Packing Slip 
item |
I-Search Essay |
contact |
Pam Davenport (Chandler-Gilbert Community College) pam.davenport@cgcmail.maricopa.edu |
credits |
Pam Davenport Darby Heath |
college(s) |
Chandler-Gilbert Community College |
discipline(s) |
English, Sociology |
summary |
This is an I-Search paper assignment for an English and sociology learning community. The students are asked to do primary and secondary research on a social issue, and in the writing of the paper, tell the story of their search. The purpose of the research and writing is to discover a question that students will answer in a persuasive essay for the next paper. |
details |
Weaving the Tapestry of Our Lives Learning Community I-Search Paper on Social Issue Okie use’ta mean you was from Oklahoma. Now it means you’re scum. Don’t mean nothing itself, it’s the way they say it. --from The Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck It’s a tenuous satisfaction that comes from rationalizing problems away or banning them from the sidewalk. --from “Household Words,” Small Wonder, by Barbara Kingsolver Assignment and Purpose: You will write an I-Search Essay, in which you tell the story of your exploration of one of the following topics: Education, Immigration, Domestic Violence, Homelessness, Poverty. The I-Search Paper is a more interesting and less restrictive way to write on a topic than a typical analytical essay, but you must understand that your search and your writing is not supposed to be a free flowing, pointless exercise. You have a specific task to accomplish through your search and writing, to discover a significant question which our community must address in relation to your chosen topic. Your job will be to persuade your audience that this is the question that must be asked, and that it can be answered. For Paper #3, you will write a persuasive essay in which you attempt to convince your audience to accept your response to the question you pose in Essay #2. This is a very “hands-on” project. For instance, if you are interested in homelessness, you could find out about the homeless campus discussed in the attached newspaper article. You would contact the reporter, interview people involved in the project, and determine what question is paramount in relation to this project. Format The organization for your essay will grow from your discoveries, and the ways you decide to present them, rather than from a presscribed structure imposed upon you by your instructors. However, the foundation of your paper will be a narrative account of your search, with other modes of discourse woven into your story. You will have to study your College Writer book for help with developing various sections of your paper according to comparison/contrast, process analysis, cause and effect, persuasion, etc. You also must meet with your instructors for assistance in determining an organizational plan for your essay. Requirements * You will interact with the ESL students and try to incorporate your learning from them into your paper, especially if you choose education or immigration for a topic. (You must use your service learning experience in at least one of the four essays you write for this course.) * Your I-Search Paper must include a reflexive component, where you express your vested interest in the topic, using your sociological imagination. (Answer the questions: Why is this a social issue? Why is it personally meaningful to you?) * You must write from a particular sociological perspective. * You must do at least one interview and incorporate this into your essay. * You must use at least one local newspaper article, referenced in your paper. * You must view one of the films we suggest and use it in your essay. This could constitute a major chunk of your paper, an analysis of how the film addresses the issue and how it relates to the local situation and the question you pose. Or you might use references to the film to introduce ideas. Use one of the following films: Education—Stand and Deliver, Domestic Violence—The Burning Bed, Immigration—El Norte, Homelessness and Poverty—The Grapes of Wrath, Poverty—Boyz N the Hood. * We will provide you with a list of sociological terms which must be used in your essay. * You must use poetry, your own original work and/or the works of others. * You must inlude a visual—photo or painting. Note! As a professional courtesy to the owner of this package, if you use some aspect of this package or have some thoughts about it, please share your feedback via the comments form below. |
comments |
Most recent comment about this package:
On Mon Dec 06, 2004 at 1:29PM Pam Davenport <pam.davenport@cgcmail.maricopa.edu> said: |
shareback |
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extra |
Last modified: Apr-30-2004 Date created: Sep-29-2003 Visitor count: 3277 Dublin Core Metadata record  |
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