What I Learned In This Class

     Wow, we learned so much it is hard to state just one thing. I guess I learned I can write well if I have the proper tools available. Someone just had to show me the tools.

     For example, I couldn't have told you what Logos, Pathos, Ethos was before this class. I might have guessed Greek towns or something. The thing is I had used them all before, but never made any conscious attempt to use them to make my writing better.

     Adaption of your writing to the specific audience you are trying to target is another one I always took for granted. Makes sense though, how your audience is going to relate to your subject is in direct relation to how you present it. It has to be informative, humorous, or at the very least hold their attention.

     Transitions and content lexical ties was another one I had never heard of before. I wrote many a business report before, but true writing like essays has to flow. You can’t expect someone to read a paper, especially a long one, if it doesn't flow properly.

     There were also some very interesting lessons relating to technology. I think the lessons there really opened up a lot of the class’s eyes to things that were right in front of us all along.

     Most of all I learned some confidence. I thought I could never right a decent paper and now I know I can.

Rogerian Argument: Is Mine Good?

     Yet another essay rough draft due, and yet another self-review is do. I have thought and thought, read and re-read, and am still unsure of myself. My last essay got a little too argumentative even though it was supposed to be informative. First step in my review process was to go back and read again comments Mr. Sentell left me on my informative essay. Much to my chagrin, he was correct and I had at least two paragraphs that were pretty opinionated.  So fast forward and in my mind I already have two paragraphs done for this essay!

     I added three more paragraphs of naysayers to my essay and two more works cited. I tried to punch home my thesis statement a little more, all the while addressing people who might see the other point of view. I hope I have hit the nail on the head for this assignment. I really tried to understand the directions; revise the last essay and turn it into a Rogerian Argument.

     I will have to review my essay one more time before final submission on Friday. Even though I always do a lot of my revisions on the fly, there are always a few rough edges I find in my final read through. Usually it is simple stuff like grammatical errors. I have had fun in this class and I just want to go out with one last good paper in my hand!

     As I continue research for my Rogerian Essay I have found several articles that are the exact opposite viewpoint of my original thoughts towards a thesis. Some of these articles make very good sense. I guess now that I am armed with all of these facts and viewpoints I need to decide which viewpoint I am going to argue for before I write my essay. It amazed me that some of these differing viewpoints were actually making me think about changing my original stance on the subject.

     My research was actually hampered by yesterday’s winter weather. Originally I had off today and was going to the library to do some research. Most of my research is going to have to be internet based unless I can venture out tomorrow. I did however find some newspaper blog sources and some excerpts from books that were helpful. At first I was afraid I wouldn't be able to find any opposing viewpoints on my subject. Thank goodness there were some available.

Strauss, Valerie. “The Only International Test Score Info You Need To Know.” Washington Post, 3 December 2013. Web. 6 December 2013.

Ravitch, Diane. “What You Need To Know About The International Test Scores.” Huffington Post, 3 December 2013. Web. 6 December 2013.

You Say Yes, I Say NO!

     The final essay we have to write for class is the Rogerian Argument. This week’s blog post is to brainstorm Naysayers for our topic. Brainstorming, not that hard to do, I think.

     The topic for my essay is the fact that American children are falling behind the rest of the world in education. I was able to find a lot of items during my research for the article. Now I need to take the original essay and revise, adding the naysayers. What could be the opposite argument of the research I did? Well here goes nothing……

     One could argue that the tests are not fairly representing all students.

     Some countries only test certain parts of their students.

     In most cases memorization can yield higher test scores than actual learned items.

     Or the emotionally charged, it can’t be true because we are the best country in the world.

     I will re-read my Informative Essay and try to look for several spots where the research I've done can be rebutted. I think it will actually be harder to find the research that is opposite of what I have already stated. I do however understand that stating the inverse viewpoint can actually make my argument stronger. State it, acknowledge it exists, and let people know their viewpoint, then convince your audience why your point is the strongest. I’ll pull it all together and see how it reads.

The Rogerian Argument

     The Rogerian argument is a very interesting assignment. We are to take the 1500 word Informative Research Essay we already did and turn it into the 2000 word Rogerian Essay. The point of the Rogerian is to take the research we have already done, which was supposed to be unbiased and not taking a side, and now take a side to argue a point. The thing that makes the Rogerian different from just an ordinary argument is we have to include points on both sides of the fence.

     Including other opinions and research is definitely something new to us. We spent the whole last assignment trying to not take a stance on our subject, just simply inform. Now we are to not only take the stance, but see and agree with others points of view on the same subject.

     This kind of thinking makes you really see both side of the fence. There is always someone who thinks there point is more important than yours. By following these directions, you not only acknowledge their point, but you sometimes even praise it. In the end you still argue that your point is the most correct, yet you add credibility to your points by acknowledging theirs. I will have to do some additional research to find points that are contradictory to mine. I will however be able to use all my initial research from the first essay. Good luck to everybody on the assignment!

Essay #3 Self-Review

     Once again another essay to write and another review process to fill out. I used the self-review sheet to check my essay before submitting the 2^nd rough draft. Once again I did not find anything earth shattering by using the review sheet.  I did however re-read and make a few wording and syntax changes. Hopefully they make my paper better.

     I still think the reason I don’t find anything earth shattering is because I do so much revising while I am writing that the draft almost becomes the final result. As I write I am constantly reviewing and may change sentences to make them better, immediately after writing them down. It is as if I put myself in the reader’s perspective as I write and I make the changes necessary to make it sound better as I go. It is not exactly a structured review process, but seems to work okay for me.

     I did however use the question on the review about transitions and content-lexical ties to help me improve my paper. I added a few transitioning statements to my paper to make it flow more smoothly from paragraph to paragraph. Hopefully it all makes sense. I think I will get someone else to proofread it before I submit next week’s final draft. Two heads are better than on, right!

American Students Falling Behind

     The topic I chose for my essay is the fact American students are not keeping pace with the rest of the world’s students. This is actually very alarming and upon doing some research the numbers didn't make me feel any better. Other industrialized nation’s students are outperforming us in almost every category currently tested. Consider this, The United States came in 23^rd or 24^th in most subjects; we can quibble, or we can face the brutal truth that we’re being out-educated (qtd. in Lee). The nation that once led the world in education is now at best 23^rd?

     How did we ever get this far behind other countries? That is a much debated issue with all sides not seeing equally on how to proceed forward in fixing this problem. If we do not get this headed in the right direction soon, upcoming generations will feel the effects of a world who does not believe in our capabilities anymore. The far reaching economic impacts of letting other countries slip by us are going to be detrimental to our society. We have to turn this around.

     We must start to turn this around by insisting that educational excellence become a priority for our politicians and educators. It cannot be fixed overnight, but we can turn this around with some hard work and dedication.

Works Cited

Lee, Kurtis. “Math, Science, Reading scores show U.S. schools slipping behind.” PBS Newshour Extra, 10 December 2011. Web. 19 Novemeber 2013.