Final Research Paper/Project Guidelines

These are up for discussion/negotiation/revision. Please either leave a comment with your questions/suggestions or remember them to bring up in class.

For a .docx version of these guidelines, click here: Final Research Paper Assignment Overview

For the last half of the semester, we will be writing toward our final research papers. The final research paper is worth 20% of your total grade in the course, and the process assignments leading up to the final paper are worth another 20%.

Topic

Choose any topic you wish to research that relates to one of the chapter themes in Weapons of Math Destruction (algorithmic modeling, college admissions and rankings, online advertising, criminal justice, job applicant systems, scheduling workers’ shifts, credit scores, the insurance industry, Facebook and politics). This is a broad range of topics! I’m open to you taking this project in a variety of directions.

Remember: Choose something you find interesting enough to hold your attention for the next several weeks. This is a long project process, and it will be very hard if you’re bored by your own topic.

Overall Task:

Write an argumentative research paper (perhaps 6-10 pages) that answers an inquiry question you have about one of the topics above. You should include some discussion of the use of algorithms/Big Data in relation to your topic, but that does not need to be the main focus.

Schedule of Assignments

 October 21 (Monday): Proposals Due

October 28-30 (1 week): Learning Research Skills and Computer Lab Time for Research

November 18 (Monday): Annotated Bibliography Due
November 18 (Monday): In-Class Process Assignment—Imaginary Interview

November 20 (Wednesday): Outline Due

November 25 (Monday): Partial Draft Due, first day of Peer Review

November 27 (Wednesday): Full First Draft Due, second day of Peer Review

December 4 (Wednesday): Final Draft Due

December 9-11 (1 week): Presenting our projects to each other

December 16 (Monday): Portfolios Due, All Revisions of Previous Assignments Due

Analysis of an Ad Assignment

Original Post Due: Monday 10/14 by end of day
Comments To Your Classmates Due: Wednesday 10/16 by end of day

For this assignment, you will take a picture of an ad or other poster that you see out in the world. We’re in NYC– there are ads everywhere. You may not use an ad we have already analyzed together in class, and you may not knowingly use the same ad as a classmate.

While it is possible to use WordPress on your phone, I strongly suggest you use a computer to write your post, especially if you have never used WordPress before.

Part 1 Instructions

After you find your chosen ad, do the following:

  1. Write a blog post on our course site following the Posting Directions. Embed the picture of your ad using the “Add Media” button.
  2. Under your picture of the ad, write a rhetorical analysis of your chosen ad. It should be the equivalent of about 2 pages of size 12/double spaced writing in a word processor.
  3. Before you post, find the “Categories” section in the right-hand sidebar of the post editor. Choose the “analysis of an ad” category. Then also find the “tags” section in the right-hand sidebar and tag the post with your name.
  4. Hit the blue “Publish” button.

If you have questions about WordPress/how to post, you can email me or leave them in a comment on the “Instructions for Posting” post–that way, your classmates can answer you as well as me.

Some guiding questions for your analysis:

  1. Who is the speaker in the ad? How is the speaker trying to present themselves? How does the speaker want you to view them? How do you know?
  2. What are the messages/arguments that the ad is trying to convey?
  3. What assumptions does the ad rely on?
  4. Who is the intended audience(s) of the ad? How do you know?
  5. What strategies does the ad use to try to persuade the audience?
  6. How does the ad appeal to ethos, logos, and pathos to persuade the audience?
  7. Do you think the ad is effective? Why or why not?

Part 2 Instructions

Choose (at least) two classmates’ posts to respond to with comments.

In your comments, you must add to their analysis of the ad. It is not enough to simply agree with their take and compliment them on it (although you can do that too!). Adding can mean disagreeing with their interpretation and explaining why, or it can mean offering additional interpretations even if you think their take is valid:  “Another interpretation could be that the argument is _________, because if you look at _________, maybe that means _________.” Or, you can analyze some aspect of the ad that your classmate didn’t talk about in their post!

Always support your analysis with evidence.

Each comment should be the equivalent of at least half a page of (size 12 double spaced) writing.

Optional (And Short!) Additional Reading

In retrospect, I really should have built some readings on Edward Snowden into the course, but since I didn’t, I encourage you to read this short Twitter thread by Snowden (and however many of the links he gives that you wish to explore). Particularly, all of the security measures he says he would take if he owned/used a smartphone.

Obviously, as a high-profile figure in danger from the U.S. government, Snowden has many more privacy risks than most people. However, it’s good to know just how much data we’re constantly broadcasting to the world.

The first tweet is just a link to his memoir, so click through to see the rest.

 

Paper 1: This I No Longer Believe (Assignment Sheet and Rubric)

Partial Draft Due: 9/18 (Wednesday) by class time
Full Draft Due: 9/23 (Monday) by class time
Final Draft Due: 9/25 (Wednesday) by class time

For a Word Doc version of this information, click here: JJ Paper 1 Assignment Sheet

This I No Longer Believe Assignment Description

For your first paper, you will write a piece of persuasive creative nonfiction (at least 4 pages, 12 point Times New Roman or Arial font) about one of your own beliefs. The “This I Believe” essay is a common genre for ENG 101 students to read and write. However, I am asking you to write about a belief that you no longer have, or a belief that has changed significantly over time. Your paper should tell the story of how you came to hold your original belief and then what made you change your belief and why. I encourage you to select a belief loosely related to one of the topics we are reading about in Weapons of Math Destruction, although you are not required to do so. I would rather you choose something genuinely important to you than strictly related to our class.

In your paper, you should:

  • Choose any English dialect you wish to write in (Standard American Academic English [SAAE], informal General American, AAVE, Spanglish, or any other dialect)
  • Use a consistent authorial voice throughout your paper (tone, style, etc.)
  • Provide rough translations of any non-English or slang words your monolingual professor might not understand (remember your audience!)
  • Provide vivid sensory description of your experiences that enables the reader to picture the events in their mind’s eye (and mind’s ear, tongue, skin, nose, etc.)
  • Leave the reader with a clear sense of what you no longer believe and why
  • Articulate your logical reasons for changing your belief AND the personal events that led to your change in belief (see the admittedly boring example below)
  • Format the paper and document evidence as needed using APA style (stylistic accuracy will be ungraded, but any sources used MUST be cited in your best attempt at APA formatting)
  • Use correct punctuation, capitalization, and spelling for your chosen dialect. When in doubt, use SAAE rules.

Example

Claim: I used to believe Heart of Darkness is terrible, and now I think it is a good book.

Logical Reasons: Heart of Darkness has vivid imagery, beautiful language, and many different interpretations that a reader can get meaning from. It addresses important topics like colonialism, racism, and human psychology.

Personal Reasons/Events: When I first read Heart of Darkness in 12th grade English, we had to read it much faster than I was used to reading for class, and I struggled with the high-level language. Our assignments were mostly identifying symbols in the book, which I thought was boring. We also weren’t given room for having our own interpretations of the meaning. When I read it again in college, the language was easier for me, I was better at reading more pages in less time, and my professor gave me the freedom to see the book from multiple points of view.

Creative Nonfiction Rubric (100 points)

  1. Turned in drafts on time and participated in writing workshop (25 points)
  2. Leaves the reader with a clear understanding of the previous belief, the current belief, the reasons the belief changed, and how that change in belief came about. (10 points)
  3. Maintains a consistent authorial voice throughout the paper with regard to chosen dialect, tone, and style (10 points)
  4. Fits the genre of persuasive creative nonfiction (25 points)
  • Paper develops a story over time (the story may or may not be told in a linear fashion)
  • Paper uses vivid sensory description and/or literary devices to convey feelings, events, thoughts, and/or experiences
  • Paper leaves the reader with a clear sense of the belief’s significance in the writer’s life or some other intended meaning
  • Paper is at least 4 full pages long
  1. Supports and explains the change in belief using well-developed arguments AND addresses both logical and personal reasons (20 points)
  2. Uses correct capitalization, punctuation, and spelling for the chosen dialect and cites evidence as needed. The writer made their best attempt at APA formatting. (10 points)

Portfolio Assignment and Rubric

ENG 101 Final Portfolio Assignment Sheet

Due: Monday, December 16 at 9:30 am

For a Word Doc version of this assignment sheet, click here: Final Portfolio Assignment Sheet

Your final portfolio, worth 20% of your grade, is your chance to showcase your learning this semester. There are several components to the portfolio, listed below. All page guidelines are minimum requirements.

  1. The first draft of your research paper (required by English department)
  2. Final (or even further revised) drafts of the following:
    1. Paper 1: This I No Longer Believe
    2. Proposal for Final Paper
    3. Annotated Bibliography
    4. Outline for Final Paper
    5. Imaginary Interview
    6. Final Paper
  3. A reflection statement (at least 1 page) on Paper 1 (your writing process, what you learned, what you think you could have done better, “How does this paper showcase your learning?” etc.)
  4. A reflection statement (at least 1 page) on your research paper (the Final Paper)
  5. A reflective letter, addressed either to me or to the class as a whole, analyzing your work this semester. Think of it as a fresh “Yourself as Reader and Writer” essay now that the semester is over. What did you learn from ENG 101? What do you want to learn more about? What skills do you want to further develop? Look back at the learning objectives on the syllabus. How have you achieved these objectives? What evidence (from your work this semester) shows that achievement? This letter should be as long as it needs to be, but I expect it will need to be at least 3 or 4 pages.
  6. Answer this question (however long it takes to answer in whatever form you choose): If you had the freedom to write about whatever you wanted, in whatever form you wanted, what would you do? (Or, you can think of it this way: if you had to change one of our assignments and its requirements to let you write EXACTLY the thing you want to write, what changes would you make?) Why is this your dream piece of writing?
  7. (Optional) Any additional assignments you want to showcase or commentary you wish to include about your work this semester.

You should present your portfolio as a digital portfolio (site) on the CUNY Commons or using WordPress.com. You may organize the required components however you wish on your site, but you should make these choices with rhetorical awareness. What looks professional and aesthetically pleasing? What organization makes logical sense for how you want the reader to navigate through the site? Is your site easy to read?

Portfolio Rubric

  1. Portfolio contains all required components and was turned in on time. (15 points)
  2. All components meet the length requirement. (10 points)
  3. Reflection statements on major essays display critical thinking and serious self-reflection, referring to specific aspects of the essays or parts of the writing process (10 points per paper)
  4. The final reflective essay offers compelling and persuasive insight into the student’s learning and growth (and/or lack thereof, and/or future goals for learning and growth) over the course of the semester. The final reflective essay uses specific examples from the student’s writing, actions, or life experiences to support the student’s claims. (20 points)
  5. All components exhibit the appropriate structural and stylistic conventions for personal reflective writing in the student’s dialect of choice. (10 points)
  6. The Portfolio utilizes WordPress/CUNY Commons in a rhetorically effective way, exhibiting design and organization choices that make the portfolio professional, easy to read/navigate, and reflective of the individual student. (25 points)

Vote on Rhetorical Devices Assignment

Please vote here. This will be a participation grade.

Vote on Rhetorical Devices Assignment

    I describe both versions and their pros and cons here: https://eng101owood.commons.gc.cuny.edu/rhetorical-devices-assignment/