Lesson 15 Prompt: Cover Letter

Joseph Cahill
28 Evergreen Way S.W
Calgary Alberta T2Y 3K7

May 2, 2011

Dave Campbell
Vice President of Operations
BP Canada
240 4th Ave S.W
Calgary AB T2Y 3K7

Dr Mr Campbell:

I would like to take this opportunity to introduce myself to you as a writer in hopes of gaining part time employment with BP Canada. I have recently completed an English 111 course, which was offered through the University of Alaska Fairbanks. The course has taught me a great deal about the writing process and has made me a much stronger writer.

My father, Paul Cahill, works at BP Canada and has only great things to say about the company. He has informed me of an internship position in your Human Resources department and has recommended it to me. I feel that BP will provide a positive business atmosphere that will allow for me to get to know the ropes in the business world.

I have attached a copy of my writing resume and I would hope that you take a moment to read over it. I feel that with my Dad working for the company already I will be able to settle in at BP very quickly. I feel that my English course has taught me enough to be a valuable asset to your company. I am quite a hard worker and I work well in a team environment. This would be a great opportunity for me and I would love nothing more than to have a chance to work with BP.

Thank you very much for your time and for your consideration. I look forward to hearing from you in the near future.

Sincerely,
Joseph Cahill

Joseph Cahill
English F111

Lesson 15 Prompt: Writing Resume

Joseph Cahill
28 Evergreen Way S.W
Calgary Alberta T2Y 3K7
Jscahill2@alaska.edu

Objective: To use the information taught in ENGL F111X to gain employment with BP Canada

Academic Writing Experience:

Winter 2011 Introduction to Academic Writing-ENGL F111X

• “ You Don’t Know What You’ve Got Until It’s Gone” - Composed a two page essay on a personal weakness I discovered through previous life experiences
• “Battle Brewing in the Oil Sands”- Completed a seven page essay that supported development in the Athabasca oil sands. The topic is very controversial in Canada. Researched the topic and consulted nine different sources before completing the essay. Work cited page and a working bibliography were also included in the assignment.
Modern World History- HIST F100X
• “Economic Growth Models”- Wrote a 1,500 word essay discussing the three free market economic models for growth that were present in the early 1980’s. Also completed four single paragraph definition for the terms Milton Freedman, Japan-bashing, Confusion capitalism and Gastarbeiter.

Fall 2008 SAT Written Response

• “ A Strong Leader” – Completed an essay on why it is necessary for any group of people to be governed in some way by an individual with strong leadership skills


Additional Writing Experience:

Fall 2008 Prepared and delivered a three page speech for a cousins wedding

Fall 2008 Composed a 250 word essay on what life lessons I had learned through hockey for a scholarship application

Fall 2007 Prepared and delivered a four page eulogy for a friends funeral

References: Available upon request
 

Lesson 14 Prompt: If You Could Do It All Again

Write about what you wish you had done differently while you worked on your paper.

Overall I am fairly happy with how my research paper went. I was very happy with my planning and research. I think I planned and researched enough to fully understand the topic and all opinions on it. Obviously it is fairly tough to defend something that has a negative environmental impact. I wish I had have gone over the environmental argument a little more thoroughly but I was running out of available space. One thing that greatly helped with the writing process was having summaries of each source I used. When I was looking to make a certain point it was easy to look back over my notes and find which source would support that point best. I wrote the rough draft in only one day and I sort of rushed it a little bit. This led to some wording problems that made the revising process a little bit longer. Having my mom there to help me in the revising process was great though and I was able to fix most of my mistakes. This was a really fun topic to research as it is so controversial here in Canada. The federal election is today and two of the major parties ran on platforms that may slow oil sands development and it will be very interesting to see what happens if they get power. All things considered I am pretty happy with how everything went and I look forward to similar writing assignments in the future.

Lesson 13 Prompt: Consulting Others

Write about your experience consulting with someone about your writing.Include what that person told you about your writing. You can email me the name of the person who read your paper if you wish not to include that name here.

I decided to consult two different sources to help me revise my essay. First I contacted the writing center last week to get a little help from them. I had a little trouble as they were very busy and had to cancel my appointment last Thursday last minute. We rescheduled for this Monday and things went fairly smoothly. My instructor was pretty helpful although it was a little difficult to do over the phone. He helped me find various small mistakes that I had made in my writing and also suggested that I break up a few of my page long paragraphs into smaller paragraphs. A lot of mistakes that we found together were simple errors that I should have found myself if I had have proof read the essay. There was a little trouble with matching up pages over the phone. As I added and deleted phrases and sentences, the page numbers no longer matched up but that was only a minor problem. We talked a little bit about proper citation and when to use quotation marks and when not to but I am still not feeling totally comfortable with them. I am calling the center again tonight and hopefully someone there will help make things a little clearer. We talked on the phone for about fourty minuets and being that it was a long distance call it might hurt my phone bill but it was well worth it. All in all I was really grateful for the writing centers help, it really is an awesome service and its free! I should have consulted the writing center before now but next year I will definitely take advantage of the opportunity.
The other person I turned to for help is my mom. Although she didn’t study English in school she is a great writer and always helped me with my writing in high school. We don’t live together any more so I had to email her it and we talked through the paper over skype, which is much easier than over the phone. Using skype you can share your computer screen with the person you are talking to so she was able to walk me through all her editing. She found more mistakes with my paper than the writing center and it was a slightly longer process. Most of the problems she found in the paper were wording mistakes that might confuse the reader. We decided to add a little more background information in the introduction to help the reader keep pace. Many of my mistakes were made because I rushed through writing my essay and did not notice. I did not proof read the essay after I was finished and if I had I think I could have found many of the mistakes myself.
Having others proof read my work has been very helpful through my writing education. My mom has always been the one I turn to when I am stuck or need a little help. One great thing she has taught me to do is to say the point I am trying to make aloud to myself and then put it down on paper afterward. This helps to make your points clear to readers.

Lesson 11 Prompt: Summarizing

On your blog, write about your experience summarizing the reading
Some of the articles that I have been using for my research paper have been tough to summarize while others have been easier. I am doing my research paper on the Alberta oil sands and the oil industry in that region. The majority of the articles I have found weigh the pros and cons of the issue and are fairly straight forward. These articles use facts and generally simplistic arguments to assert their claims. All of these articles are written for newspapers and are fairly easy to read so that the general public can make sense of them. These articles are fairly easy to summarize. That being said a minority of the articles use complex language and terms in them. These articles are for the most part written by industry insiders and there target audience is other people in the industry. When reading these articles I have consulted my dad to help me make better sense of them. He is in the oil business so he has been a great help making sense of these articles. The differing audience used by the writers of these articles has showed me how important it is to identify your audience before you begin writing. If you are writing a child’s book you cannot use complex wording and phrases that are way over a third graders head. While summarizing these articles has been fairly time consuming it has been very time saving in the long run. I have just finished writing out the rough draft of my research paper. As I planned out my essay I needed to use different references to strengthen my arguments. Having the summaries out in front of me allowed me to glance over them to decide which reference would be best in which part of my essay. It would have been much more difficult and ended up taking a lot more time if I had have just tried to remember the key points of each article in my head. The most useful article I found was the article “ Canada’s Tar Sands: Muck and Brass” from The Economist. It had a lot of strong arguments in favour of developing the oil sands and a lot of statistics that were very useful for my essay. It was one of the articles that was written for a wide audience and very easy to follow along with. In my Econ class we were required to subscribe to The Economist and we have to read a couple articles from it each week. It is a very well written magazine and I find it is usually written from an unbiased point of view. I searched for more articles from that magazine but could not find any more. It would have been nice to have another one to use but oh well. My mom is currently helping me proof read over the rough copy and I have an appointment with the writing center tomorrow. Hopefully there will not be to many problems with it and maybe I’ll be able to get it done this week!

Lesson 10 Prompt: Freewrite

I am starting to get more confident about writing my research paper. I like the classical argument format because it will include my own three arguments, a summary of my opponent’s arguments and a rebuttal. The latter two paragraphs will allow for more writing thus helping me to fulfill the seven to ten page requirements. In my research I have found a lot of pros to developing Alberta’s oil sands but not many cons. Most of the articles I have read explain why they should be developed followed by a brief summary of the environmental concerns and then reasoning why those environmental concerns should be discredited. One reason I believe that there are not many articles on the other side of the argument is because of the lack of resources the green movement against the oil sands has at this point. It is impossible to ignore the environmental impacts of the oil sands development but they seem to be an afterthought in the Canadian media. Big oil has a lot of money and weapons in their advertising campaign to get people on their side and the environmentalist are fighting an uphill battle. I would like to see a more balanced perspective on the issue but I do not know if that will ever be possible with all the money the oil companies have to throw around. Despite this fact my research has been very helpful in creating my arguments. The facts and numbers that the articles use will be very helpful to me in conveying my ideas. One area that I am struggling with though is who my audience should be. I am not sure if I should write to the people of Canada, or the people in power around the world who will be consuming the oil. The deadline is getting pretty close now, time to bear down.

Lesson 9 Prompt: Am I Threatened?

Why am I feeling threatened by this research paper (if you are)? or Why am I feeling confident about this research paper?
I am feeling a little bit threatened by this research paper. I know that I have written many papers before so I really shouldn’t be threatened but the fact that this paper is required to be seven to ten pages long is very unnerving. I have never written a paper that long before and I really hope I can come up with enough arguments to fill the space. I think that I have found enough sources to come up with arguments but you never know until you put pen to paper.

Lesson 9 Prompt: Outside Help

What do I need outside help with?
I will talk with my dad more about the issue to help get a better understanding of the complex issues involved. He has been in the oil business for over thirty years and he will know all of the pros and cons involved with the Athabasca oil sands development. We have talked about the issue before so I know is well learned on the subject and he should provide a balanced perspective on the issue.

Lesson 9 Prompt: Whats left?

What else do I still need to do?
I still have a lot left to do before the end of the semester. I allowed myself to get a bit behind so I have been working hard to catch up but balancing English with three other courses has been tough. With the research paper upcoming very soon I need to lay down a plan of what my essay will look like. I think I think I have found three strong arguments for my point but I will need to figure out how to elaborate on those points. Finding more sources with facts should help me to do this.

Lesson 8 Prompt: Thesis Statement Test

E-ex C2-1 Thesis statements

User: Sean Cahill
Instructor e-mail: Not Available
Start time: 2:21 PM

Question 1:
Click on the sentence that would work better as a thesis statement for a two-to-five-page college paper. Remember that a thesis should be a central idea that requires supporting evidence; it should be of adequate scope for a two-to-five-page paper; and it should be sharply focused.

Your answer:
A recent trend in law enforcement known as "community policing" shows much promise in deterring criminal activity.

Correct answer:
A recent trend in law enforcement known as "community policing" shows much promise in deterring criminal activity.

Score: 1

Question 2:
Click on the sentence that would work better as a thesis statement for a two-to-five-page college paper. Remember that a thesis should be a central idea that requires supporting evidence; it should be of adequate scope for a two-to-five-page paper; and it should be sharply focused.

Your answer:
Because air pollution is of serious concern to people in the world today, many countries have implemented a variety of plans to begin solving the problem.

Correct answer:
So far, research suggests that zero-emissions vehicles are not a sensible solution to the problem of steadily rising air pollution.

Score: 0

Question 3:
Click on the sentence that would work better as a thesis statement for a two-to-five-page college paper. Remember that a thesis should be a central idea that requires supporting evidence; it should be of adequate scope for a two-to-five-page paper; and it should be sharply focused.

Your answer:
The Sex Pistols could not have succeeded without singer and lyricist Johnny Rotten, who provided the stage presence, poetry, and authentic working-class rage that galvanized the group’s young English audiences.

Correct answer:
The Sex Pistols could not have succeeded without singer and lyricist Johnny Rotten, who provided the stage presence, poetry, and authentic working-class rage that galvanized the group’s young English audiences.

Score: 1

Question 4:
Click on the sentence that would work better as a thesis statement for a two-to-five-page college paper. Remember that a thesis should be a central idea that requires supporting evidence; it should be of adequate scope for a two-to-five-page paper; and it should be sharply focused.

Your answer:
Because it has become outdated, the electoral college should be replaced by a system that allows the US president to be elected by direct popular vote.

Correct answer:
Because it has become outdated, the electoral college should be replaced by a system that allows the US president to be elected by direct popular vote.

Score: 1

Question 5:
Click on the sentence that would work better as a thesis statement for a two-to-five-page college paper. Remember that a thesis should be a central idea that requires supporting evidence; it should be of adequate scope for a two-to-five-page paper; and it should be sharply focused.

Your answer:
Though employers currently have a legal right to monitor workers’ e-mail and voice mail messages, this practice can have serious effects on employee morale.

Correct answer:
Though employers currently have a legal right to monitor workers’ e-mail and voice mail messages, this practice can have serious effects on employee morale.

Score: 1

Question 6:
Click on the sentence that would work better as a thesis statement for a two-to-five-page college paper. Remember that a thesis should be a central idea that requires supporting evidence; it should be of adequate scope for a two-to-five-page paper; and it should be sharply focused.

Your answer:
In his autobiographical Narrative, Frederick Douglass draws on techniques used in popular texts of his day—sentimental literature, the Bible, and rip-roaring oratory—to persuade his audience to reject slavery.

Correct answer:
In his autobiographical Narrative, Frederick Douglass draws on techniques used in popular texts of his day—sentimental literature, the Bible, and rip-roaring oratory—to persuade his audience to reject slavery.

Score: 1

Question 7:
Click on the sentence that would work better as a thesis statement for a two-to-five-page college paper. Remember that a thesis should be a central idea that requires supporting evidence; it should be of adequate scope for a two-to-five-page paper; and it should be sharply focused.

Your answer:
Although they are widely ignored and derided as mindlessly violent, video games are a form of popular art that deserves to be evaluated as seriously as television and film.

Correct answer:
Although they are widely ignored and derided as mindlessly violent, video games are a form of popular art that deserves to be evaluated as seriously as television and film.

Score: 1

Question 8:
Click on the sentence that would work better as a thesis statement for a two-to-five-page college paper. Remember that a thesis should be a central idea that requires supporting evidence; it should be of adequate scope for a two-to-five-page paper; and it should be sharply focused.

Your answer:
Judges should have discretion in sentencing drug offenders so that those convicted of nonviolent or first-time offenses do not automatically go to prison.

Correct answer:
Judges should have discretion in sentencing drug offenders so that those convicted of nonviolent or first-time offenses do not automatically go to prison.

Score: 1
Question 9:
Click on the sentence that would work better as a thesis statement for a two-to-five-page college paper. Remember that a thesis should be a central idea that requires supporting evidence; it should be of adequate scope for a two-to-five-page paper; and it should be sharply focused.

Your answer:
Instead of repealing the estate tax altogether, Congress should raise the current exemption significantly, to two million dollars, so that wealthy estates are taxed but those of the vast majority of Americans are not.

Correct answer:
Instead of repealing the estate tax altogether, Congress should raise the current exemption significantly, to two million dollars, so that wealthy estates are taxed but those of the vast majority of Americans are not.

Score: 1

Question 10:
Click on the sentence that would work better as a thesis statement for a two-to-five-page college paper. Remember that a thesis should be a central idea that requires supporting evidence; it should be of adequate scope for a two-to-five-page paper; and it should be sharply focused.

Your answer:
The social service system in Metropolis has broken down because today’s workers are underpaid, poorly trained, and overworked.

Correct answer:
The social service system in Metropolis has broken down because today’s workers are underpaid, poorly trained, and overworked.

Score: 1

Number of questions attempted: 10
Number of questions correct: 9
Percentage score: 90%

Lesson 8 Prompt: Research Topic Visual

I am planning on using the topic of the development of Alberta’s oil sands for my research paper. The article Canada’s Tar Sands: Muck and Brass, which has no author listed, from the magazine The Economist, contains an image of an oil sands worker holding a muddy handful of tar sand with the words filthy rich below it. The workers hand is stained with oil, showing the dirtiness associated with the oil sands industry. The image does not sway my opinion of the topic but raises an interesting problem, the environmental impact associated with the development of oil sands production. It shows that while there is a great economic benefit from the oil sands it comes at an environmental cost. This image has prompted me look at wither the economic benefits of oil sands development outweigh the environmental costs in my essay. I have attached the image below.

Lesson 8 Prompt: "Two Ways a Woman Can Get Hurt"

I chose to use the image on page 423 from Jean Kilbourne’s essay “Two Ways a Woman Can Get Hurt.” It is part of the anthology, Rereading America: Cultural Contexts for Critical Thinking and Writing. All of the images from her essay effectively drive home the point that sexuality is widely used by advertisers to sell their product and quite often give the impression of male dominance over women and makes light of important social issues such as violence against women and racism. I chose to use this image because for me it is the most offensive of all the images and one of the most unacceptable. The ad is for F. Scott’s night club and shows a cocktail with the words “if your date won’t listen to reason try a velvet hammer.” This advertisement makes light of the social problem of using inhibitors as a means to sexual encounters.
The image is offensive to me for many reasons. It makes a joke of the use of alcohol and inhibitors as a means to sex. It promotes men to think that the use of alcohol is an acceptable means to get what you are looking for. I have a younger sister who is just of legal age to drink and things like this are very worrisome for me. I have a few different female friends who have been slipped the date rape drug and advertisements such as this one make it seem like it is acceptable to use inhibitors to get what you want. While I agree with the right to freedom of speech, advertisements such as this that promote violence and taking advantage of people should not be acceptable. It is up to as consumers to stand up against unacceptable use of advertisement to promote dangerous social actions.

Lesson 7 Prompt: Participation

Read another student's blog. Indicate whose blog you read. Did you make any comments on that blog? Why or why not? Ask about extra credit points for making a comment on someone else's blog.
I chose to read Alecia’s Journal. I made a comment on hers because I really enjoy reading her blog. It is well thought out and well written. What’s up with the extra credit for making a comment on someone else’s blog?

Lesson 7 Prompt: Value of Source

What value does each of your sources have to your audience?

Three of my sources used for assignment seven were city newspaper articles. Local newspapers are of great value to Calgary aldermen and to Calgary’s mayor. The local press reach huge numbers of Calgarians and have the ability to sway people’s opinions. Those people of Calgary who are swayed by the press are the same people who vote in local elections and are the ones who gave council members their jobs. The media is very powerful in politics and good politicians know how to use the media to their advantage. My last two sources were web facts on the current housing market in Calgary. This information is very valuable to local politicians who must use this information to make the best choices for Calgarians.

Lesson 7 Prompt: Can You Sway the Audience

Can the audience be swayed by your claim and reasons? Why or why not? Tell why each reason is stong enough to sway a person to your way of thinking.

I think that city council could be swayed by my claim and reason. Each of my supporting claims provides a strong, clear reason as to why they should vote in favor of allowing secondary suits. The first argument was that secondary suits would create affordable housing. Calgary has some of the highest housing prices in North America and many regular citizens cannot afford adequate housing. This reason should help sway council because if they vote in favor of it they will be helping the people of Calgary who’s wages have not kept up with the increased prices in the hot Calgary real estate market. The second argument that secondary suits will help create a safer regulated market for them should help convince city council that secondary suits are for the best. Under the current system renters of secondary suits are not protected by the law and often find themselves living in sub-standard, unsafe homes. With the power that Calgarians gave their alderman it is their responsibility to protect those who gave them that power. My last argument was that secondary suits will help slow urban sprawl in Calgary. Urban sprawl costs the city a great deal of money and with the money saved council could help alleviate some of the budget pressures facing them. This would help make councils job a lot easier and should help sway them in favor of secondary suits.

Lesson 7 Prompt: Audience for Essay

Who is the audience for your essay? What is the thesis of essay? Does it include the claim and 3 supporting reasons to make it a stong thesis?

For my essay I wrote on the current secondary suits battle that is being fought in Calgary’s city hall. My audience was city alderman and Mayor Naheed Nenshi who have the will make the final decision on wither or not to allow secondary suits. My thesis was, “City council would be making a mistake by voting down any legislation that allows secondary suits, as these suits should be permitted across the city of Calgary because it will create affordable housing, allow for a regulated market, and slow urban sprawl that has exploded over the last decade.” The claim that secondary suits should be permitted is supported by three strong arguments: that it will create affordable housing, allow for a regulated market and slow urban sprawl. I believe that my thesis is a strong one and it includes three strong supporting arguments.

Lesson 6 Prompt: Political Cartoon Analysis

The political cartoon I chose to write on is shown at the bottom of this entry. It is a political commentary on the current Canadian Prime Minister’s environmental policy. It shows Mr. Harper standing on a sinking iceberg, while two polar bears sit watching with one saying “Harper’s latest environmental platform”. With all the controversy over global warming and its effects on the environment the cartoon uses the setting effectively. Harper has been criticized in the media for not taking a strong enough stance against global warming. He is standing on a sinking iceberg representing the melting of the polar ice caps, which is caused by global warming. If the warming continues it is presumed he will drown which signifies the need for a change to his policies to survive this election. Climate change is an important topic in the upcoming federal election and this cartoon really makes the viewer think. My thesis statement for this cartoon is- Mr. Harper’s environmental platform is not strong enough. If he fails strengthen his environmental platform his political career will not survive this election.

Lesson 6 Prompt: Responce to Cartoon

Thesis statement: Internet chat rooms can be a dangerous place, especially for young people. You do not know who is on there or who you are talking to. Sven Van Assche’s cartoon depicts a young girl standing in front of an open door with the words “internet chat rooms” written on it. The open door is pitch black other than the seventeen set’s of eyes, that are eying up the little door. The people behind the door are saying “Knock! Knock!,” as the little girl replies “who’s there?” Assche is making a point that because you do not know who you are talking to over the internet it is a dangerous place, especially for young people. The scary looking eyes that are behind the door way are scary looking and imply danger. The girl in front of the door is very small and holding a doll, which highlights her vulnerability. This is a dangerous situation and is what leads me to the conclusion that internet chat rooms are no place for small children.

Lesson 5 Prompt: Teachers Expectations

Dr. Alonzo expects a lot from her students. I have come to learn that she expects both strong ideas, support for our ideas and expects us to know the proper grammatical tools and their uses. In high school our teachers focused more on helping us to develop strong arguments and how to best support them. While this helped me to create strong arguments for this course I feel like I am a little behind in proper grammar usage and will need to work hard at it. It is a good thing that Dr. Alonzo expects so much from me as this is my first university level English course. I feel like after this class I will be properly prepared for university level writing.

Lesson 5 Prompt: What Have You Learned?

I have learned a great deal about myself as a writer and as a student through this course. This course has taught me that while I may be good at generating ideas and exploring topics I need to work on the technical aspects of writing. I have had a lot of problems with run on sentences, proper comma usage and properly incorporating sources into my essay. This has cost me quite a few marks so far but with practice I have been getting better and hopefully by the end of the course I will have mastered it. Another thing I have learned about myself as a student is that I have a hard time staying focused on my work. I will need to buckle down with the course end date fast approaching.

Lesson 5 Prompt: Which technique would you choose not to use again?

I would not say that I would not use any of the techniques explained in Hacker again. They are all valuable in different situations and I am a strong believer in pre-writing. Pre-writing is great it helps you map out strong ideas and lays out what your paper is going to look like. In my opinion it saves a lot of time in the long run as it helps me avoid writers block. After I have done my pre-writing I know exactly what I am going to write about and I just have to worry about how I am going to word the paper. However that being said, if there was one technique I would not rush to use again it would be the journalist’s questions technique. I do not find that this technique is as valuable as other free-writing strategies however if I ever found myself writing a newspaper article or other journalist paper I can see how it would be helpful.

Lesson 5 Prompt: Techniques for Generating Ideas

Personally the idea mapping technique has been the most valuable technique for generating ideas. Idea mapping clearly lays out the main idea and as you add related topics it just seems to grow bigger and bigger. The information is laid out in a visually appealing format and the connections are very clear. As ideas branch off from the main topic I often find myself branching off even more ideas from the original ones. This allows me to explore the main topic in depth and generates a lot of new ideas. When I was writing my Lesson 4 assignment my thesis was “Many individuals, including myself, are guilty of watching life pass them by”. As I branched off the topic I used generated ideas such as famous quotes, personal experience, pop culture examples and real world examples just to name a few. It was easy to make connections between these main ideas and other more specific examples. In the end I used a poem, a popular short story and a personal experience as evidence. Idea mapping led me to these topics and I do not know if I would have thought of them had I not used idea mapping.

Lesson 5 Prompt: Write a question about any writing problem you think other students might also be experiencing.

One major problem that I have been having in this course is documenting sources that I have in my essays. I know that we must use a works cited page any time we use another person’s ideas, but what situation calls for using the page number and/or authors name in parenthesis and which situation calls for mentioning the authors name and then a quote from their work? I have read through Hacker’s MLA section but that doesn’t help make it any clearer. Another problem I have faced is that I am from Canada and there are some differences between the American use of commas and Canadian use of commas. This problem has lost me quite a few marks on my essays but I think I am getting a handle on it. One problem that I am sure other students face is that we do not have face to face time with Dr. Alonzo and while she does a good job giving help it would be much easier taking these courses in person. I could not imagine trying to take a math course over the internet, now that would be even tougher!

Lesson 4 Prompt: Previewing

How did previewing sections of a book (rather than simply reading them) help you to understand the material? (If you are not practicing previewing the written material it will show in your work.)
I find the previewing a section before you read it in its entirety is very helpful. As you preview a section the illustrations and key terms are usually highlighted so they are immediately brought to your attention. This saves you time rather than reading through an entire section looking for something. Previewing before I read something in its entirety helps me to remember key terms, ideas and concepts that I should focus on when I read it later. I use previewing in my history class and that has helped me greatly. I preview the section we are reading on, then look at what the assignment calls for and then read the section in its entirety paying special attention to what I need for the assignment. I believe that it would be a good idea for all students to preview something before reading it in its entirety, it saves time and can lead to better grades.

Lesson 4 Prompt: Peer Recommendations

Did you ask anyone else to make recommendations about your revising process? Why or why not?
I got my roommate Ryan Elliot to help me with my revising process. I have been friends with Elliot for a long time so he knows me very well and his ideas helped me to revise my arguments. I also respect his opinions and value his input. I find that it is always helpful to use others when writing for many reasons. Just talking with someone, as I did for this essay, always helps to generate new ideas and to see the topic from another perspective. When I was in high school I got my mom to help me with a lot of writing assignments. She is very good with English but usually I would get her to help me with most of the technical parts of my work but once and a while when I was stuck I would go to her for ideas. Using other people to help with the writing process is a great idea and I would highly recommend it to others.

Lesson 4 Prompt: Genre of Argument

Which genre of argument would you most likely write on your own? Why?

I think I would most likely use the classical structure for my arguments if I had a choice. The structure of a classical argument allow for a clear look at exactly what my essay will look like and a clear guide of what I must follow for my essay. I like the fact that it has two paragraphs set aside to show my opposition’s view and gives me a chance to refute their position. This gives me more insight into the topic that I am writing on and more material to add to my essay. When we must meet certain criteria on the length of an essay talking about the opposition’s views gives me more to write about.

Lesson 4 Prompt: Favourite pre-writing strategy

Which of the suggested Tasks from Writing Arguments did you find most helpful in pre-writing your revision? Why?

I found that idea mapping was the most helpful pre-writing strategy in writing arguments. My English teachers in high school had us use them for many assignments so I have some experience with it. Idea mapping allows for a flow of topics that I can use for arguments and helps me to make connections that I may not have thought of without putting pen to paper. I also like the free-writing technique. By making myself write for an allotted time period and not have to worry about grammar, spelling etc. ideas flowed more freely and I was able to come up with support that I may not have thought of if I had not let my mind ponder the subject aloud.

Lesson 4 Prompt: Evaluation of Supporting Evidence

Write an evaluation of the supporting evidence you found for your revised claim. Do not forget to evaluate the credibility of the source itself. Look back at Lesson 2 if you need a reminder of what evaluating an essay (or other source) means. Be sure to explain enough about it for the reader who has not read your essay to make sense of it.

In my Lesson 4 essay my thesis statement was “Many individuals, including myself, are guilty of watching life pass them by”. I used a word map to generate ideas of things I could use as support and decided using a famous quote and a poem would be the best support I could use. When I set out to find quotes on the subject of waiting for life to happen, I stumbled upon Dr. Seuss’ short story “Oh! The Places You Will Go”. As I read through his story it had a very similar theme to my essay. For those who haven’t read the story it takes you through a person’s journey through life and one of the places the protagonist finds himself is in a place of waiting. This place of waiting described exactly the situation that I was trying to assert in my thesis. I then set out to find a poem that related to my topic and I found a poem called “A Life in Wait” written by Tim Davis. Through this poem Davis demonstrates his belief that many individuals are sitting back and merely floating through life when excellence, in whatever they desire, is only a step away. Davis is writing from personal experience, he was a high school dropout and had let many opportunities pass him by in his life. I was lucky to find two forms of literature that fit very well with my thesis. Both writings are subject to a reader’s interpretation however I found the connection between both and my thesis very strong.

Lesson 3 Prompt: What is the goal of argument?

Many people see an argument as process by which they convince others that their opinion is the best opinion however that is not completely true. An argument a continual shift between truth seeking and persuasion (8). When arguing you are attempting to provide claims for your assertion while remaining open to the fact that there may be better truth’s than your own argument. I find that many times when I am reading on a subject I will change my own opinions as more information. That is because I am receptive of other argument and open to the fact that there may be a better truth than my original opinion. The goal of argument is find the best solution to a conflict through an open exchange of ideas and asserting your position through informed backup while remaining open to the ideas of others (12).

Lesson 3 Prompt: Why and how is argument both a process and a product?

An argument is a process by which individuals support justifications for conflicting views on something in an effort to resolve a difference of opinion. Support must be provided rationally and clearly so that there is a possibility that the argument may be resolved. These conditions show that an argument is a process by which each party involved demonstrates clearly their opinion and the reasons to support this opinion. This process must be present for an argument to occur. The argument then becomes a product of the competing parties who are championing their cause. Each side brings to the argument their own opinion and support for that cause and the difference of opinion between them allows for an argument. An argument cannot occur without these competing opinions. It is these stipulations that allow for a fight to evolve into an argument.

Lesson 3 Prompt: What does the book Writing Arguments tell us about the concept of truth? Cite page numbers for accuracy.

The book Writing Arguments tells us that there is no one perfect truth, only varying degrees of truth. Every problem involves complex issues in which there is no single answer that is an absolute truth but rather there are varying degrees of truth and so our responsibility when facing a problem is to find the best truth available. In our search for the best truth we must be willing to be flexible with our opinions and if necessary be willing to change our opinions if a better truth is realized. Because a perfect truth is unobtainable we cannot seek to prove that something is an absolute truth but rather we must show that our truth is the best truth available (11-12).

Lesson 3 Prompt: Why is a written argument a good way to defend (support) an opinion?

Written argument is a very effective way to defend an individual’s opinion. It makes information readily available for a great deal of people to see and it can reach a wide audience. The writer has a great deal of time to research and put thought into their argument while considering their opinion from many different angles. It gives the writer a chance to organize their thoughts and consider all possibilities when making their case. Writers are able to explain their opinions in a clear and concise manor and it may help the audience to better understand these opinions. Verbal argument while also effective has a much more narrow audience and there is a greater chance that the person who is arguing may confuse their audience who fail to keep up.

Lesson 3 Prompt: How does one demonstrate his or her belief in an opinion? Give an example

An individual can demonstrate their belief in an opinion through many different actions. If they believe strongly in an opinion they most likely will take a very active role in demonstrating that opinion. Someone who believes strongly in a political cause can organize a political rally, start a petition, write an editorial or speech, or they may even run for office to champion that political cause. They may also take a more passive approach to this and simply vote. Someone who is of the opinion that school is very important can demonstrate this by simply be punctual for class and working hard while another person with this belief may spend hours upon hours trying to obtain the absolute highest grade possible. If you believe that global warming is a serious issue you may choose to drive a hybrid vehicle or you can make ecological friendly decisions when shopping such as buying organic or purchasing products that are more environmentally efficient. There are many ways to demonstrate an opinion and the strength of that opinion will determine the effort that an individual will go to, to demonstrate that opinion.

Welcome to the Writer's Corner

Hello All!
My name is Joseph Cahill, and I have created this blog for my English 111 class. I guess I'll start by telling you a little bit about myself. I'm twenty years old and am from Calgary, Alberta, Canada. I am playing hockey out in Saskatchewan right now for the Kindersley Klippers. Next year I am headed up to Fairbanks, Alaska to play for the Nanooks. I have a younger sister named Amy and my parents are Lori and Paul Cahill. Guess that's it for now...