At the start of class today Prof. Joyce handed back Short Write A and then asked us to to write down our availability this Thursday and Friday (between 8:30-5:00) so that she can put us into groups for our conferences.
After that, we got back into our groups from Friday. The groups who didn't present Friday talked about Purpose, Occasion, and Kind in their group's essay. Then each group also decided whether their essay contained more Ethos, Pathos, Logos, or an equal measure of appeals.
Following the group exercise, we went over five ways of looking at a thesis. These are:
1. A thesis says something a little strange
2. A thesis makes a lot of information irrelevant
3. A thesis deals with exclusive and specific texts
4. A thesis guides the readers from one point to another and gives the paper direction (the thesis is like a mini outline)
5. The Magic Thesis Sentence: By looking at ______, we can see _______, which most readers don't see; this is important because ________. (When it doubt, use the MTS first, and then go back and reword for a better more original thesis later)
Homework:
1. Read chapter 4 in EA
2. Draft 2.5-3 pages of the News Analysis
3. Bring 3 copies of your draft to class Wednesday
Wednesday we'll be going over MLA citation, so it's okay if your MLA citations aren't perfect in the New Analysis draft.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Friday, August 27, 2010
Aug 27
Today in class we did several things:
1. We went over the homework from the handout - discussing key words that reveal bias, examining article titles, considering the purpose of adjectives and adverbs, and sharing the news we found and what it revealed.
2. Discussing the importance of critical reading (JAC 52-53) but also the importance of critical writing, and using the steps outlined for reading in our writing too.
3. A reading exercise in which each group was given a different news article. After reading the 1 page article each group had to decide the Purpose, Occasion, and Kind of argument presented in the text and share with the class. We didn't finish this exercise so we'll continue it first thing Monday.
4. Discussion about Inference, Fact, and Judgment. An Inference as a statement made about an unknown based on a known. It is not a positive or negative statement. A Judgment, on the other hand, is an inference with a positive or negative statement embedded within it.
An example of an Inference: You see gray cloud and infer it is going to rain.
An example of a judgment: You see a banged up car and infer negatively that the driver must be a bad one.
Homework:
1. read Chap 2-3 in EA
2. read p. 20-31 in EW
3. Find 3 articles on 1 news event and fill in the spreadsheet that was distributed in class (if you were absent - email Prof. Joyce for this)
1. We went over the homework from the handout - discussing key words that reveal bias, examining article titles, considering the purpose of adjectives and adverbs, and sharing the news we found and what it revealed.
2. Discussing the importance of critical reading (JAC 52-53) but also the importance of critical writing, and using the steps outlined for reading in our writing too.
3. A reading exercise in which each group was given a different news article. After reading the 1 page article each group had to decide the Purpose, Occasion, and Kind of argument presented in the text and share with the class. We didn't finish this exercise so we'll continue it first thing Monday.
4. Discussion about Inference, Fact, and Judgment. An Inference as a statement made about an unknown based on a known. It is not a positive or negative statement. A Judgment, on the other hand, is an inference with a positive or negative statement embedded within it.
An example of an Inference: You see gray cloud and infer it is going to rain.
An example of a judgment: You see a banged up car and infer negatively that the driver must be a bad one.
Homework:
1. read Chap 2-3 in EA
2. read p. 20-31 in EW
3. Find 3 articles on 1 news event and fill in the spreadsheet that was distributed in class (if you were absent - email Prof. Joyce for this)
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Aug 25
Today Prof. Joyce distributed our first assignment - the News Analysis and a 10 page handout called "Thinking and Writing - A Critical Connection".
She also passed out the blog sign-up sheet. Everyone signed up for a day to contribute to the blog. Prof. Joyce will bring the sign-up sheet every day in case students need to switch dates.
After everything was passed out Prof. Joyce talked to us about the requirements and expectations for the New Analysis assignment. Google news will be a valuable research resource for this paper.
Next we were given a writing prompt: What is the best or most convincing argument you have made recently and how did you support your argument? For 10 minutes each student wrote his or her response to the prompt and then Professor Joyce asked for volunteers to share what they wrote. By sharing, we were able to identify several kinds of argument.
Our homework for the night is:
1. Read Chapter 1 in EA
2. Read p 52-53 in JAC
3. Read p 14-20 in EW
4. Read the handout
5. Short Write A: answer questions 1-3 on page 10 of the handout.
She also passed out the blog sign-up sheet. Everyone signed up for a day to contribute to the blog. Prof. Joyce will bring the sign-up sheet every day in case students need to switch dates.
After everything was passed out Prof. Joyce talked to us about the requirements and expectations for the New Analysis assignment. Google news will be a valuable research resource for this paper.
Next we were given a writing prompt: What is the best or most convincing argument you have made recently and how did you support your argument? For 10 minutes each student wrote his or her response to the prompt and then Professor Joyce asked for volunteers to share what they wrote. By sharing, we were able to identify several kinds of argument.
Our homework for the night is:
1. Read Chapter 1 in EA
2. Read p 52-53 in JAC
3. Read p 14-20 in EW
4. Read the handout
5. Short Write A: answer questions 1-3 on page 10 of the handout.
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Monday, August 23, 2010
1st day
Today we met and Prof. Joyce distributed the syllabus, and a policies and procedures handout. Additionally, Prof. Joyce showed up the three textbooks we would need for class:
1. Easy Writer (4th Edition)
2. Joining Academic Conversations (4th Edition)
3. Everything's an Argument (5th Edition)
As a class, we went over the syllabus and class structure. Important things of note:
1. Peer Reviews and Conferences will happen in groups of three in Prof. Joyce's office (very few peer reviews will ever be conducted in class)
2. There is no such thing as an excused absence
3. After 3 absences your grade will decrease by 1 full letter grade each missed class
4. This blog space will serve as a means to keep track of what happened in class and functions as a Short Write for the author of each post.
After we went over the class structure we did an introductory exercise to learn about one another.
Homework due Wednesday:
1. Buy all three textbooks
2. Read JAC (Joining Academic Conversations) xi-xviii
3. Write an Introductory letter about yourself
1. Easy Writer (4th Edition)
2. Joining Academic Conversations (4th Edition)
3. Everything's an Argument (5th Edition)
As a class, we went over the syllabus and class structure. Important things of note:
1. Peer Reviews and Conferences will happen in groups of three in Prof. Joyce's office (very few peer reviews will ever be conducted in class)
2. There is no such thing as an excused absence
3. After 3 absences your grade will decrease by 1 full letter grade each missed class
4. This blog space will serve as a means to keep track of what happened in class and functions as a Short Write for the author of each post.
After we went over the class structure we did an introductory exercise to learn about one another.
Homework due Wednesday:
1. Buy all three textbooks
2. Read JAC (Joining Academic Conversations) xi-xviii
3. Write an Introductory letter about yourself
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