Writing Homework Help

Please read the forum about online behavior & discussion engagement before answering the discussion boards.

Please read through the prompts & plan your responses; you want to be thorough & explain your answers, referencing the texts for support.

When you are finished, come back to the discussion board & engage your peers (you must respond to at least 2 other students) on the discussion board about their responses. Remember, this is meant to be a discussion, not simply a “post & I’m done” assignment.

When finished, you’ll have answered 10 prompts.

Research & Evaluating Sources – Please answer any FOUR of the following six prompts:

• In your own words, explain the difference between a primary source & a secondary source. Briefly explain which you think is most helpful in terms of research & why.

• Why shouldn’t you use Wikipedia (or Wiki-related sources) for research?

• How do critical thinking skills help you to differentiate between real & fake or satirical news sites?
• What makes a source worthwhile or credible to you?

• Why does the credibility/validity of sources matter to your argument?

• How can you make use of the information regarding evaluating sources outside of your research project/school work?

MLA Style – please answer the following prompt:

• What is the purpose of a citation style (any style, not just MLA) & why is consistent formatting so important for a citation style?

They Say, I Say chapters– answer ONE of the following two prompts:

• “Chapter 1 – Starting with What Others are Saying” claims that it’s important to explain the impetus of your writing (what made you write about a topic in the first place) because it can inform HOW you write about that topic. Look at the Klass & Waxman readings – the WHY they’re writing is fairly obvious. They note several examples of what they’re responding to. However, the way they respond is quite different. How do the different reasons Klass & Waxman have for writing affect the way they present their arguments?

• Graff & Birkenstein argue that, “a summary must at once be true to what the original author says while at the same time emphasizing those aspects of what the author says that interest you, the writer” (48). How does the Rhetorical Summary Outline work to help you accomplish both of these goals?

Klass & Waxman – please answer ONE of the following two prompts:

• Most of what Waxman attacks in the examples she notes is the language used by the journalists, claiming that their words reflect a slant or bias that may come across as presenting the paranormal as factual. Where is Waxman most compelling in her argument & why?

• Most of Klass’s arguments are based on a lack of balance in news reporting, saying that legitimate science isn’t granted the same time or opportunity to go against alien conspiracy believers. Where is Klass most compelling in his argument & why?

Thesis Statements – please answer the following two prompts:

• Clarify the difference between a Thesis and a Thesis Statement & explain why it matters that you have a Thesis Statement & not just a Thesis.

• What is your usual process for creating a thesis statement? What do you struggle with most in terms of writing a thesis statement & how do you work to overcome that issue?

They Say, I Say & Quotations – please answer ONE of the following two prompts:

• The author of “Queering Hollywood’s Heroes” references a single source – Alexander Doty – throughout her essay, but she basically just uses that source as a Quick Aside – she doesn’t explain the source; she merely quotes it briefly & moves on. Quick Asides are not a bad way to use a source, but her consistent use of this style can be ineffective in proving her claims. How could the author of “Queering Hollywood’s Heroes” improve her argument by changing the way she introduces & uses her source?

• In the They Say, I Say chapter, they offer an explanation of how to integrate & use quotes; specifically, on pages 59-62, they discuss what they call “hit and run” quotations, where a quote is dropped in without any intro, explanation, context, etc. Why is this type of quote usage problematic?

As the final part of this discussion board, I want you to respond to two classmates with responses of 75 words or more. Your responses should use at least one of the following patterns:

• Affirmations (i.e. “I really like that,” “I wouldn’t have thought of that,” “That helps me see the text in a new way,” etc.)
• Elaborations (i.e. “You know what that makes me think of is . . .” “Another thing that goes along with that is . . .” “This additional passage also ties into that . . .” etc.)
• Connections (i.e. “We noticed that too,” “That connects to something our group was asking,” “We came at something similar from a little different angle,” etc.)
• Questions (i.e. “Why do you think ___?” “Can you say more about ___?” “How is that related to ___?” “Did your group consider ___?” etc.)
• Divergences (“I see your point, but . . .” “A different perspective on that is . . .” “A passage in the text that might contradict that is . . .” etc.)