Week 2 Zoom Notes and Resources

Below are the highlights from today's Zoom meeting. You will also find the PowerPoint made by Mr. Smith that we referenced.

• Grading: Your baseline grade for Semester 2 will be whatever your grade is right now in the gradebook. This is the grade as of March 12th when school closed. Your grade can not end lower than this. You can improve that grade with continued diligent work. You MUST engage in the required learning. If you choose to not engage in the learning you will receive an incomplete for the semester.
• So What Evidence: A big issue we're seeing with the outlines is making claim with your so what and then not giving evidence to prove it. Example: "...leading to a loss of traditional culture in Africa." The evidence for your what and how does not prove that this happened. You MUST give evidence showing that culture was actually lost, that society was unstable, that a wrongful perspective of Africa in Western society exists because of media. 
• Below is a PPT that Mr. Smith created showing examples of this and other common issues in the outlines and suggestions on how to improve. 
• On Santos' website yesterday is a post titled Research Resources that gives some articles you can use for evidence for your so what. Lots of good information there.
• Analyzing Rhetorical Appeals: In general, be extremely cautious in pointing out rhetoric. It is very difficult to prove that someone was actually persuaded and if you are saying they used pathos to get an emotional response from someone, you are going to have to prove that the emotional response existed.
• In TFA, just don't. Fiction is not meant to persuade. You should not be analyzing the rhetoric (which is different than language) of fictional characters.
• In media: You need to look at the effects. If you are saying an NGO used pathos, you either need to show that donations increased because of this, that ads with this technique bring more donations than ads that don't, OR explain why their attempts to make people feel bad for Africa are bad and then give proof of that.
• If you have additional questions about this, please email Santos or Smith.
• Peer Edits: Once rough drafts are submitted, PLEASE go to the peermark assignment and give a classmate a peer edit of their draft. Help each other out! If you can't tell who needs one, email Mrs. Santos and she'll assign you one.
• Other Notes:
• Please stay in past tense when writing!
• Do not stress about your conclusions. Do your best to summarize your argument and emphasize your so what.
• The Intro and Conclusion PPTs on the websites are great resources.

Outline Feedback with examples