Materials Development 2: Using Sample Essays for Developing an Argument

Although the lesson plan, technological tools, and overview of my materials 2 assignment are posted below, you can also go to the Google Doc, which may be easier to read. Here's the link: http://goo.gl/vnnKz

LESSON PLAN

Goals

• See real examples of student writing for this project
• Understand what it takes to make a strong extended academic argument
• Use critical thinking to decide whether an essay is a good example or not, or to what degree
• Discern what one can take from these examples to use in his/her own writing

Materials and Equipment (see other Google docs)

• Computers (lesson done during a lab day)
• Sample essays document (for students: on Blackboard under Content >> Writing Project 5: Extended Argument): http://goo.gl/kFJ7Y
• Instructions for activity (for students: on Blackboard Discussion Board): http://goo.gl/IcDIQ
• Formatting and Citations e-handout for reference (for students: on Blackboard under Content >> Writing Project 5: Extended Argument): http://goo.gl/NnfUl

Before class

• Write the in-class writing on the board, but cover it with the projector screen to not distract students before that point.
• On the board (uncovered), write that students should log in to the NAU system, as well as to bblearn.nau.edu
• Also, write the day’s agenda and homework on the board
• In-class writing/discussion
• Sample essay activity
• Homework: Post a reply (3 or more sentences) to two different groups’ discussion posts by next class. It helps to look at groups who used the same essay as your group, but you should also see what other groups said, especially in response to Question 16. Your reply posts can discuss what your classmates said, offer helpful comments, and/or ask questions. Posts should be helpful and communicative.
• Have Blackboard open to the main course page (ENG 105), which should be blocked from view until necessary (“display mute” button)

Introduction (2 minutes)

• Open class by contextualizing lesson with these major talking points:
• In about a week, we have the first draft of the extended argument paper due. [say exact date]
• We have already talked about argumentation, organization, and citing.
• Today we will look at some samples of what other students have written for their argument papers and determine what works well and what does not.

Transition

• Say something like: Before that, though, let’s review some major concepts.

Warm up: In-class writing (7 minutes)

• Have students take out a piece of paper (half sheet or otherwise) and write their name and date at the top.
• Pull up the projector screen to reveal the question: When we talk about organizing body paragraphs, what is “PIE”? Why is it important to argumentation?
• Answer: Point, Illustration, Explanation, or topic sentences, examples, explanation of examples. In argumentative writing, the “P” and “E” need to be argumentative, while the “I” in this paper should be cited.
• Tell students they have two minutes to write their response.
• In about a minute and a half, if most students have not finished, give them another minute or so. If they have finished, tell the rest to start wrapping up their thoughts.
• When they have finished, ask the students to turn to the person next to them and discuss their answers for about thirty seconds.
• Once done, start a small discussion, first asking what “PIE” is. Wait for a volunteer or call on a student. Write answer on board.
• Then ask about why it is important to argumentation. Write keywords of students’ answers on board.
• Make sure to talk about the “P” and “E” being argumentative and the “I” needing citations if students do not give these exact answers.
• Collect papers.

Transition

• Say something like: As I mentioned, today we’re going to look at some sample essays, so what other students have submitted for this assignment. Remember that not every sample essay you see is perfect. There are mistakes in any piece of writing, so it is your job to find out what the author does right and what the author could improve.

Pre-activity (3 minutes)

• If students have not already logged in to the NAU system and to Blackboard, tell them to do so
• At the computer, unmute the display for the projector and show this trail on Blackboard and ask students to follow along: ENG 105 course shell >> Content >> Writing Project 5: Extended Argument
• Ask students to open these documents (they should open automatically into Microsoft Word):
• Sample papers
• Formatting and citations
• Ask them to look at the sample papers (open on main computer). Explain that there are three sample papers in this document and remind them that some are better than others.
• Explain that in a minute the students will pair up (groups of three are acceptable if there are three people in a row--the computer lab can make grouping difficult) and that each group will be assigned one of the three essays.
• Ask for questions.
• Have them look at the formatting and citations (open on main computer). This document will not be new to them, so explain that it is there for reference.
• Next, have the students go to the discussion board on Blackboard. There will be a thread for that day (see “Instructions for Activity” in another Google doc).

Activity (43 minutes)

• Have students follow along with the instructions on the discussion thread.
• Explain that they need to do the following by the end of class:
• Copy and paste the assigned sample essay into the groups’ discussion post
• For the title of the post, write their group members’ names
• Within the text of the posted essay, highlight the thesis in another color, as well as the topic sentence of each paragraph
• Answer Questtions 1-16 in 2-3 sentences each. Be sure to explain the answer thoroughly, giving examples (including direct quotes when needed).
• Example: Yes, the author has a thesis, but it could be more argumentative. The thesis of this paper is when he/she writes, “Although dogs are nice animals to have at home, cats are more practical for college students living in apartments.”
• Quickly go through the questions with them (this is a comprehension check/application activity, so the content behind these questions should not be very new, except perhaps for Question 16).
• Ask for questions.
• Talk about how each group should have one typer and one or two speakers. The students can decide amongst themselves, but the typer is responsible for the discussion post, and the speaker(s) will share their groups’ ideas at the end of class.
• Pair up students/group them in threes (it depends on the number of people in each row) and assign each group one of the three sample essays.
• Have students begin.
• Walk around, checking up on students and taking any questions.
• When there is about 10 minutes left of class, make an announcement to wrap up what they are writing (no matter where they are) and answer Question 16 if they have not already. Once they answer #16, have them post whatever they have.

Conclusion to lesson (5 minutes)

• At the main computer, show the posts on the discussion board, and open one. Remind them where to reply, and explain the homework.
• Homework
• Post a reply (3 or more sentences) to two different groups’ discussion posts by next class. It helps to look at groups who used the same essay as your group, but you should also see what other groups said, especially in response to Question 16. Your reply posts can discuss what your classmates said, offer helpful comments, and/or ask questions. Posts should be helpful and communicative.
• Facilitate a quick discussion about whether the essays are good examples of academic arguments (why/why not?). Talk about essay 1, then 2, then 3, keeping in mind that the speakers of each group should be the ones talking.
• At the end of class, thank students for their participation and remind them that they can email me/come to office hours/talk to me after class with questions.

TECHNOLOGICAL TOOLS

• Blackboard (bblearn.nau.edu), especially the discussion board and content folders
• For instructions on how to use the tools, see lesson plan/instructions for activity (though it should be noted that the tools have been used previously in this class and so students will be familiar with them).

OVERVIEW

Though used in my “mainstream” ENG 105 class, this lesson would adapt well to L2 section as well. Therefore, the teaching context for this lesson is of an hour-long advanced English for academic purposes (EAP) university class that requires an extended argument paper (roughly 8-10 pages in L1 ENG 105). In this setting, the class will have roughly 20 students who are in a bridge class just before they transition into mainstream university classes. This lesson takes place in a computer lab that has enough computers for each student.

Within the context of the class, this writing project--the extended argument paper--occurs towards the end of the semester. The students have already written various types of shorter argumentative papers, and this lesson comes after receiving the prompt and rubric for the end of unit paper (the extended argument), as well as after instruction on academic tone, organization (including introductions/theses, body paragraphs, conclusions), and so on. As such, in this stage of the writing project, the students have moved from learning about these concepts independently to examining how they all work together to create an end goal--the paper. Contextually speaking, the lesson here comes almost a week before the first draft of their own extended argument is due, which will then go through peer review. As homework, the students would have already read the sample essays for this class period.

I chose this lesson specifically because, in the two semesters I have taught ENG 105, I have found it to be really helpful for my students. They tell me that it is nice to see what other students have written and that it is helpful to analyze the examples closely before they have to draft their own essays. As such, this lesson strives to show students what other students have done to successfully create an extended argument paper, which my students can then apply to their own writing.

Technologically speaking, this lesson does not use the most innovative technologies, but it is a nice combination of asynchronous computer-mediated communication (ACMC) with face to face (F2F) communication. F2F communication is great because students can practice speaking in an immediate way. This speaking, as well as the assigned questions, require negotiation of meaning. Because the groups are posting their responses asynchronously, they are able to work at their own pace. In addition, this ACMC allows students to reply to other groups’ posts asynchronously, meaning that if they do not finish in class, they can finish up for homework, which also lets students plan their responses before posting. Despite this technological approach not being very fancy, this form of technology enhances the lesson and is not forced.

It should be noted, though, that while the materials I have posted with this assignment are what I would use in class, for the purpose of an L2 class, I would include more L2 writing samples, but right now, that data is not available to me. However, the essay on ESL programs (the second sample) was written by an L2 student in my class last semester.

Lastly, the sample essay document is viewable to only Dr. Smart because I do not feel comfortable making it openly available, despite the fact that the students whose writing is used gave written consent. The samples consist of actual student writing, so it does not seem appropriate.