2.1: Practice Assignment 1
- Page ID
- 118497
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\(\newcommand{\avec}{\mathbf a}\) \(\newcommand{\bvec}{\mathbf b}\) \(\newcommand{\cvec}{\mathbf c}\) \(\newcommand{\dvec}{\mathbf d}\) \(\newcommand{\dtil}{\widetilde{\mathbf d}}\) \(\newcommand{\evec}{\mathbf e}\) \(\newcommand{\fvec}{\mathbf f}\) \(\newcommand{\nvec}{\mathbf n}\) \(\newcommand{\pvec}{\mathbf p}\) \(\newcommand{\qvec}{\mathbf q}\) \(\newcommand{\svec}{\mathbf s}\) \(\newcommand{\tvec}{\mathbf t}\) \(\newcommand{\uvec}{\mathbf u}\) \(\newcommand{\vvec}{\mathbf v}\) \(\newcommand{\wvec}{\mathbf w}\) \(\newcommand{\xvec}{\mathbf x}\) \(\newcommand{\yvec}{\mathbf y}\) \(\newcommand{\zvec}{\mathbf z}\) \(\newcommand{\rvec}{\mathbf r}\) \(\newcommand{\mvec}{\mathbf m}\) \(\newcommand{\zerovec}{\mathbf 0}\) \(\newcommand{\onevec}{\mathbf 1}\) \(\newcommand{\real}{\mathbb R}\) \(\newcommand{\twovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\ctwovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\threevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cthreevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\mattwo}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{rr}#1 \amp #2 \\ #3 \amp #4 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\laspan}[1]{\text{Span}\{#1\}}\) \(\newcommand{\bcal}{\cal B}\) \(\newcommand{\ccal}{\cal C}\) \(\newcommand{\scal}{\cal S}\) \(\newcommand{\wcal}{\cal W}\) \(\newcommand{\ecal}{\cal E}\) \(\newcommand{\coords}[2]{\left\{#1\right\}_{#2}}\) \(\newcommand{\gray}[1]{\color{gray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\lgray}[1]{\color{lightgray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\rank}{\operatorname{rank}}\) \(\newcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\col}{\text{Col}}\) \(\renewcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\nul}{\text{Nul}}\) \(\newcommand{\var}{\text{Var}}\) \(\newcommand{\corr}{\text{corr}}\) \(\newcommand{\len}[1]{\left|#1\right|}\) \(\newcommand{\bbar}{\overline{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bhat}{\widehat{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bperp}{\bvec^\perp}\) \(\newcommand{\xhat}{\widehat{\xvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\vhat}{\widehat{\vvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\uhat}{\widehat{\uvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\what}{\widehat{\wvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\Sighat}{\widehat{\Sigma}}\) \(\newcommand{\lt}{<}\) \(\newcommand{\gt}{>}\) \(\newcommand{\amp}{&}\) \(\definecolor{fillinmathshade}{gray}{0.9}\)Assignment Introduction
This assignment requires you to complete the writing process from critical reading and idea collection to outlining, drafting, revising, and editing. This assignment should help you set goals for improvement that you will reach throughout this semester. It will also help you practice the complete essay-writing process that will be an important part of college success in your future semesters.
The Writing Process
In an assignment that requires response-writing, you will be writing your own ideas, opinions, and connections to the topic of the text you read.
The steps for completing a response paper are:
- Read the assigned text for an initial understanding: pay attention to the author’s main points and your thoughts about them
- Record your thoughts and impressions in notes: take notes that will help you summarize these points in your essay. Take note of some of your thoughts, opinions, and connections to the text as you read.
- Develop a collection of thoughts and insights from the article, your notes, and your own life experience
- Write an outline to organize your thoughts and choose a main idea for your response
- Construct your first essay draft: this can be messy and have many complicated ideas. Don't worry about it. Relax and just get something down on paper so you can begin to fix it up. This is what Lammot calls the "shitty first draft." Don't procrastinate--just write something!
- Edit and revise your work carefully to fix errors and check for clear understanding: Be sure that all your ideas support your main point, you have explained your ideas clearly, and you have provided support and/or examples for each one. Edit your sentences and words, and proofread for accuracy and correctness.
Once you have established an outline for your paper, you'll need to make sure that your ideas respond to the topic using the basic elements of every strong essay, a strong thesis statement that explains YOUR main idea about the topic.
In the case of a response paper, the first sentence will likely contain the title and topic of the reading to which you are responding, and the name of the author.
The last sentence of your introductory paragraph should contain your stance or position on the subject you are writing about--this is your thesis.
There's no need to feel shy about expressing your own opinion in a response, even though it may seem strange to write "I feel" or "I believe" in a formal essay, it's okay in this type of writing. However, be careful not to overuse these words or any other unnecessary phrases; your writing can become cluttered and your points weakened.
Essay Assignment PROMPT & DIRECTIONSArgument Topic: Why do relatively few women work in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics? Assigned Reading: "Why Do Women Shun STEM? It's Complicated." Writing Prompt: Write a summary-and-response essay of 700-900 words (approximately 3 pages: double spaced, Times New Roman, 12 pt., left-aligned text that reveals your own ideas, opinions, critiques or connections as a response to the argument written by Barbara Oakley. Keep in mind that her essay, which first appeared in a 2018 issue of the Wall Street Journal is also a summary & response essay. Oakley's essay responds a persuasive essay titled “Why Women Don’t Code,” (Links to an external site.) by Stuart Reges. In it, he claims that women are underrepresented in computer science because of personal preference, not because institutional barriers deter them from pursuing careers in tech. Many people reacted to his article and opinion with outrage and the knowledge that while some of his ideas may explain a part of what’s happening with women considering STEM education, it mostly ignores the main problems that can be addressed to bring more women into the STEM field and it largely over simplifies the situation. You may include references to Reges's text or other articles you've across if you want to, but it is not required for this assignment. Your job for this essay is to respond to Barbara Oakley's article. Please include the title, author, and main idea near the beginning of your essay. You will use some of the summary skills you've practiced to explain Oakley's key ideas and respond to them. Please do NOT think of a summary/response essay as "half an essay of summary, then half an essay of response." Instead, integrate your skills of summary and response, using summary as needed to refer to the text, and response as needed to contribute your own ideas, opinions, and/or examples. Please join this significant conversation that questions why there are not many women in STEM careers and how we might encourage more female students to pursue those careers. |
The Grading of a Practice Assignment
What goals/skills should I focus on in order to do my best? Your goal is to show your current ability in the following areas that are considered entry-level skills for basic essay writing.
- Understand the reading assignment and explain the author’s ideas briefly and clearly as you reference the text in your essay.
- Follow the prompt directions. Keep all your ideas tied to the general topic introduced in the reading. *If you don’t understand the prompt question in class, ask questions!
- Follow the basic American-essay guidelines of organizing sentences into logical paragraphs, and paragraphs into an essay. Try to write a clear intro, body, and conclusion (beginning, middle, and end structure).
- Reveal your skill in critical thinking and your ability to clearly express an idea of your own. Add something of your own to the conversation topic.
- Include a clear thesis statement that builds on or challenges the ideas of the text. Then offer effective explanation and support for your ideas.
- Edit and revise with enough accuracy that all ideas are clear and easy for readers to follow. Any errors should not distract from your main point or make your sentences unreadable.
If any part of the above criteria feels new to you, don’t worry. Your instructor will assess your skills, look for the positive in your work, and then help you by providing the best guidance and support to move your education forward and get your writing skills to the next level!
If you get a score of "Not Yet," you will need to edit and revise:
Revising your paper is not skimming a paper while watching TV. Revising is focusing on many elements in your draft. While you should edit for sentence-level and grammatical errors while you revise, editing is only a small part of what needs to be accomplished in a revision. You should revise your paper several times before turning it in for a deadline. To revise for a final submission, you may need to completely over-haul your essay to prove that you deserve a better score than you got on a previous draft. Show that you have really become a better writer. If all you do is fix a few grammatical errors, it will likely not result in a significant grade increase, and if your essay still contains other major concerns, you might not receive an improved grade. Learning how to improve your writing through a thorough revision process will not only increase your essay score, but will make you a better writer, which will benefit you in upcoming writing assignments and far beyond the end of this course. Here is a partial list of things to consider while revising an essay.
Refer to the grading rubric. How do you think your essay measures up? What could be changed to improve your rubric score? If you already have feedback from the professor, read it carefully and address ALL of the concerns. If you need to do more studying to address the concerns please try the Purdue OWL website, your recommended text books, and your class notes.
Once you write a complete draft of your essay, you revise it--adding material, deleting material, and making corrections. You then continue the revision process by revising your paper again...and then again. Have several other people (trusted peers AND tutors from DVC) read and discuss your essay with you. They cannot make changes for you or tell you what to write, but they can discuss elements of your paper that are not clear, disconnected, or need more work. Fresh eyes and an outsider’s perspective will do wonders for your writing!
You will need to submit it to Canvas before the revision deadline which will be approximately one-week after you receive your score. Be careful to submit to the correct assignment or it will not get scored! You can still earn a "Pass" for the essay by showing that you have developed skills with the required writing criteria.
Most importantly, don’t lose confidence in your ability to work hard and continue learning. The more essays you write (and re-write/revise) the more your skills will be developed and refined. This is a learning opportunity for you and a chance for you to complete your work at an elevated level!
If you get a score of "Pass," you will not need to edit and revise:
This means your writing demonstrated the skills for basic essay writing at a satisfactory level for the assignment. Unless otherwise noted in the assignment directions, this will be determined by the ENGL-122 writing rubric. Students whose writing matches the "meets expectations" or "exceeds expectations" criteria will receive a grade of 100%. You you will be asked to reflect on what you did well for this assignment and what your goals are for improvement. You will need to then apply your new knowledge and goals to your future writing. It means you are ready to move on to the next writing task in this course. Please continue to develop additional writing skills and advance your writing with deeper ideas. The writing assignments in this class will continue to get more advanced and more challenging!