Essay Cycle #4: Argument/Persuasion Essay with Research

Start 10/26 -- Due 11/14

Essay #4 Topic Explanation

For our next essay, I am going to put your into a "real" writing situation. Of course, our other writings have been real, but this one will be a bit different because it will be addressed toward an outside audience who really will read what you have to say and will take what you say into account as the work on a real issue.

Don't be intimidated by this step up in our tasks. Writing is a human and common form of communication, and I believe engaging you in real writing situations helps you learn more about writing than any other essay exercise.

Understanding the Writing Situation

Any act of writing involves common factors of what is called the "writing situation" (or rhetorical situation).
--WHO is writing
--WHO is being addressed or written to
--What is being written about (the subject)
--What language is used to create each of these parts of the situation

Here is an expanded version of the Writing Situation from the Writing Center at Colorado State that better illustrates the social nature of communication:

Key Questions of the Writing Situation:

Who are you writing to?--Audience
What is your message?--Message
Why are you sending "this" message to "that" audience?--purpose
What is the occasion or context for your communication?

Purpose can also be expressed by this question: What is your desired affect upon your intended audience? What do you want them to see, think, feel, or do when or after they read your writing?

Our Writing Situation for Essay #4

What is the Topic?
Currently, across the country there is a large push to get more high school students "college ready." A large percentage of high school graduates place into remedial classes when they get to college--how do we get more students to place directly into college-level classes? Many students drop out and years later struggle to go back to school--how do we get more students to stick with their education? A problem even exists with students who place into college-level classes not truly being ready for the rigors of college work, so they crash, burn, and drop out of college. How do we help students be ready for college-level work?

I believe strongly that you have important messages to communicate to current high school students that might help them stay in school, be successful, and go on to college. Many of you experienced difficulties in high school that you have written movingly about in our Book Project and in other writing assignments in this course. You speak from a unique perspective because you attended high school but were not judged as "college ready" for English and writing. However, you are now in college pursuing your degree, so you see better what it takes to be successful in college.Here's your chance to share your experience with a younger generation and make a real difference. You are uniquely qualified given your experience and position as new college students to speak to these high school students.

These truths could be something like "Stay in school" or "Stay off drugs" or "Wait to get pregnant" or "Read more" or "Spend more time studying and less time working"--whatever is a significant message that you wish to communicate to them and persuade them of its truth.

Audience--Although you will define a more specific audience, your general audience is high school students who may be going through similar things that you went through.

Writer--that's you! You have credibility to speak on this topic because of where you are (in college) and your experience (in high school).

Purpose-- Your purpose is to persuade them that your truth or principle is true or something they should do, understand, take heed of, or adopt. Can you get them to learn something important from your experience (expressed in your essay) that will benefit them?

Type of essay: Argument/Persuasion
The kind of essay your are writing is an argument/persuasion essay. We will be more on the side of persuasion than argument since we are mostly attempting to get our audience to listen to, consider, and even agree with what we have to say--maybe even change their thinking or actions based on what we say. We are not so much involved in an issue that has multiple sides and we are in a contentious situation where we are trying to win over our audience to our side of the issue. You will be reading more about argument/persuasion, but the key thing to remember is that this kind of essay is founded on REASONS. The Primary Supports for this kind of essay are REASONS. Think in terms of WHY questions more than how or what questions. You may find that you could also structure your essay around key FACTORS or influences.

Real Writing
One thing I want you to feel is a sense of writing for a real audience for a real purpose. It isn't just a classroom exercise bound for the trash bin. Here are a couple of things to keep in mind about this real writing:

Writing as performance
Just as actors on a stage get up in front of real people and perform for them, I want you to think of your act of writing as something you do in front of and for your audience. You have to think about who your audience is and how you will reach them. Also, through your writing you will be attempting to perform some act toward your audience; that is, you have some desired purpose and thing you hope to achieve toward your audience.

Writing as Event
Your exchange with your audience also can be thought of as an event: that is, it is an occasion. It happens in a particular moment of time, and there are special circumstances surrounding this moment in time. It may be that you are trying to connect with your audience surrounding a particular occasion or circumstance they are going through (like feeling school isn't worth it, or a moment of family crisis, or just having learned of a pregnancy). Try to think in terms of what circumstances surround your exchange with your audience.

Writing as dialogue
All writing should be written with the expectation of response. Think about when we speak. We hardly ever say anything without other listeners present and the expectation that they might have something to say back to what we just said. I want you to think of this writing in the same way. Rather than your writing being a pronouncement that is complete and isolated, it is one utterance within a context of conversation. Think about how your essay will serve as a contribution to this ongoing conversation.

Publication
These essays that you produce will be published on a site used by high school students (and even younger) called Youth Voices. We have a special "group" inside YouthVoices where high school student will be able to read and respond to your essays. You will also be able to read their comments and respond back. Your essay is only a beginning of a dialogue.

I have created accounts for you inside YouthVoices and will help you get connected via a guide published in our Class Announcements inside The Writing Club. Please don't set up your own account--I have one for you.

Example Essays within a Previous Publication Site
I have done this essay before with my students, and I have posted them into a site that I hoped I would get participation in from high school students. It hasn't happened via this site, so moving to YouthVoices should help. Check out College4U!

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Special Note:
Respecting appropriate communication and privacy in this exchange with high school students is particularly important. Be sure to follow the golden rule: Anything that is inappropriate in a face-to-face interaction is just as inappropriate online. Any problems with appropriateness or privacy could result in you being dropped from the class. We have to be on our best behavior!

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RESEARCH AND DOCUMENTATION REQUIREMENTS:

In total, you will need to have two “sources” (newspaper, book, internet and magazine sources you find in your research). You will be expected to document your essay following the MLA Documentation Style.

This crowd of high schoolers may not be convinced too much by facts and information from research sources, but the goal here is to add to your credibility and the breadth of the paper.

Steps for Working on the Paper

Learning Items for this Essay

This essay contains a large amount of material to familiarize yourself with and learn. I recommend that you take the first half of the assignment cycle (through 11/4) to get through this material.

1) Learn about Argument/Persuasion:
Read Chpt. 18 in Real Essays on writing Argument/Persuasion essays.
Next, read through the Writing Argumentative Essays guide.

2) Learn About Researching:
Read Chapter 21 in researching in Real Essays.

3) Learn About Using and Documenting Quotations Correctly
Take some time to review these sites

a) Overview on Writing a Documented Paper. (To view the PowerPoint, click the little screen icon in the bottom right.) Also, look at chapter in Real Essays.

b) Review chapter 39 in Real Essays and these guides on Using Quotations

c) Documenting Sources according to MLA Documentation (consider these as resource links). Chapter 21 is a good resource too.

Step One: Topic Invention (Due 10/31)

Use this invention exercise to help you discover a topic. Please note--it is intended to HELP YOU FIND A TOPIC TO WRITE ON, so you don't need to feel like you need to know what you will write on before you start. I encourage you to take whatever time you need on this invention.

Instructions for doing and posting your own invention exercise:
1) Open the E4Invention Exercise sheet from this link.
2) COPY and PASTE the invention questions into a new word processing document.
3) Save the document onto your computer.
4) Work the exercise as best you can (follow the notes above).

When you are done
5) Click and drag across all your answers to get a copy of them.
6) Click into the E4 Invention Discussion Board
7) Click ADD NEW DISCUSSION TOPIC to post a new message.
8) Paste your text into the textbox and SUBMIT.  (You did it!)

I strongly recommend that you look at the inventions of your peers to get some ideas.

Step Two: Freewriting Draft (Due 11/1)

Once you have a good sense of your Message, your Audience, and your Purpose, then you are ready for a bit of writing. Look over your invention exercise one more time, then put it aside. Sit down and write straight for thirty minutes--don't stop, keep writing.

Write this as you first line:

Well, what I really mean to say is...

Let that line get you launched. Don't think of this piece of writing as the "performance" of the essay, so don't worry about essay form, organization, or grammar--just write. Also, feel free to dialogue with yourself about the topic. Identify areas of questions or problems in writing the essay and brainstorm how you might address them and overcome them in the essay. Write this draft as a "quick draft" like in E3.

Post this freewriting draft in the E4Freewriting Draft forum. Since I expect you to write for 30 minutes continuously, I would expect this piece to be pretty substantial in length.

Step Three: Do some researching on your topic

Look for information that could add to or bolster your appeal to your audience. You need to incorporate information from at least two sources.

A) Try searching the SAC online databases
Visit the SAC Databases and click into the General Databases and pick either Academic Search Premier or Nexis/Lexis Academic

Note: You should be able to access these databases online, but to do so you will need to provide some password information. Your PALS username and password works to get you into these databases. Let me know if you have any questions about access.

B) Try searching Google

As you do research, I urge you to take notes on what you find. You will use information you find in your sources as evidence in your paper. Think about what "keywords" you will use in your search (go back to Task 1 to learn about keyword searching).

Step Four: Outlining Your Paper (Due 11/5)

Look at your invention as well as your Freewriting Draft, and pull out the good material from these activities. Create an outline using this Developing Support handout to guide you. Realize that your writing piece still needs to roughly stick within the general principles we have discussed about Essay Form, Organization, and Development.

Be sure you identify clear PRIMARY SUPPORTS for your Thesis (these Primary Supports may be REASONS, but they might be something else). Seek for multiple Secondary Supports that contain specific details for each Primary Support. Seek also for where your research will fit in.

Post your outline to the E4Outline Forum

Step Five: Writing Your First Draft (Due 11/7)

Use your outline as a guide as you write this first draft. Keep in mind your message, your audience, and your purpose, and seek to make this first draft a full "performance" of the essay, but it doesn't have to be perfect (like a dress rehearsal). Post this draft into the E4-Draft 1 Forum.

Hint for Developing Your Support:
Look at each BODY paragraph as its own proof. Take a separate sheet of paper, and put the REASON or PRIMARY" SUPPORT at the top of the page. Then go through your brainstorming and research sources, and find any support you can for that reason and put it down on that page. You are looking for quotes from your sources to back up your reason as well as examples and details from your experience to support your Primary Supports.

Step Six : Peer Response on Draft #1 (Due 11/10) and Writer's Review (Due 11/11)

I will ask you to do THREE detailed peer responses to draft #1. (A fourth counts as extra credit.) See Guide for Peer Response to Draft 4-1

Instructions for doing the Writer's Review are on this peer response guide.

Step Seven: Revise Your Essay

Consider the peer responses you received as well as your own review of your essay, and revise your essay to improve it in any way possible. Print a copy and edit it carefully for grammatical problems.

The Essay is Due 11/14.

Special Instructions for File Name conventions and Essay Document Format

1. At the top of the essay document you should include your name and the date.
2. Also, include the Title to your essay before the text of the essay begins.
3. Essays should be 12 point font and double-spaced.
4. Essays should be saved with the proper file name:
   --FILE NAME: E4--your initials (example E4-LLI)
5. Essays should be turned in as Rich Text Format documents. See this help page for changing your file into another format.

Turning in your essay to our online learning environment

1. Log in to The Writing Place
2. Click into the "Essay 4 Final Draft " discussion forum
3. Start a new message
4. In this new message, COPY and PASTE the text of your essay into the textbox.
5. Also, attach your final draft of the essay to this message post.
   Note: Be sure you have the file in RTF format and that you have included the correct file name. (You may need to open and resave the file to get the correct file name and format.)

The message you turn your essay in with will contain the text of the essay copied into the message-text and the essay attached to the message as an attachment. The essay in the message text makes it easy for your peers to view your essay (perhaps for peer response) and the attached version of the essay allows me to obtain a formatted copy of your essay for grading.

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Details about turning in your essay to our publication site in YouthVoices will be provided when the essay is due. It may be that we only turn the essay into the YouthVoices site.
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