1. As you know, as a final requirement for this course, you’ll submit a longer, original piece of argumentative and research writing. In the remainder of the course, we’ll work on carefully constructing that essay. In Module 9, you created an outline on some topic of social, political, or current event interest. In this module, we’ll continue working on that topic by applying rules 3 and 4 of ‘stasis’, described in the text (p 232, 8/e, p 230, 7/e). They are: “What are the causes or consequences of X?” and “What should we do about X?”. In your first post, write a thesis statement, and two paragraphs, in which you briefly answer each of these questions (one question per paragraph). A paragraph is around 5-6 sentences, and should not be more than 150-200 words. Make good use of the tools and techniques from the text in planning and drafting your two paragraphs; they’ll form the core of your final project (after revision). This is due Wednesday by 5pm.2. In order to ensure that everyone gets a peer-reviewed reply, and that no student gets many, in your second post simply “claim” a thread for yourself. It may be easiest to claim someone who read the same essay as you, but it is not necessary. You can do this simply by typing “Hi, Robert. This is interesting, and I’ll reply to your post by the end of the week”. Of course, if someone else has already “claimed” a thread, then please choose another. This strategy will guarantee that no two students are working to peer review the same essay. Please do this step as soon as possible, but no later than Friday at 5pm.3. In your third post, give a meaningful, and critical peer review of the student’s thesis and paragraphs. Remember that critical does not mean negative; it simply means that you should add something meaningful that was not already included in the original. Remember also that the purpose of this assignment is not for you to comment on their topic, but rather to comment on the student’s analysis of the topic. Try to think of subjects, arguments, or evidence that they might have overlooked. This is your opportunity help the student make his/her argument stronger, by applying what you know from the module. This is due by Sunday at 5pm.PrecisWrite a precis. A precis is a short description of a reading assignment, much like a book report. It should not contain any interpretation, examples, or objections. It should be limited simply to outlining the positions and arguments as they are found in the reading. Precis should be between 250-300 words (about a page), and should be typed, double spaced, 12pt font, or equivalent. To earn credit, it should be related to the chapter that we read for that module , and turned in during the week that we discuss and cover that chapter in class. It is of no value to write a precis after we have talked about it in class, so late precis will not be accepted for credit.
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