Week 5: Finishing Project 1; Writing Opinion Essays

Project 1 due Friday, March 1, 2024

Class Info

  • Dates: Wednesday, February 28, 2024 (Monday schedule), Monday, March 4, 2024
  • Meeting Info: 11:30am-12:45pm in room N602A

Objectives

  • To draft and revise our narratives about belonging to/felling excluded from discourse communities, and to connect our ideas to those expressed in our course readings; to offer feedback to our classmates as part of the revision process. To complete our Discourse Community essays (Project 1) and all related work; to write a reflection about the Discourse Community essay; to begin the Opinion Essay (Project 2)

Actions

  • Complete and post Project 1 by Friday, 3/1.
  • Complete any unfinished work from previous weeks’ agendas, including any Discussions that can help you with Project 1.

For Wednesday 2/28

Reading

Writing

In Class, Wednesday, 2/28

  • Additional text: Blog Post: “Racial Imposter Syndrome” by Kelly Bates
  • Group discussion: what do we still need to do to finish Project 1?
    • writing about (and telling a story about) a discourse community you belong to in your life
    • writing about (and telling a story about) a discourse community you belong to or want to belong to as a student here at City Tech; why it’s important to belong, what steps you can take (eg join a club, go to an event, take more courses, find a mentor, doing a research project)
    • have a thesis statement either in a more formal introduction or after the story you tell about your belonging to a discourse community
    • reflecting on what it means to be part of a DC
    • using specific language, writing from a place of noticing
    • finding a passage from one of our readings to connect to
  • Peer Review of Project 1:
    • Review your own draft, and read a classmate’s draft, too. Answer these questions about your draft and your classmate’s as specifically as you can (point to specific sentences or paragraphs):
    • in your own words, what is this discourse communities narrative about?
    • what parts captured your attention?
    • what parts did you want to read more about?
    • what parts were confusing or needed more explanation for you to understand?
    • what parts felt like they didn’t belong in this narrative about two discourse communities and finding a sense of belonging?
    • any other feedback or suggestions?
  • Titles: what’s a good title for your Project 1?
  • How to submit Project 1: Writing a Post

For Monday, 3/4

Reading

  • Novel: Passing by Nella Larsen
  • Podcast/Interview: “On Passing” (both audio and written transcript available)

Writing

  • Annotate as you read our course’s texts.

In Class, Monday, 3/4

  • write a letter to me in which you reflect on your work for Project 1 by considering the following questions:
    • what did you write about in Project 1?
    • what audience or reader did you write this for?
    • what did you learn about yourself as a student, a learner, a writer, a reviser, a collaborator (eg, peer reviewer, responding to classmates), or anything else?
    • if you had more time to work on Project 1, what would you want to work on?
    • What additional support would you have wanted from me?
    • what are you proud of from Project 1?
    • what do you want help with as you revise your project for your final portfolio?
    • what grade do you think your project has earned, based on the grading criteria?
    • is there anything else I should know about?
  • What advice do you have now for yourself when you were starting or working on Project 1?
Top tips 10
“Top tips 10” by Loughborough University Library via Flickr under the license CC BY 2.0 Deed
Top tips 9
“Top tips 9” by Loughborough University Library via Flickr under the license CC BY 2.0 Deed
  • NYT video op-ed: “Greta Thunberg Has Given Up on Politicians
    • reactions? uses humor, tragic music–makes it emotional, nostalgic; hopelessness,
    • What is Thunberg’s argument?
      • that everyone should take climate crisis seriously instead of caring mostly about money
    • How does Thunberg support her argument?
      • talks about this tipping point of the temperature of 1.5C in ice cores, but we’re already at 1.2; ecosystems failing
      • uses humor as a break from the seriousness of her message–or to underscore it: eg celebration part, gangnam style for time passing–sarcasm
    • What is effective/less effective in her opinion piece?
      • uses facts from scientists, foregrounds them rather than herself, though she uses her visibility to redirect to scientists
    • What does the multimodal aspect do for her argument?
  • What is an Op Ed or an opinion essay?
    • opinionated claim or argument, also includes counterargument, have a point they want to get across, use evidence to support what they want to say. think about how they use information–do they include misinformation or disinformation? is the author truthful, manipulative?
  • What topics would make us interested enough to read an opinion essay?
  • Helpful resources:

Photo Credits:

“Writing Tips” by Karen Bryan via Flickr CC BY-ND 2.0 Deed