay, you will ONLY be using an article from our textbook. Therefore, you will be using the Hard Copy example ONLY. For future essays, you will need to know how to site online sources.
For more information on parenthetical citations (of hard sources and online sources), refer to pages 564-571 in your Simon and Schuster Handbook for Writers.
Add comment December 19th, 2007
Supplement Lecture Text:
Example: In his article “Creating Common Ground: Common Reading and the First Year of College” Micheal Ferguson, AAC&U senior staff writer and associate editor of Peer Review, argues…
For more information on source introductions, refer to pages 549-552 in your Simon and Schuster Handbook for Writers.
Add comment December 19th, 2007
Example of a CA and R for a POSITIVE evaluation:
One drawback to the perfection that is Pizza Hut is it doesn’t offer other menu options. Even though Pizza Hut doesn’t offer other menu options, it is still an exceptional pizza parlor. People go to Pizza Hut, knowing it serves pizza. Therefore, the parlor does not need to serve other items. People go to Pizza Hut craving pizza; if people wanted to eat lasagna, they would go to Biaggi’s.
Example of CA and R for a NEGATIVE evaluation:
Even though Pizza Hut is not a superb pizzeria, they are widely available because they have many locations, which is one positive attribute. However, because they have many locations, the quality of each location differs, which, again, makes Pizza Hut a poor pizzeria choice. The customer never knows what kind of customer service he/she is going to get.
Please let me know if you have any questions regarding Essay 1. I’m here to help. Remember you cannot revise this essay.
Add comment December 19th, 2007
Hot Tips!
1.) Check out the Instructor Evaluation Rubric under the Portfolio button in our Blackboard site.
2.) Trust your gut. Make evaluations that are sincere.
3.) Learning what are NOT appropriate criteria may help you more quickly understand what’s appropriate. Check out The NOT list:
A.) “It’s hard.”
B.) “It’s too long.”
C.) “It’s stupid.”
D.) “It’s boring.”
If you find yourself thinking in terms of inappropriate criteria, turn on your critical thinking skills and see if you can’t reword them to become appropriate criteria. Check out the YES list:
A.) “The word choices in the article are not appropriate for novices to the subject because they are not clearly defined and explained.”
B.) “The article repeats the same concepts and ideas, therefore making it an unnecessarily long read.”
C.) “The article’s content does not relate to a specific audience.” (Make sure you name that audience.
D.) “The lack of sentence variety and monotonous descriptions may deter some audience members from understanding the meaning of the article.”
4.) Look to our class wiki and discussion board for more ideas.
Add comment December 19th, 2007
A “good” thesis: Pizza Hut is a perfect pizza parlor because of its clean environment, its fast and friendly service, and its ample topping choices.
See how the evaluation is stated and the criteria used to make that evaluation? This is definitely an effective thesis. However, you don’t have to include the criteria you used if you don’t want to. What matters to the thesis in this essay is the evaluation.
1 comment December 19th, 2007
Reading Critically and Annotating
Use pencil and write in the margins of the text
1.) Preview the text
a. Genre—book, essay, news article, web site, poem, etc.
b. Title—what does it tell you about content and purpose?
c. Organization—headings, subheadings, major sections?
d. Sources—what sources are listed in bib or index? What do these sources tell us about the info the writer will draw on?
Note all of these preview on the first page of the text.
2.) Look up unfamiliar terms and concepts in a dictionary, encyclopedia, in the article’s works cited or reference page.
3.) SLOW DOWN—read and reread BEFORE annotating.
4.) Annotate the text to clarify and respond to its content.
a. Content: Explain concepts, main points, argument, etc. in your own words.
b. Context: Look at the organization of the text: thesis, counterargument, use of sources, etc.
c. Response notes: What is your response? Does it tick you off? Do you agree? Does the text raise any questions? Write them down.
Notes on annotation: Practice makes perfect. The more you read critically the more annotation will become a natural reaction. Homework is important practice, so it is essential you annotate the articles you will be asked to read in this course. Practice annotation in texts for other classes too because it will help you retain information. In fact, almost all of what you learn in this class you can apply in other classes—in terms of reading critically AND writing academically!
Hot tip: Afraid you won’t get your money back if you write in books you buy for courses? Use PENCIL! Then you can go back and erase your notes before selling them. Also, consider making your annotations in a notebook. Or use Post-it Notes that you can write on and then “stick” to the appropriate page.
3 comments December 18th, 2007
I’m embarrassed to admit it.
But I have been a Justin Timberlake fan since the glory days of NSYNC.
Sad but true.
Even more sad, for me, is that I have to convince my husband to go with me to a JT show. (Poor guy…)
I would go with my best friend, but she has a ticket through her company’s loge. And there’s not an extra for me.
I’m left no choice but to argue tooth and nail for why we must go to the JT show in Detroit. And I’m thinking if I synthesize sources, I’ll really be able to convince him.
My husband’s a sucker for a good argument!
I’ve started collecting pro-JT materials:
This photo from my friend A’s Camera Phone shows that the production of the show is fabulous. Concert-goers in all seats can “see” JT because the extra large monitors and larger-than-life technologies used by the production company. We won’t have to worry about getting “bad” seats.
This video from YouTube demonstrates JT’s quality choreography and quality sound production at one of his concerts. Both are important criteria for deciding to spend money on a JT tickets.
Finally, I asked my best friend Stokes what she thought of the previous JT concerts she’s been to: “Going to a JT show is totally worth the money. It’s an experience rather than a show. JT works the crowd really well, and when he can, he brings special guests on the stage, like at the Cleveland show Lebron James got on stage and busted some moves. It was cool.”
After gathering all this research, now I need to synthesize it to really make a strong argument to my husband.
My plan is this:
I will make him a fantastic dinner–one of his favs–duck in berry sauce–I’ve got to appeal to my audience, right?
Then when he’s all full and happy, I will very sweetly mention the upcoming JT show. Then, very convincingly and kindly, I will state that we should go to this show. (If you look at it from an essay perspective, saying we should go to the show is my thesis…)
My first reason for going will be that show will be visually exciting. After I butter him up with why it’s important for a concert to be theatrical, I’ll support my reason with specific examples from JT shows. I’ll show him A’s colorful picture with the grand big screen, and to further prove my point, I’ll show him the YouTube video which demonstrates the awesome choreography. Both of these sources confirm that a JT show is theatrical and worth going to.
Hopefully, that will convince him. If it doesn’t, though, I’ll just use another reason to convince him.
I’ll explain that JT is a good showman. I’ll have my hubby watch the YouTube video again, and I’ll point out how excited and pumped up JT makes the audience. To further support JT’s crowd-pleasing performance, I’ll share with my husband what my bff Stokes said, “JT works the crowd really well, and when he can, he brings special guests on the stage, like at the Cleveland show Lebron James got on stage and busted some moves. It was cool.” Both of these sources will no doubt prove that JT is a entertaining performer, and that we should go to his show.
I know if I use these the picture, video, and Stokes’ quote together, I can convince him to go to the JT concert with me because my points will be well-explained and well-supported.
And as I said before, my husband greatly admires a well-supported, logical argument, even enough to go to a JT concert if he thinks the argument is valid.
Yes, my husband respects a good argument that much.
And so do I because it gets me what I want–to see JT live!
JT, here we come!
Add comment October 1st, 2007
