1. Start a new post with a title indicating it is about your website evaluation.
In the body of the post, include the URL of the site you evaluated, and your 2-3 paragraph evaluation summary. Be sure you have edited carefully for grammar and mechanics before you post!
2. Post it.
3. Between now and class on Thursday, please choose THREE classmates’ blogs to read and comment on. You should visit the URL they’ve provided and read their evaluation. Your comment should reflect either an agreement or disagreement with their evaluation citing specific reasons for your opinion.
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Research Topics
Steps:
1. Post FOUR topics that interest you to your blog. If you have already done this, skip to the next step. Underneath each topic you should write 2-3 sentences for why you are interested in this topic.
2. Visit your classmates’ blogs. YOU SHOULD READ ALL (that means 19 total) OF YOUR CLASSMATES’ POSSIBLE TOPIC CHOICES POST. However, you need only comment on FOUR. Your comments should be thoughtful and insightful with the goal of helping your classmates’ narrow down their ideas. Please write 2-3 sentences per comment.
3. Evaluate the Possible Topics from your list using the following criteria:
Choose a topic with 2 sides. The purpose of your paper is to defend or refute a thesis which means the thesis must be debatable.
a. Check the scope of your thesis. Consider the length of the paper and whether or not you can do justice to the topic in that space. Think of this as your unique “angle” on the topic.
Too broad: simply stating that your topic is “gun control” is too broad. In a 6-8 page paper, you need to narrow the focus of gun control to something like “civilians should be allowed to own a firearm as long as they are put through an intensive background check.” This is manageable in the paper length assigned.
Too narrow: stating that your topic is “allowing criminals already convicted of a shooting to own firearms once they leave prison” is too narrow. You’ll end up trying to “find” things to write about in order to meet page length which is never a good thing.
4. Go back to your blog! Read over your classmates’ comments. Next, post a comment of your own (to the original topic choice blog) that evaluates each of your possible topics. You should write the topic, a sentence explaining the two sides of the debate (or noting that there aren’t two sides if that is the case), and the scope of your thesis (you do not have to know exactly what you would write about, but need to present your “angle” from above).
5. After this evaluation process, it’s decision time! Think about steps 1-4. Of your four topics which are you most interested in? Which received the most positive feedback from your classmates? Which came out as the strongest topic in step 3 & 4 – evaluation. These are some questions that will help you decide which topic to choose. Note: see my “pieces of advice at the end of this sheet.”
6. Once you have chosen your topic - Go online! Spend a few minutes doing some preliminary research on your topic. Please use the following sites:
http://scholar.google.com/
http://www.eric.ed.gov/ (click on “advanced search” and then check the box for “only show full text…”
Print an article from each (1-3 pages).
7. The final step is to turn in your topic choice. Please do so in the format attached to this paper. I will not accept a paper that does not fit the format and include the proper information. Please attach both articles.
Pieces of Advice:
1. Choose a subject that you are interested in, but do not get “in over your head.” Don’t choose something that is totally foreign to you.
2. Your goal is to objectively argue. If your position is too emotionally charged, choose a different topic. It’s impossible to argue you well if you can’t be objective.
3. Argument doesn’t mean a fight. Many topics don’t involve traditional debate but still have varying opinions.
4. Be unique! Don’t simply choose “pro-life” as a topic. Think outside the box!
1. Post FOUR topics that interest you to your blog. If you have already done this, skip to the next step. Underneath each topic you should write 2-3 sentences for why you are interested in this topic.
2. Visit your classmates’ blogs. YOU SHOULD READ ALL (that means 19 total) OF YOUR CLASSMATES’ POSSIBLE TOPIC CHOICES POST. However, you need only comment on FOUR. Your comments should be thoughtful and insightful with the goal of helping your classmates’ narrow down their ideas. Please write 2-3 sentences per comment.
3. Evaluate the Possible Topics from your list using the following criteria:
Choose a topic with 2 sides. The purpose of your paper is to defend or refute a thesis which means the thesis must be debatable.
a. Check the scope of your thesis. Consider the length of the paper and whether or not you can do justice to the topic in that space. Think of this as your unique “angle” on the topic.
Too broad: simply stating that your topic is “gun control” is too broad. In a 6-8 page paper, you need to narrow the focus of gun control to something like “civilians should be allowed to own a firearm as long as they are put through an intensive background check.” This is manageable in the paper length assigned.
Too narrow: stating that your topic is “allowing criminals already convicted of a shooting to own firearms once they leave prison” is too narrow. You’ll end up trying to “find” things to write about in order to meet page length which is never a good thing.
4. Go back to your blog! Read over your classmates’ comments. Next, post a comment of your own (to the original topic choice blog) that evaluates each of your possible topics. You should write the topic, a sentence explaining the two sides of the debate (or noting that there aren’t two sides if that is the case), and the scope of your thesis (you do not have to know exactly what you would write about, but need to present your “angle” from above).
5. After this evaluation process, it’s decision time! Think about steps 1-4. Of your four topics which are you most interested in? Which received the most positive feedback from your classmates? Which came out as the strongest topic in step 3 & 4 – evaluation. These are some questions that will help you decide which topic to choose. Note: see my “pieces of advice at the end of this sheet.”
6. Once you have chosen your topic - Go online! Spend a few minutes doing some preliminary research on your topic. Please use the following sites:
http://scholar.google.com/
http://www.eric.ed.gov/ (click on “advanced search” and then check the box for “only show full text…”
Print an article from each (1-3 pages).
7. The final step is to turn in your topic choice. Please do so in the format attached to this paper. I will not accept a paper that does not fit the format and include the proper information. Please attach both articles.
Pieces of Advice:
1. Choose a subject that you are interested in, but do not get “in over your head.” Don’t choose something that is totally foreign to you.
2. Your goal is to objectively argue. If your position is too emotionally charged, choose a different topic. It’s impossible to argue you well if you can’t be objective.
3. Argument doesn’t mean a fight. Many topics don’t involve traditional debate but still have varying opinions.
4. Be unique! Don’t simply choose “pro-life” as a topic. Think outside the box!
Runaway Jury
We viewed the film Runaway Jury as a class this past week. Our goal was to begin thinking about controversial issues such as gun control and jury consulting. Click on any of the blogs from the right-hand link menu to see what we thought!Thursday, February 4, 2010
Can you Tell Me How to Get To Sesame Street?
If I had to create a bumper sticker that modeled my philosophy for life, it would be "can you tell me how to get to Sesame Street?"
Stupid, I know. I'm a mom, sue me. But, the thing is, everyone on Sesame Street is happy all the time. Even if they fight, cry, feel scared, are unsure of themselves - someone is always there to help them figure it out or make them feel better.
Everybody has a place to live. Apartments are just as good as trash cans.
Everybody eats food - and it's healthy but yummy so nobody is fat. And even if they are a little fat, it's okay because people accept each other for who they are.
Families are diverse. It doesn't matter if you live with your mom, your gradma, am adopted parent, a monster, or a snuffleupagus, you have a family that loves you.
Color isn't an issue. Red monsters befriend orange monsters. Ethnicity isn't an issue. Grouches rommate with worms. Money isn't an issue. The only reason anyone talks about it is to learn to count, otherwise, everything is free.
On top of everything else, there is learning. The best learning takes place via singing and dancing. Even the haters end up enjoying their education because something new is always being presented in a manner which makes everyone ecstatic.
On days when I'm really angry, and many of those times it might be about nothing at all or something so unjustified it's embarrasing, I remind myself that there are places and people in the world that find the best in life. They sing and dance and love each other. They eat, drink, be merry. They live, laugh, love. Call it whatever you wish but the truth is that life is too short for us to be anything but content. If you don't like something about your life, well then go out and change it!
"Can you tell me how to get to Sesame Street" is a call for action. It's a request that you find the silver lining in every cloud and face every situation with a smile. Such a simple message, such a hard thing to do.
At some point today, when my 2-year old has hit me in the face and told me "stop it mommy" for the tenth time, when my husband has opened a string cheese and left the wrapper on the counter because that's where he thinks trash goes, when my mother has called me to tell me that if I take my kid to McDonald's one more time I'm going to hell, I'll take a deep breath and remember that everything on Sesame Street is wonderful. And it can be in my house too, if I let it.
Stupid, I know. I'm a mom, sue me. But, the thing is, everyone on Sesame Street is happy all the time. Even if they fight, cry, feel scared, are unsure of themselves - someone is always there to help them figure it out or make them feel better.
Everybody has a place to live. Apartments are just as good as trash cans.
Everybody eats food - and it's healthy but yummy so nobody is fat. And even if they are a little fat, it's okay because people accept each other for who they are.
Families are diverse. It doesn't matter if you live with your mom, your gradma, am adopted parent, a monster, or a snuffleupagus, you have a family that loves you.
Color isn't an issue. Red monsters befriend orange monsters. Ethnicity isn't an issue. Grouches rommate with worms. Money isn't an issue. The only reason anyone talks about it is to learn to count, otherwise, everything is free.
On top of everything else, there is learning. The best learning takes place via singing and dancing. Even the haters end up enjoying their education because something new is always being presented in a manner which makes everyone ecstatic.
On days when I'm really angry, and many of those times it might be about nothing at all or something so unjustified it's embarrasing, I remind myself that there are places and people in the world that find the best in life. They sing and dance and love each other. They eat, drink, be merry. They live, laugh, love. Call it whatever you wish but the truth is that life is too short for us to be anything but content. If you don't like something about your life, well then go out and change it!
"Can you tell me how to get to Sesame Street" is a call for action. It's a request that you find the silver lining in every cloud and face every situation with a smile. Such a simple message, such a hard thing to do.
At some point today, when my 2-year old has hit me in the face and told me "stop it mommy" for the tenth time, when my husband has opened a string cheese and left the wrapper on the counter because that's where he thinks trash goes, when my mother has called me to tell me that if I take my kid to McDonald's one more time I'm going to hell, I'll take a deep breath and remember that everything on Sesame Street is wonderful. And it can be in my house too, if I let it.
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