It’s been an incredibly busy week, and you have earned a little break. We won’t have any reading assignments this weekend, and I hope you’ll take a few days to relax and recuperate. Here are a few quick updates about next week:
- On Monday, I will introduce the next major assignment: the controlled research paper. Yes, it’s the biggest assignment of the semester, but the good news is that all of the work you have done for the annotated bibliography assignment will provide a nice foundation upon which you can build your research paper. You don’t need to read anything for Monday’s class; just arrive well rested and ready to focus.
- On Wednesday, we will talk about how to develop a research question and thesis statement for your controlled research paper. Please read pages 375–383 in the Norton Field Guide before you come to class.
- On Friday, we will look at three short articles that argue for a specific position. Please read pages 83–96 in the Norton Field Guide, and come to class ready to critique (or defend) the positions taken by these three authors. In addition, you should submit the final draft of your annotated bibliography before you come to class on Friday. Please refer to the assignment sheet for instructions on how to upload your document to Google Docs and share it with me. [Update: Please remember to bring your completed Thesis Statement Exercise, from Wednesday's class, as well as an original research question that you plan to use to guide your work on the controlled research paper.]
Generally speaking, I was impressed with your annotated bibliography drafts in class today. Some of you have more work to do than others, but I’m confident that everyone can complete this assignment before next Friday’s deadline. As I mentioned in class today, I highly recommend using the peer review exercise instructions as a guide for your revision process. You can download a PDF copy of that exercise on the Readings page. If you have any questions about putting the finishing touches on your bibliography, please come see me during office hours on Tuesday or Thursday.