WEEK 5

Good morning! 

YOUR WORK:

1. Complete practice test D (Read the stuff below before you start!). No ACT q set this time--we'll do the whole test instead. I would suggest printing the test out rather than doing it from the computer. It's better practice for the real thing.

Some things to be mindful of:

a. There's no time limit for this test, but because the ACT limits you to 45 minutes for this section, you want to be aware of how you're doing in terms of pace. I suggest setting a time and noting where you're at in the test at the 45 minute mark. Don't stop there, just note it. As you do the practice ACT q sets for the remaining weeks, work toward getting them finished in 8 or 9 minutes max. You may be there already. If so, great. The idea is that when you sit down to take the official test, the clock will not be something to make you anxious. You should be familiar enough with your pace to not even have to think about timing.

b. Find a quiet place where you won't be disturbed. Your official testing environment will be extremely quiet (as in no head phones!). You need to get used to that.

c. Keep careful score when you watch the review video. I'll explain then how to calculate a raw ACT score (the 1-36 number that ACT uses to report your score).

d. Don't use anything other than your brain to help answer the questions.

e. Take the test in ONE SITTING, and keep all electronic devices--phones, ipods, watches, whatever--in another room. These are the conditions you'll find at your official test site. Your practice needs to be as close to the real thing as possible. A wall clock is fine.

Corrections, review, and scoring video. 

2. LBGB...

• Read the "Style and Usage" section of chapter 3. 
• Look at these usage pairs and write a correct sentence using each (You may use my examples as models, but write your own):

            a. affect / effect
            b. assure / ensure / insure
            c. compose / comprise
            d. farther / further
            e. i.e. / e.g.
            f. me / myself

3. Watch this video on context and framing and revise your Facial Recognition essay by adding context and framing. Yes, you already have a final score on that essay. I'll treat it like a separate exercise and include it in the week 5 work score. (Some of you may have already done this per my comments last week. If you did it well, then you're done.) 

4. ACT Essay #3...
Choose either the Helmet Law or Facial Recognition prompts and write the essay from the OPPOSITE POSITION from what you wrote earlier. That's right--you may be writing from a position you don't actually believe in. That's ok. We're practicing the persuasive mode of discourse; fake it persuasively.

Here's a reminder of grading criteria:

• context and framing (watch the video above!)
• clear position statement in first P
• full arguments in each P
• counter-argument mentioned and knocked down (this can be one or more of your 3 body P's)
• overall, solid persuasive writing

Everything is DUE FRIDAY @ midnight. 

WEEK 4

YOUR WORK:

DUE FRIDAY at midnight. Report your scores and include the summaries in the MISC section of your google doc. I apologize in advance: you have to listen to me talking at you a lot this week.


1. ACT Q set (Passage II beginning "Jane Austen's reputation...")  Corrections and review.

2. Watch this video on subjects.

3. Ex 7, p508 and ex 9, p510. For each sentence in both exercises, do these 3 steps: 
a. identify it as action or description;  
b. identify the subject (watch for compounds; you may have more than one subject);  
c. identify the verb (an action if the sentence is about action, a linking verb if it's about description).  
Corrections and review. 

4. Read the blog post called "Actives Speak Louder." I wrote this for copy writers, but it's still a good introduction to passive and active voice. Write a short summary of the post (50-100 words).

5. Now read the post called "Please, Ink Responsibly." This one points out situations where the passive voice is helpful. Write a short summary of the post (50-100 words, and be sure to include examples). 

6. Read p.633-635 and do exercises 6 and 7. Corrections and review. 

7. Revise the Facial Recognition essay.

8. No new essay this week and no LBGB, just a lot of me talking. 

Have a great week!

WEEK 3

WELCOME TO MONDAY!


You have TWO weeks to get this week's work done. So there will be no post on 2/2. 

YOUR WORK:

Everyone did a great job last week of reporting scores and showing work. Thank you! If you're confused about an item, write me a question there in your work. 

1. Work through the ACT q set Passage I, (Just the first 15 items; we'll do the rest of the packet over the next couple of weeks). Here are the corrections and review.  

2. Pronouns & Antecedents (Ex 12 and 13, p.610-612 if you have the green textbook). Corrections and review. 

3. LBGB...

Read chapter 2 and do the following: 

a) Read the outlined BOX on page 27. What are Mr. Beals' thoughts on pronouns? I bring this up here because I use a pronoun this way on page 26. Find the reference (there are actually a few) and write the sentence out.

b) Read "Active and Passive Voice" on pages 34-37. What are the two advantages to active voice? What are the three appropriate times to use the passive voice?

c)  Write correct sentences using each of these (you may model my examples):

i. less

ii. fewer

iii. amount

iv. rise

v. raise

vi. sit

vii. set

viii. lie

ix. lay 

4. Revise the Helmet Law essay if you need to.

5. Revise the Separate Gender Classroom essay. 

6. ACT essay prompt #3 first draft. Write a well-argued essay on the following prompt:

In the coming months and years, the US federal government plans to implement facial recognition technology in all public spaces (not only airports and train stations, but parks and street corners). Some groups have sounded the alarm on such measures, claiming that they not only violate the 4th amendment’s protection from unreasonable search and protection of privacy, but will be ineffective in catching potential threats. They also argue that the government has no business tracking the movement of its citizens. Others claim the new technology will better ensure the safety of the nation's citizens. Should such technology be the standard rule for all of our nation’s public spaces? In your essay, take a position on the issue. You may write about either of the two points of view, or you may propose a different point of view. Use specific reasons and examples to support your position.

Remember the basics we've covered this far: Three-part structure (intro, body P's, conclusion); a counter-argument KNOCKED DOWN!; plenty of detail and supporting evidence. Also remember this: your strongest argument is the BIG argument based on principle (the principles of privacy or of public safety). Give that one (whichever direction you go) the attention it deserves (It's also the best counter-argument to knock down, so look for the opposition's best, most principled argument, state it fairly, and then kick it to pieces). 




Have a great TWO weeks!

WEEK 2

WEEK 2

GOOD MORNING!

IMPORTANT: 

1. I wasn't clear in that first post about recording your answers for exercises. I do need to see your work, so this week I've included those instructions with the assignments. "Record" means write out your answers in the doc as you're working. "Post" means give me your score (label it and put it somewhere I can see it easily).

2. The essay grade always reflects where I think you are in the process. So a first draft typically will be scored in the 50-70 range. That means you're 50-70% on your way to the final draft. In other words, don't freak out; it's a process.

Your work for this week... 

1. Revise the helmet law essay from last week. Yes, you may use (and maybe you should use) the usual word processing helps like grammar review and spell check. 


2. ACT q set #2 - take 10-15 minutes to complete it then go here for review. For each wrong answer write out an explanation on why you got it wrong. Record your answers in the doc and post your score.


3. Watch this semicolon and colon video.  Complete Review C on .783 and Posttest A on .784. For both exercises EXPLAIN WHY you're using the punctuation. Record your answers in the doc and post your score. (See #4 below for answers)


4. Watch the first 9 minutes of this video for review/corrections of exercises from #3.

5.  LBGB work. Our work in LBGB for this course will involve 1) reviewing the big ideas (I won't make you re-read entire chapters); and 2) practicing the definitions and Style & Usage items that we skipped in HSW1. 

This week we'll look at chapter 1. Here's your work:

A. Conjunctions: define the three types and write an original sentence for each. 

B. Define conjunctive adverb. Write three sentences (note the punctuation pattern in my examples!) using three different CAs. Here are a few to choose from: 

in addition, accordingly, furthermore, moreover, on the other hand, similarly, also, hence, namely, still, anyway, however, nevertheless, then, in fact, besides, incidentally, next, thereafter, certainly, indeed, nonetheless, therefore, consequently, instead, now, thus, finally, likewise, otherwise, undoubtedly, further, meanwhile

Make sure the word you're using is WORKING as a conjunctive adverb. Many of the words in this list can be used as other parts of speech.

C. Explain the difference between these pairs and use each correctly in a sentence: 

    all together / altogether

    ___ and I  / ___ and me. 

6. Watch this video on the perusasive essay. This is how the old ACT essays were set up, so I'll refer to it that way. Our purpose is just to see the structure of a persuasive essay. 

There's about a minute missing that talks about the first body paragraph. Sorry - just pause it at that point and read the screen carefully. Also, at the end of the video I mention a gender-separated classrooms essay. IGNORE IT. This was a video I made a couple of years ago, and we started out with a different topic. We'll be doing the gender essay this week. Just pay attention to how a persuasive essay is set up. 

Also, though I don't mention this in the video (Yes, I need to just make a new video), you need to acknowledge a counter-argument, an argument from the opposing side, and then refute it (i.e, take the opposition's best argument and knock it down). I used to teach that you could include this idea anywhere in the essay, but I've since decided that making the counter-argument and knock down its own body paragraph is more effective. Here's how such a paragraph might look for the pop prompt you just watched:

Some may argue that pop consumption is a public health issue, similar to the safety of drinking water, and therefore the government has a duty to enact laws like this [That's the counter-argument. What follows is the knock down]. But that simplifies the argument too much. Yes, over consumption of pop or any highly sweet drink or food is having an adverse effect on many people. But just because it is widespread doesn't make it a public issue because not everyone is effected by the behavior. Whereas we all suffer the effects of bad drinking water or poor air quality, only those who choose to do so suffer from over-consumption of pop. This issue may be widespread, but it is simply not a public-health issue, and therefore the government has no business making laws regarding it. 

Here I've explained the opposition's point, and then I showed how it doesn't work. That's how you have to deal with a counter-argument. And remember, the only point of doing that is to help YOUR argument. You're better off not dealing with a counter-argument at all than to present one and leave it intact.


7. Write a persuasive essay on the following prompt:

It’s been proposed in your school district that students in grades 8 through 12 be separated into classrooms by sex. Proponents believe that this will allow students to focus better on their schoolwork. Opponents feel that such measures would fail to prepare students for the real world. In your essay, take a position on the issue. You may write about either of the two points of view, or you may propose a different point of view. Use specific reasons and examples to support your position.)

[In the last years gender itself has become a debatable issue (for some), for our purposes, you may ignore the whole gender confusion madness and simply deal with the idea of separating boys and girls.]  



(IT'S ALL DUE BY 5:00 pm FRIDAY.) 

HAVE A GREAT WEEK!

WEEK 1

WELCOME to our first class!

Read this first (even if you think you know it already; there's new info here):

GOOGLE DOCS REVIEW...

There are three parts to your doc: the spreadsheet at the top, a section to keep essay drafts, and a section for other work. Let's look at each one:

SPREADSHEET. This where I'll put your grade for essays and weekly work. Keep an eye on this. I update it every week. And read my comments! 

ESSAYS. This section is for essays only. Paragraphs are not essays. Keep the essay assignments together (if you have three drafts on the Helmet Law essay, they should all be next to each other with the latest one on top). LABEL the essay with title and draft #, like this: "Helmet Law draft 2". Keep the most recent assignment at the top of the section.

MISC. WORK. Anything that's not a full essay goes here. Labels are even more important for this section, so include, the week and a title, like this: "WEEK 3, Skill Builder 2". Keep the most recent assignments at the top of the section.  

LATE WORK...

If you need more time, you can ask for an extension by Wednesday midnight. After that I'll grade it at half credit. I'll let you do that TWICE. We'll have two "catch-up" weeks, so that should help you stay on top of things. 

YOUR WORK FOR THIS WEEK:

Post all scores in your google doc in the MISC WORK section. Something like this:  Skill Builder 1 - 15/20

1. Review this course description link.

2. Practice set #1 (Vatican City's Wonders) - Go here for directions and review. 

3. Watch this comma video (it will be familiar if you took HSW1; ignore the date). Do this exercise. 

4. Skill Builder #1 (Skip the exercise on p62; Do the exercise on p64) - Go here for directions and review. I've gone to pdf's for most of these exercises. It can be a little tricky going back and forth between the Skill Builder pdf and my video. Just a heads-up; I'm sure you'll figure it out.

5. ACT persuasive essay. 
When you take the ACT, you'll have 40 minutes to read a piece of persuasive writing and write your own essay analyzing it. In order to write a good analysis, you'll need to be familiar with the persuasive form, so that's where we'll start and spend the first half of this course -- in the persuasive (or argumentative) form of discourse.

Here's the assignment: Write a persuasive essay based on this old ACT prompt: 

A few years ago in Michigan, the law was changed making it legal to operate a motorcycle without a helmet. Some argue that this is merely a correction to laws that went beyond the scope of state government. Opponents to the change argue that some laws—including seat-belt laws—are beneficial to the general welfare and therefore should remain in place. Do you agree that safety measures such as helmets and seat-belts should be mandatory? You may address either side of the debate, or you may present a different point of view on the issue. 

• 500 word minimum (keep the intro and conclusion paragraphs brief: 3 sentences is plenty; just as with any essay, the work — argumentation for this one — should be primarily in the body paragraphs). It's good to begin thinking about this now: try to argue from big principles rather than from particulars. In other words, what principle would lead someone to argue that he should make his own decisions about health rather than the government making those decisions? What principle would lead someone to argue that the government should make these kinds of decisions for us? 

It's all due FRIDAY, MIDNIGHT. 


HAVE A GREAT WEEK!

Q set 3 ("Many people think of the desert...")

Passage I (Many people think of the desert...)

1. C - We want the choice that suggests negating the opinion. Disposes is close, but the meaning is too strong. 

2. J - Past tense

3. B - The sentence begins with "Situated in Southern California..." This is a phrase that needs to modify whatever comes right after it, so what comes after needs to be something that is situated in southern Cal. The only possibility is valley, which makes the right answer B. When the thing after the comma can't be modified by the phrase, we call it a dangling modifier. 

4. H - It completes the comparison "as many as."

5. B - Has (present perfect tense) suggests the lake is currently in the state of drying up.

6. J - It's redundant (we already have "Called"; that's often the reason for omitting the portion).

7. A - Just simple past tense

8. H

9. C

10. H - This is both stylistically best (it flows) and grammatically correct (the other options have either verb problems or, with choice F, a dangling modifier. 

11. A

12. J

13. A

14. G - The phrase "extending . . . October" is non-essential to the sentence, meaning it's parenthetical. You can take it out and it doesn't change the meaning and focus of the sentence. In that case you want commas around it. If removing the phrase alters the sentence's meaning, then leave out the commas.

15. C - The other choices add unnecessary wording.

SAT Prompt 2 "Why Literature Matters"

Just like last week...

1. Read the essay below. If it helps, print it up and make notes on the text. You can do that during your ACT or SAT test, and it can help you organize your thoughts.

2. Write an essay that responds to the prompt. Be sure to stick to the prompt. You can write a Pulitzer Prize worthy essay, but if it's not on topic, it will earn you nothing from your SAT or ACT reader.

3. Type your writing. We won't worry about the 50 minute limit this time.

4. 600 words minimum (there is a correlation between high score on these essays and word count; the highest scoring essays average 600-700 words. The lowest 25% average 250 words. 

5. Be sure to quote the text and use specific details to support your analysis.

6. Proof it carefully.  

Prompt

As you read the passage below, consider how Dana Gioia uses

• evidence, such as facts or examples, to support claims.
• reasoning to develop ideas and to connect claims and evidence.
• stylistic or persuasive elements, such as word choice or appeals to emotion, to add power to the ideas expressed.

---

Adapted from Dana Gioia, “Why Literature Matters” ©2005 by The New York Times Company. Originally published April 10, 2005.

[A] strange thing has happened in the American arts during the past quarter century. While income rose to unforeseen levels, college attendance ballooned, and access to information increased enormously, the interest young Americans showed in the arts—and especially literature—actually diminished.

According to the 2002 Survey of Public Participation in the Arts, a population study designed and commissioned by the National Endowment for the Arts (and executed by the US Bureau of the Census), arts participation by Americans has declined for eight of the nine major forms that are measured....The declines have been most severe among younger adults (ages 18–24). The most worrisome finding in the 2002 study, however, is the declining percentage of Americans, especially young adults, reading literature.

That individuals at a time of crucial intellectual and emotional development bypass the joys and challenges of literature is a troubling trend. If it were true that they substituted histories, biographies, or political works for literature, one might not worry. But book reading of any kind is falling as well.

That such a longstanding and fundamental cultural activity should slip so swiftly, especially among young adults, signifies deep transformations in contemporary life. To call attention to the trend, the Arts Endowment issued the reading portion of the Survey as a separate report, “Reading at Risk: A Survey of Literary Reading in America.”

The decline in reading has consequences that go beyond literature. The significance of reading has become a persistent theme in the business world. The February issue of Wired magazine, for example, sketches a new set of mental skills and habits proper to the 21st century, aptitudes decidedly literary in character: not “linear, logical, analytical talents,” author Daniel Pink states, but “the ability to create artistic and emotional beauty, to detect patterns and opportunities, to craft a satisfying narrative.” When asked what kind of talents they like to see in management positions, business leaders consistently set imagination, creativity, and higher-order thinking at the top.

Ironically, the value of reading and the intellectual faculties that it inculcates appear most clearly as active and engaged literacy declines. There is now a growing awareness of the consequences of nonreading to the workplace. In 2001 the National Association of Manufacturers polled its members on skill deficiencies among employees. Among hourly workers, poor reading skills ranked second, and 38 percent of employers complained that local schools inadequately taught reading comprehension.

The decline of reading is also taking its toll in the civic sphere....A 2003 study of 15- to 26-year-olds’ civic knowledge by the National Conference of State Legislatures concluded, “Young people do not understand the ideals of citizenship… and their appreciation and support of American democracy is limited.”

It is probably no surprise that declining rates of literary reading coincide with declining levels of historical and political awareness among young people. One of the surprising findings of “Reading at Risk” was that literary readers are markedly more civically engaged than nonreaders, scoring two to four times more likely to perform charity work, visit a museum, or attend a sporting event. One reason for their higher social and cultural interactions may lie in the kind of civic and historical knowledge that comes with literary reading....

The evidence of literature’s importance to civic, personal, and economic health is too strong to ignore. The decline of literary reading foreshadows serious long-term social and economic problems, and it is time to bring literature and the other arts into discussions of public policy. Libraries, schools, and public agencies do noble work, but addressing the reading issue will require the leadership of politicians and the business community as well....

Reading is not a timeless, universal capability. Advanced literacy is a specific intellectual skill and social habit that depends on a great many educational, cultural, and economic factors. As more Americans lose this capability, our nation becomes less informed, active, and independent-minded. These are not the qualities that a free, innovative, or productive society can afford to lose.

---

Write an essay in which you explain how Dana Gioia builds an argument to persuade his audience that the decline of reading in America will have a negative effect on society. In your essay, analyze how Gioia uses one or more of the features in the directions that precede the passage (or features of your own choice) to strengthen the logic and persuasiveness of his argument. Be sure that your analysis focuses on the most relevant features of the passage.

Your essay should not explain whether you agree with Gioia’s claims, but rather explain how Gioia builds an argument to persuade his audience.