Day 28: Peer Perception and End of the Semester Reflection

We did it! Everyone made it to the last day of class! We didn't lose a single member of our class! Woohoo! 

Ok, enough celebrating for now. We still have a few items of business left on the agenda before the semester ends. Once again, here is the link to the assignment description. If you haven't already, please be sure to read it! The assignment rubric can be found here. Finally, we'll be having individual conferences to discuss your papers next Monday - Wednesday. Here's the sign-up doc. 

Today we'll be doing a peer review of the second collection of body paragraphs for your IRPs (Solution #2: Description, Critique and Improvement). After that, we'll take some time to reflect on the journey we've almost completed and try and get some perspective on how far we've come during our time this semester. 

An outline of today's class can be found below

Peer Perception and Reflection

I. Brainstorming: IRP Requirements 

Consider the following questions about the IRP: what kind of paper is the IRP? How many pages should it be? What kind of reference page will it include, annotated or normal? How will your references be organized? What's the minimum amount of references that you need to include? How many paragraphs will the final essay be? How many sources should be cited in each body body paragraph? Should it include a title page? Where will you submit the final paper? What will happen if there is any suspected plagiarism? 

Do you have any other questions? Now's the time to ask! 

II: Peer Perception (Warm-Up)

Let's take a look at this short clip from the movie "Along Came Polly". As you are watching, after watching we'll discuss the questions on the handout. 

III. Peer Perception 

First, you'll be put into groups of three and asked to sit together. I will begin this section of the class by going around and checking to make sure everyone has their three body paragraphs for Solution #2. Anyone who does not will be marked absent. After you are in your groups, you will be asked to fill out this worksheet for one of your partners papers. Once you finish the worksheet, you can save it to their desktop with the file, "IRP_D2Comments_YourName". Then they can move it to their Dropbox. 

Once you finish, in the same groups, have a short discussion on the following questions: 

           -What did everyone in your group do well in their drafts?

           -What kinds of things could you improve on?

           -What advice would you give to some writing a similar paper? 

           -What kinds of things are still left to be done for each of you before
            submitting the final paper? 

Once you've had a chance to talk, we'll share some of your answers as a class. 

IV. Final Reflection

Based on the prompt you received, write a short reflective essay on what you've learned over the course of the semester. The essay should be between 350-500 words (or about 12-15 sentences). You will not be graded on grammar. Instead, you'll be graded on the amount of effort you put in. 

Housekeeping Details

-First Draft of Your IRP Due by Your Conference

Please print out and bring a completed first draft with you to your conference. Also, think of specific questions you would like to address during our meeting. 

-Final Draft of the IRP Due Next Friday (12/13) by 11:55 pm at SafeAssign

Day 27: Writing Effective Introductions

Today we begin our last full week of ESL 115C. Our class will revolve around a discussion of the characteristics of effective introductions for problem/solution research papers. Here is the schedule for our final week of classes:

4.5 (12/3)   Writing Effective Conclusions
4.6 (12/5)   Formatting/Peer Perception 
4.7 (12/9, 12/10, 12/11)  Individual Conferences (Mandatory)

On Thursday, there will be a sign-up sheet for individual conference times. These times will be during my usual office hours and during our normal class meeting time. Additional times will be made available to accommodate anyone who cannot make it to the blocks I've scheduled. Since I'll be canceling class next Tuesday, attendance at these conferences is mandatory. If you miss your conference, you will receive two absences. While attendance has not be an issue for anyone so far this semester, some of you have reached the maximum number of absences, so I urge everyone to attend their conference.

Once again, here are the requirements for the final IRP problem/solution research paper.

An outline of today's class can be found below:

Writing Effective Conclusions for Problem/Solution Research Papers

I. Brainstorming 
Let's begin by reviewing the characteristics of effective conclusions. What information should a conclusion include? Does this depend on the type of paper you've written? How so? What are some common features of all effective conclusions?

Before we begin our discussion of introductions, let's take a look at this short video clip. Do you feel that "Just Joe" provided a good self-introduction? Why or why not?

Now, discuss these questions about introductions with a partner. Once you've discussed the answers for a few minutes, update the doc with your group's perspective(s).

II. Identifying the Common Features of Effective Introductions 
Now, with a partner, take a look at this exercise that asks you to identify the common features shared by two example introductions. Following the directions, work your way through the three steps. Once, you've finished, we'll compare our answers as a class.

III. Compare and Contrast: Introductions and Conclusions
This graphic visualizer offers a nice summation of the different issues we've discussed pertaining to the creation of effective introductions and conclusions. Keep this information in mind as you begin to write your own.  

IV. Practice: Writing an Effective Introduction
This link takes you back to the rough outline that we created for our demo topic, the raising cost of college tuition at U.S. universities. Using the information from the outline and applying the techniques and strategies we've discussed about how to write effective introductions, take a few minutes and write an introduction for this paper. Once you've finished, you can share you work here.

V. ICES Evaluations
Here is your chance to evaluate me. Please place the completed evaluation forms back in the manila envelope and drop the folder into the campus mailbox in the South entryway to the FLB. The pencils should be returned to my office (FLB 4106).

Housekeeping Details and Homework for Thursday (12/5/13)
-If you haven't already, make sure your body paragraphs for Solution #2 (description, critique and improvement) are in your Dropbox folders. We will be using them for a peer review on Thursday. Anyone without these paragraphs will be marked absent for the day.

-Finish the first draft of your final essay by the Monday, December 9th. Upload it to the 'IRP' folder in your Dropbox.

-If you'd like to come in and talk about your essay this week, send me an email and let me know when you'd like to stop. Please bring specific questions and remember that I am unable to edit papers for you!

Day 26: Integrating Quotations and Writing Conclusions

Today we'll be finishing our discussion on how to best integrate quotations and paraphrases into your writing. After finishing this discussion, we'll transition into a discussion about how to write an effective conclusion, a skill that is deceptively tricky to acquire. Before we delve into our discussion, let's take a moment to review where we've come from and where we're going: 

Unit 4 Lessons
4.1 (11/12) In-text Citations

4.2 (11/14) Source Synthesis

4.3 (11/19) Paraphrasing/Quoting

4.4 (11/21) Introductions/Conclusions

4.5 (12/3)   Formatting/Review/ICES

4.6 (12/5)   Catch-Up/Peer Perception 

4.7 (12/10) Individual Conferences 

As you can see, after today, we only have two more class before individual conferences (which are mandatory). Please review this document to view the draft deadlines for your final paper (as well as an example paper). 

The first draft of the first three body paragraphs is due tomorrow at 11:55pm. For these drafts, I'd like you to focus on implementing PIE-C structure to your paragraphs as well as integrating your sources via quotes, paraphrases and summaries. 

An outline for today's class can be found below: 

For Part 1, please view the second half the lesson from Tuesday (Day 25) 

Part II: Writing an Effective Conclusion

I. Brainstorming

Take a look at the questions on this document. Discuss the questions with a partner. After you finish discussing, start adding your answers to the document. Be sure to use a different color font from the one chosen by other groups. 

II. Identifying the Common Features of Effective Conclusions

With a partner, take a look at this exercise that asks your to compare two example conclusions and identify three keys features. First, you are to highlight the commonalities and then, you should try and explain how they are similar. Afterwards, we'll share our findings as a class. 

III. Application: Brainstorming Your Conclusion

Now let's apply what we've been talking about to your own individual research papers. With the remaining class time, start brainstorming the information you will include in the conclusion to your essay using this organizer. 

Housekeeping Details and Homework for Tuesday (12/3/13)

-The first draft of your first three body paragraphs (Solution #1) is due tomorrow by 11:55pm. Again, this is only the first draft. I am mainly concerned to see how you well you've utilized the PIE-C structure and whether you are synthesizing your sources (and citing them correctly!). I'll try to have my comments to you by early next week. 

-The first draft of your second three body paragraphs (Solution #2) is due by Tuesday, December 3rd before class. 

Please remember that these drafts count towards your final IRP grade (you get full credit for submitting them)

HAVE A NICE BREAK! 

Day 25: Paraphrasing and Quoting

Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate -- we can not consecrate -- we can not hallow -- this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us -- that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion -- that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain -- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

Who is the man in the picture? How is he connected to the words below the picture? What is the importance to those words for the American people? Why do you think I chose to start class today with this discussion? 

The outline for today's class can be found below: 

Paraphrasing and Quoting

Paraphrasing

I. Brainstorming

In groups of three (determined by the randomizer), spend a few minutes discussing the questions found here. Once you've come to a group consensus, share your thoughts with the class via the GoogleDoc. If you have trouble coming up with the answers to the question, you can consult this link from OWL Purdue. 

II. How to Paraphrase (Part 1) 

You were asked to read this article on "gorilla poaching" for class today. What is "gorilla poaching"? What were your impressions after reading this article? We will use this article for the basis of our discussion on paraphrasing. 

First, take a look at this activity. Read the original passage taken from the article on gorilla poaching. Then read the paraphrased version. Try and come up with five ways that the two passages are different.  As a class, let's note these differences. 

III. How to Paraphrase (Part 2)

Now, with a partner, take the strips of paper you've been given and put them into the correct order. These strips of paper represent the eight steps on how to paraphrase effectively. After a few minutes, we'll compare these steps together as a class. 

IV. How to Paraphrase (Part 3)

Now, take a look at this doc. It asks you to create your own paraphrased version of a paragraph from the gorilla poaching article. Follow the steps and create your own paraphrased version. Once you finish, get into groups and compare your paraphrased versions. Chose the one you feel is best and upload it to the doc.

Quoting

I. Brainstorming
In new, random groups of three, discuss the questions found here. After discussing for a few minutes, share your answers with the class on the doc. 

II. Explaining the Differences Between Quoting, Paraphrasing and Summary
Now, let's fill out this chart that outlines the differences between the three ways of incorporating outside sources into our own work. I will call on the first person, they will call on the next and so on until the chart is completed. 

III. Dictogloss Activity
Now we are going to go over the fundamentals. I will read a short lecture and you will be asked to answer some questions afterwards. It is a good idea to take notes as we go through the short lecture. 

Now, after you've answered your questions, compare answers with a partner. This should be done verbally (with words). Once your finished, we'll compare answers as a class. 

IV. Quoting vs. Paraphrasing
This short activity explains the differences between in-text citations for quoting and paraphrasing with helpful examples.

Housekeeping Details and Homework for Thursday (11/21/2013)
-Familiarize yourself with this document on the details of how to quote. Be prepared for an open-note quiz on this material on Thursday.

-Re-read the assignment description for the final research paper found here.

-Your first draft of the three body paragraphs for "Solution #1" (description, critique and improvement) are due this Friday, by 11:55pm. This is a mandatory assignment which will contribute to your final grade for the individual research paper. Please save your work with the file name, "IRP_FirstDraft_YourName" and upload it to the IRP folder. I will give you comments on this draft that I hope will be applicable to the other body paragraphs.

Day 24: Source Synthesis

Today we will be talking about "source synthesis". This is an integral component of not only writing a good essay, but, writing and critical thinking in general. In order to write a high-quality, coherent, source based essay, you should be able to combine information from multiple sources into each of your paragraphs (and give appropriate credit to the individual authors of each source). 

An outline of today's class can be found below: 

Source Synthesis

Clarification on Jeopardy "disaster": Let's look at the final Jeopardy question one last time and compare it to what it says in the APA Student Handbook and OWL Purdue. I think all three say the same thing…

General Formula:

Author.+ (date of publication). + Article title (only capitalize first word and proper names). + Journal Name (italicized and capitalized),+ journal volume number + (journal issue number), journal page numbers.

I. Brainstorming

What does "synthesis" mean? Can you give an example to help illustrate that definition? What does "source synthesis" mean? Why is this an important concept? How can it improve your writing? 

II. Source Synthesis Defined 

Let's take a look at this short presentation that explains the concept of source synthesis. It begins with examples and then moves on to a more detailed explanation of what the concepts involved mean. It also explains about how to synthesize sources and the different reasons you might have for synthesizing. 

III. Source Synthesis Practice (Part I: PIE-C)

Look here for the outline for the IRP paper. In total, there will be 11 paragraphs in your essay (plus the title page and a final reference list). For each paragraph, you should incorporate at least one source. But  for many paragraphs, you will want to incorporate more than one source (in order to be as coherent as possible). Let's take a look at the following paragraphs from a research paper done last semester on protecting the rights of celebrities. In groups of three, identify the PIE-C structure for each of the three paragraphs. 

Use yellow  for the P's (Point/Topic Sentences)

Use green for the I's (Illustrations/Examples)

Use blue for the E' (Explanations (in the author's word)

Use pink for the C's (Concluding Sentences) 

Once you have finished highlighting, 'copy/paste' your work into this organizer. The 'Point' for the first paragraph has already been added as an example. We'll compare answers once everyone has finished. The answers can be found here.

IV. Source Synthesis Practice (Part II: Synthesizing Folk Tales)
Now, let's look at the different reasons why people synthesize sources in this short ppt. Once we've finished, we can move on to the practice activity.

To practice, first read these three folktales. Once you've read the stories get into groups of three and fill out this chart. The chart has three lessons. You group's job will involve two steps. Find information about each of these lessons from the stories. Be sure to put the information into your own words! Finally, choose one lesson and write a short paragraph on it based on the information you included in the chart. Be sure to follow the PIE-C structure. When you finish, please name the final "Synthesis Paragraph_GroupNames" and email me your paragraph (jk.esl.uiuc@gmail.com).

If there is time once everyone has finished, we will compare paragraphs here.

Housekeeping Details and Homework for Tuesday (11/19/2013)
-Do two (of the four) "Writer's Help" on "Integrating Sources into APA Papers". As usual, you need to receive an 80% to get credit for doing this assignment (these are our final two "Writer's Help" exercises this semester!).

-Please read this short article for our in-class activities on Tuesday.

-Fill out this source synthesis outline with quotes and paraphrases from your sources (making sure to include the appropriate bibliographic information). You will need to refer to your Pre-Research Portfolios to fill out this organizer. This will be due by class time and will count towards the final grade for the research paper.

Looking Ahead: Next Thursday (by 11:55pm), a first draft of your first three body paragraphs will be due. This will also count towards your final grade for the research paper.

Day 23: In-text Citations

Today, we begin the last component of ESL 115C: Unit 4. During this unit, we'll cover the remaining topics necessary for you to write your final problem/solution research papers. Here is a list of the upcoming modules we'll be covering during this unit: 

4.1 (11/12) In-text Citations

4.2 (11/14) Source Synthesis

4.3 (11/19) Paraphrasing/Quoting

4.4 (11/21) Introductions/Conclusions

4.5 (12/3)   Formatting/Review/ICES

4.6 (12/5)   Catch-Up/Peer Perception 

4.7 (12/10) Individual Conferences 

As one of the goals of this class is to help you view writing as a process, there will be several deadlines for different "chunks" of the paper. I will offer comments in writing and during our conferences and you will receive feedback from your classmates as well. It is imperative the you stay up to date and to encourage everyone to be on the same, I'll be keeping track of the draft work you do on this participation tracker. 

Finally, here is the information on the final assignment requirements, deadlines and the rubric I'll be using to evaluate your work. As always, please let me know if you have any questions. 

The outline for today's class can be found below: 

In-text Citations

I. Brainstorming 

What is the difference between quoting, paraphrasing and summarizing? Why would you choose to use one over another? Which ones do you have to cite? Why? Why citation style are we using for 115? 

II. In-Text Citations: The Basics

The following (short) presentation will cover the basic information you need to know in order to provide the correct in-text citation for the sources you'll be incorporating into your final problem/solution research papers. Much like formatting the final reference list, formatting in-text citations can be somewhat confusing, but as long as you know where to go to find the answers, you'll be fine! Below you'll find a couple of very useful resources: 

Purdue OWL: APA Formatting and Style

UIUC APA Student Handbook

III. In-text Citations: Practice 

Take a few minutes to fill out this short practice activity on formatting and practicing with in-text citations. You may fill out the majority of it individually if you so choose, but the last exercise requires you to interview a partner. Once you've created a quote (complete with in-text citation) for your partner, please upload it to this GoogleDoc.

IV. Review: In-text Citations vs. Reference Listings

Now we'll take a look at a short presentation that highlights the differences between in-text citations and reference listings. 

V. Jeopardy 

We'll finish our class today by playing review Jeopardy in teams. During this review, you'll be allowed to use any and all sources you can think of. The winning team will receive a prize! 

Housekeeping Details and Homework for Thursday (11/14/2013)

-Read the assignment information for the final problem/solution research paper found here

-Do the three "Writer's Help" exercises entitled "APA Documentation: In-text Citations 1-3". As always, you must receive an 80% to get credit for completing the assignments. 

-You will need to be able to access your five sources for class on Thursday. Either upload the journal articles as .pdf files or be able to access the links in class. We will be finding quotes from the articles to start filling out a quote/paraphrase/summary chart to help you synthesize your sources to help you write your drafts. 

Day 22: Finishing the Annotated Bibliography

Today is the last day of class that we'll spend discussing the Annotated Bibliography assignment. Here is a review of the requirements for the assignment: 

-A minimum of five (5) sources (three of them should be "academic" sources and the other two should, at the very least, be "reliable")

For each source, you will include: 

           -an APA citation

           -a source summary (4-5 sentences minimum)

           -a source relevancy statement (4-5 sentences)

           -a source reliability statement (2-3 sentences)

The final draft of your Annotated Bibliography is due on Monday (November 11th) by 5pm. You will be asked to submit your work via SafeAssign. I will give feedback to you on one of your completed entries by tomorrow at 5pm. I will also hold my usual office hours from 3-4 on Monday in case you find yourself with any last minute questions. As always, if you are unsure about something over the weekend, feel free to send me an email.

An outline of today's class can be found below:

Finishing the Annotated Bibliography: Questions, Formatting, Consolidating and Peer Review

I. Reviewing the Requirements
What are the assignment requirements for the Annotated Bibliography? How about length requirements? What is the minimum number of sources that should be included?  Let's take a look one more time at this example. Also, here is the link to the assignment rubric I will be using to grade your final submissions. *Note: plagiarism will not be tolerated on this assignment and will be met with a failing grade. 

Finally, I noticed that many of you haven't written your relevancy statements yet, which may or may not be due to some confusion as to exactly what's being asked of you, so let's view this short ppt about formatting the annotated bibliography and what kind of information should be included as part of your relevancy statements.

II. Formatting the Annotated Bibliography
Let's take a few minutes to properly format the work you've done so far. Open up your Dropbox folder and please follow these formatting instruction so as to compile all the work you've done into one document. 

1). Open an MS Word Doc 

2). 'Copy' and 'Paste' the title page with all your personal information that we created for the Diagnostic Analysis assignment. Don't forget to change the title to "Annotated Bibliography".

3). On the next page, you can begin 'copy/pasting' your Annotated Bibliography work into this new document. It should take the following order:
       
          -APA Citation
          -Summary (4-5 sentences minimum)
          -Relevancy Statement (4-5 sentences)
          -Reliability Statement (1-3 sentences)

4). Save your the new file with the title, "Annotated Bibliography_YourName" and upload it to your Dropbox folder (in the "Annotated Bibliography Work" sub-folder)

III. Peer Perception (Training)
Have you ever done peer review? What was it like? What did you enjoy/find useful? Was anything unenjoyable or not helpful? Today, we'll be doing some peer review in class, but before we begin we'll be doing some training. Let's start by looking at this sheet that asks you to judge how helpful certain elements of feedback are. Here are a few common mistakes that people often make when peer reviewing.

IV. Peer Perception 
Now that your work is properly formatted, we are going to spend some time doing some peer review. This way, your classmates can give you feedback on your work up to this point before I give you my feedback. As always, the more people able to take a look at your work and offer suggested improvements, the better the finished product! We will be using this handout to frame our peer perception work.

Housekeeping Details and Homework for Tuesday (11/12/13)
-Your final Annotated Bibliography assignments are due on Monday (11/11/13) at 5pm. Please submit the assignment via "SafeAssign", which can be accessed from your Compass 2G accounts.

Day 21: Source Summary

Today we will be talking about how to write summaries for each of your sources. This is the last component for your annotated bibliography assignment. After today, you'll be ready to complete your annotated bibliography. Here is a review of the requirements for the assignment: 

-A minimum of five (5) source (three of them should be "academic" sources and the other two should, at the very least, be "reliable")

For each source, you will include: 

           -an APA citation

           -a source summary (4-5 sentences minimum)

           -a source relevancy statement (4-5 sentences)

           -a source reliability statement (2-3 sentences)

The final draft of your Annotated Bibliography will be due next Monday (November 11th) by 5pm. You will be asked to submit your work via SafeAssign. 

An outline of today's class can be found below

Summarizing Sources

I. Brainstorming

What is a summary? What are the major parts of a summary? How is a summary different than a paraphrase? Why summarize? Why include a summary as part of an APA Annotated Bibliography? 

II. How to Summarize 

We've already viewed this video on summarizing. Now, let's look at summarizing from a different perspective. After the video, we'll explore this presentation to get an idea of how to summarize. The ppt outlines a "recipe" that you can follow to "prepare" a good summary every time! Finally, here are some additional guidelines to help you to write a complete summary. 

III. Practice Summarizing (Part I)

Now you are ready to work your way through this handout. You can work on it individually or with a partner. It is a step by step approach to preparing a complete summary of this article. After you finish, you will be asked to compare your summaries with a different person/pair. 

IV. Practice Summarizing (Part II)

Read this short article on using technology to make teaching more efficient and interactive. When you finish, do two things: 

1). Find (and highlight) the sentence that contains the main idea of the article

2). Write a short summary of the article 

V. Workshop Time

Any remaining class time will be dedicated as a workshop period for you to continue writing any and all components of your annotated bibliographies. 

Housekeeping Details and Homework for Thursday (11/7/2013)

-Write summaries for three of your five sources. I will give feedback to you on one of the summaries you've written. The first sentence of each summary (the topic sentence) should include the following four pieces of information: 1). title of the source, 2). author, 3) date of publication and 4). the main idea of the source. The topic sentence should be followed by 3-5 sentences that outline the supporting points. 

-Finish your summaries from class and save them to your Dropboxes (we will start class on Thursday by comparing them). 

-Final Annotated Bibliographies Due Next Monday (11/11/2013)

Day 20: APA Reference Page Citations and Relevancy Statements

HAPPY HALLOWEEN! What an appropriately gloomy day. Hopefully you've already picked out your costumes and stocked up on candy (if not, you might be stuck with a fake mustache and some candy corn). For anyone interested, here is a short video clip about the origins and history of Halloween! 

Today is class we will be talking about how to format reference page citations. This is a very important process, though it is not the only citation consideration that we will be discussing this semester. As part of the final unit, we will also be talking about in-text citations as well. The two (reference page citations and in-text citations) form a united team to ensure that your writing and research maintains a high standard of academic integrity. 

The outline for today's class follows:

APA Reference Page Citations and Relevancy Statements

I. Introduction: Review the sample APA Reference Page Citation and Summary from last class

Let's start today's class by reviewing the work we were doing at the end of class on Tuesday. Please open the file you were working on and compare your answers with mine (found here).

II. APA Citation Patterns

First, let's distinguish between reference listings and in-text citations. Reference listings come at the end of the paper, as part of the (annotated) bibliography. Look at this sample list of APA reference page citations. In-text citations are found within the text, like these examples. This short ppt covers the difference in greater detail.

Now, let's focus on reference listings. Looking at the same list, with a partner, come up with a list of at least 5 different rules, commonalities or patterns that you observed. Once you finished, share a few of your observations on this chart. Feel free to mention anything you may have learned from the APA Handbook! 

II. Practice: Writing APA Reference Listings 

I'll bet many of you didn't know that some of your classmates are already published authors. Pretty cool, huh? Today, we'll be talking the bibliographic information for their books, articles and websites and formatting APA reference listings for them. Here is the list of information. 

Now with a partner, open up an MS Word document and create the APA reference page listings for the sources written by your classmates. Don't forget to consult with the APA Student Handbook (found here) for formatting tips. 

List them here

III. More Practice: APA Reference Listings

Ok, now that you have practiced and are all warmed up, it's time to put your skills to the test. In your groups of three, please fill out this short quiz with a partner. Remember to read the directions! It not only asks you to create the APA reference listing citation, but also to format the bibliography page with all the citations in the correct order. When you finish, please email me the completed document (jk.esl.uiuc@gmail.com) and include the group names. 

IV. Source Relevancy

What does the word 'relevancy' mean? Can you give an example? What do you think you will write as part of your relevancy statements for the annotated bibliography? We looked some examples in class last time. What do the example relevancy statements discuss? 

Housekeeping Details and Homework for Tuesday (11/5/2013)

-Finish your APA citations for all five of your sources. When you finish, please add them to the document where you have been storing all your APA Annotated Bibliography work. By Tuesday, you will have APA Citations and Reliability Statements for ALL of your sources. 

-Fill out the Relevancy Organizer for your sources as a way of helping you write your "Relevancy Statements'. The organizer will not be graded. It's for your personal use to help you organizer your thought. However, you're relevancy statements will be due before class on Tuesday. Please add them to document with your reliability statements and APA citations. Remember to order everything correctly (APA, (Summary), Relevancy Statement, Reliability Statement). 

-Pre-Research Portfolio Upload to SafeAssign: I figured it out! In order to upload your Pre-Research Portfolios to SafeAssign, they need to be converted to pdfs. To do this, go to your GoogleDoc, click 'File', then scroll down to "Download As" and choose "pdf". A window will open up and under "Options", choose "All Sheets" and then click "Export". You should then be ready to upload it to SafeAssign. 

Be careful when walking home tonight….

Day 19: Introduction to the Annotated Bibliography and Reference Page Citations

  

I hope this post finds everyone well and relaxed after an enjoyable weekend. In today's class, we will continue our discussion of research themes with an overview the features of an APA-style annotated bibliography as well as an overview and some practice with writing reference page citations. This is a crucially important lesson, not just because the major assignment for Unit 3 asks you to create your own (properly formatted) annotated bibliography (featuring a minimum of five sources) for the research you've done for your individual problem-solution research papers. Also, this is the first of a group of units designed to help you perfect your citation skills, a vital skill when doing EAP writing.

Here's a review of progress throughout Unit 3 so far (today's lesson topics are highlighted in blue):

Module 3.1 Evaluating Sources

Module 3.2 Choosing Sources 

Module 3.3 An Introduction to the Annotated Bibliography

Module 3.4 Reference Page Citations

Module 3.5 Source Reliability 

Module 3.6 Source Relevancy 

Module 3.7 Summarizing Sources

An outline of today's class can be found below: 

Intro to the Annotated Bibliography and Reference Page Citations  

I. APA Student Handbook Quiz (Part 1)

As I mentioned last week, we will be having the first of two (possibly three) short quizzes designed to test your familiarity with the APA Student Handbook

II. Brainstorming: The APA Annotated Bibliography

Why is important to include a bibliography as part of any EAP essay? Why are we writing our bibliography before we start writing the paper? What is the minimum amount of sources for this assignment? What kinds of sources should be included? How is an annotated bibliography different from a standard bibliography? What kinds of information will be included as part of the annotated bibliography?

III. The APA Annotated Bibliography: Explained

Click here for an example of a well-done annotated bibliography from an ESL 115 class last semester. After taking a few moments to analyze it's structure, let's take a moment to view this ppt that discusses the importance of writing bibliographies, the utility of the annotated bibliography and it's essential components. A review of the information from the ppt can be found on this handout.

IV. The APA Annotated Bibliography: Practice (Part I)

Now, with a partner, take a look at the bibliographic information provided for four source on this worksheet. Organize the information correctly, according to the instructions provided in the ppt and handout from part three (1st: "Citation", 2nd: "Summary, 3rd: "Relevancy Statement" and 4th: Reliability Statement). Finally, note if any of the entries is incomplete as well as the specific information that is missing.

V. The APA Annotated Bibliography: Practice (Part II)

Using the sources we selected in class last Thursday, I would like you practice creating citations and writing short (4-5 sentence) summaries. The articles we chose are below: 

Source #1: Tuition Rising: Why College Costs So Much

Source #2: The Three Year Bachelor Degree: Reform Measure or Red Herring

Please use this sheet to keep track of your answers. Before we start, let's watch this short video on how to summarize.

Remember, you only need to provide the correct APA citation and the summary of the information contained in the source. Remember: the summary must be in your own words. There should be no 'copy-pasting'!

VI. APA Reference Page Citations

Finally, let's take a look at this ppt that covers some more detailed information about how to format our reference listings according to APA style rules. Finally, let's practice using the last two examples on this handout.

Housekeeping Details and Homework for Thursday (10/31/2013) 

-Finish the relevancy chart that you started over the weekend. It should be completed for all five sources by Thursday.

-Create APA reference citations for three of your five sources. Please save these citations to the same document where you have your reliability statements saved, following the ordering/formatting instructions we talked about in class today.

-Do two of the three exercises in "Writer's Help" entitled "Exercise: APA Documentation: reference list 1, 2 and/or 3". As always, you need at least an 80% to get full credit on the assignment.

Day 18: Choosing Sources

Today in class we will continue our discussion on how to the characteristics of appropriate sources for EAP essays. We'll review how to identify reliable sources, the distinction between "reliable" and "academic" sources and introduce additional criteria for consideration when choosing sources for your individual research papers (IRPs). Finally, if there is time, we'll discuss the specific requirements for our third major assignment: the annotated bibliography. 

An outline for today's class can be found below: 

Evaluating and Choosing Sources for Your Research Paper

I. Submitting the Pre-Research Portfolio via SafeAssign

Before we start class, please take a minute or two and re-submit your final "Pre-Research Portfolio" assignment through SafeAssign. All you need to do is download the assignment from your Dropbox folder, log into Compass 2G and upload the assignment under the "Pre-Research Portfolio" assignment heading. Thank you. 

II. Brainstorming

What are some adjectives that you would use to describe appropriate sources for an analytic research paper? Which are the most important? What is the difference between 'relevant' and 'reliable'? How about between 'reliable' and 'credible'? 'Reliable' and 'academic'? 

III. Choosing Reliable, Academic Sources

Has anyone found a source that they've decided is both reliable and academic? How do you come to your decision? Let's take a look at this presentation for a review of the characteristics of a reliable source. 

IV. Review of Search Techniques

Let's take a moment to review the search techniques listed here. At this point, an important thing to keep in mind is source relevancy. This means thinking about how the sources you choose will help you write your individual paper. One way to do this is to keep your outline with you while you do your search. That way, you can make the connections between your paper and the sources you want to use right away! Take a look at how I have divided up the rough outline for our demo topic here.

V. Practice Choosing Sources

Now, let's take some time to choose some sources for our demo topics. Below you will find four sources that deal with the demo and, more specifically, with the solution of choosing three year bachelor degrees. I want you to evaluate the sources using this document. Your goal: to choose the two best sources for the demo topic and the specific solution. 

As part of you search, you should be looking for the following criteria: 

-Relevancy: How is the source connected to the topic? More specifically, how is it connected to the solution? Does it offer a description? A critique? An improvement? 

-Purpose: With what purpose was the source article/essay written? To persuade? To inform? To analyze? To critique? Are there multiple purposes? 

-Readability: How easy is it to read the source? It is too long? Too short? Is there too much jargon? Is it too informal? 

-Possibility for Synthesis: Can you think of any ways to combine any of these sources? What kinds of patterns or similarities do you notice between any of the sources? 

Demo Topic Sources

Source 1: Examining the Push for Three Year Bachelor Degrees

Source 2: The Three Year B.A.

Source 3: Tuition Rising: Why College Costs So Much

Source 4: The Three Year Bachelor Degree: Reform Measure or Red Herring?

Housekeeping Details and Homework for Tuesday (10/29/2013)

-Find, evaluate and choose 5 reliable and academic sources for your IRP Topic. For each source, write a reliability statement. This should be between 2-3 sentences where you give a justification for the reliability of your source. Please put these statements into a MS word document and title it, "ReliabilityStatements_YourName". Please upload it to your Dropbox folder (in the folder titled "Annotated Bibliography Work") by Tuesday at 4:55pm. 

-Start filling out the "Finding Sources" chart (found here). Please fill it out for at least three of your sources and upload it to your Dropbox (in the folder titled "Annotated Bibliography Work") by Tuesday at 4:55pm.