Academic English IIi

ACADEMIC ENGLISH IIIClass 5

September 17, 2013

TodayIntro to argumentative writing

APA style

Photo credit: www.lifehack.org

Argumentative WritingFirst, argumentative writing requires an issue or “prompt”.

The issue you write about must be arguable.

i.e., “Smoking should be illegal”

vs.

“Smoking is harmful to people’s health.”

arguable

not arguable

Argumentative EssayRequires the writer to

1.Investigate a topic.

2 Collect and evaluate evidence.

3. Establish a position on the topic.

4. Support that position.

Consider:The U.N. should award the Lioncourt Rocks to Japan.

- Lioncourt Rocks??

Source: www.dokdo-takeshima.com

The UN should award the Lioncourt Rocks to SK.

- Past documents** Against the will of SK (invasion)- Location- History- Korean population (no Japanese popn.)

Evidence: Historical, Geographic, Demographic

Argumentative WritingWriting in which you take a position on an issue.

i.e., The Lioncourt Rocks are rightfully Korean territory.

AND…

you support your position using logical, evidence-based reasons.

The goal: convince the reader of the strength of your claim (not necessarily that your claim is “right”).

Argument – a group of statementsAn argument consists of:

- Claim (i.e., thesis statement)

- Support (i.e., evidence and reasoning throughout an essay)

Example: Drinking water daily is good for your health as it cleans out your liver and reduces the level of toxins in yourblood.

Argument – a group of statementsAn argument consists of:

- Claim: Drinking water daily is good for your health (i.e., thesis statement)

- Support : as it cleans out your liver and reduces the level of toxins in your blood.

(i.e., evidence and reasoning throughout an essay)

Example: Drinking water daily is good for your health as it cleans out your liver and reduces the level of toxins in yourblood.

Argument

- Claim (i.e., thesis statement)

Simple: Rats need water to live

Support: Because experiments have demonstrated this.

Argument

- Claim (i.e., thesis statement)

Complex: The end of the South African system of apartheid

was inevitable.

Support: Every successful revolution in the modern era has come about after the government in power has given and then removed small concessions to the uprising group.

Argument - SupportDifferent fields prefer certain types of support:

i.e.) logical development of points examples statistics experimental results

Argumentative WritingRequires:

- A clear, strong position on the issue.

- Division of the position into body paragraphs.

- Logical support for the position.

- Evidence to support the position.

Argumentative WritingRequires:

- A clear, strong position on the issue.

i.e., Chocolate cake should be part of elementary school cafeterias’ daily menus because of its amazing properties that help students throughout the school day.

This thesis statement has: a clear topic: Chocolate cake

a controlling idea: “Should be part of elementary school cafeterias’

daily menus”

Argumentative WritingRequires:

- Division of the position into body paragraphs.

Chocolate cake should be part of elementary school cafeterias’ daily menus because of its amazing properties that help students throughout the school day.

- What are these “amazing properties”?- How many are there? (that will decide the division)

Argumentative WritingRequires:

- Division of the position into body paragraphs.

Cake’s properties:

- increases study performance.

- improves classroom experience.

- provides a great amount of energy.

Body paragraph 1

Body paragraph 2

Body paragraph 3

Argumentative WritingRequires:

- Logical support for the position.

Explanations of how each part of the essay supports the position.

These explanations must make logical connections to the position.

i.e., “Cake increases study performance, so it is good.”

Argumentative WritingRequires:

- Logical support for the position.

These explanations must make logical connections to the position.

i.e., “Cake increases study performance, so it is good.”

- This explanation is vague and lacks logical connection.What is “good”? How does “good” relate to the position?

Argumentative WritingRequires:

- Logical support for the position.

Position: “Cake should be on elementary school cafeterias’ daily menus”

Connection?

- Cake increases study performance.

Argumentative WritingRequires:

- Logical support for the position.

Position: “Cake should be on elementary school cafeterias’ daily menus”

- Cake increases study performance.

Elementary school students have increasing pressures to do well in school as expectations of what they should learn and how much they should learn change. As a result, elementary school students now study more difficult subjects, such as math, for longer periods of time. By increasing study performance, cake can help students cope with these new demands.

Argumentative WritingRequires:

- Evidence to support the position.

- Cake increases study performance.

Says who?!

This guy?

Or maybe this guy?!

Source: 3darunravi.blogspot.com

Argumentative WritingRequires:

- Evidence to support the position.

In order for an argument to be persuasive, evidence from appropriate and reliable sources is required.

Argumentative WritingRequires:

- Evidence to support the position.

Types of evidence:

- Statistics (i.e., Cake increases concentration by 30%)

- Expert opinions (neuroscientists have found that certain

chemicals in cake improve brain function)

- Facts (The human brain requires sugar to function)

- Examples

Argumentative WritingRequires:

- Evidence to support the position.

- Cake increases study performance.

First, cake has been proven to increase concentration. A study found that children who eat just one piece of cake per day have 30% better concentration than children who have no cake (Wonka, 2011).

Argumentative WritingRequires:

- Evidence to support the position.

First, cake has been proven to increase concentration. A study found that children who eat just one piece of cake per day have 30% better concentration than children who have no cake (Wonka, 2011).

NOTE: Remember to explain the relevance of your evidence!

Argumentative WritingRequires:

- Evidence to support the position.

- Cake increases study performance.

First, cake has been proven to increase concentration. A study found that children who eat just one piece of cake per day have 30% better concentration than children who have no cake (Wonka, 2011). An increase in concentration can allow students to cope with increased class demands, especially in more difficult classes, such as math, which require concentration to solve complex problems.

Argumentative WritingRequires:

- Evidence to support the position.

What’s better than one supporting point?

2 !!! (or 3, etc.)

Argumentative WritingRequires:

- Evidence to support the position.

Two (or more) supporting points with evidence will be more persuasive to the reader; thus making your argument stronger.

i.e., Cake also has a positive effect on reaction time. The chemicals in cake improve the function of the reticular formation, allowing cake eaters to more quickly process visual and auditory information (Jones, 2009).

NOTE: Remember to explain the relevance of your evidence!

Argumentative WritingRequires:

- Evidence to support the position.

Two (or more) supporting points with evidence will be more persuasive to the reader; thus making your argument stronger.

i.e., Cake also has a positive effect on reaction time. The chemicals in cake improve the function of the reticular formation, allowing cake eaters to more quickly process visual and auditory information (Jones, 2009). Increased reaction times allow students to answer questions faster and to more readily understand explanations and examples.

Argumentative WritingRequires:

- A clear, strong position on the issue.

- Division of the position into body paragraphs.

- Logical support for the position.

- Evidence to support the position.

Argumentative Writing - ExampleThesis statement:Chocolate cake should be part of elementary school cafeterias’ daily menus because of its amazing properties that help students throughout the school day.

Body paragraph 1:

Cake increases study performance (topic sentence).

Argumentative Writing - ExampleBody paragraph 1:

Cake increases study performance. Elementary school students have increasing pressures to do well in school as expectations of what they should learn and how much they should learn change. As a result, elementary school students now study more difficult subjects, such as math, for longer periods of time. By increasing study performance, cake can help students cope with these new demands. First, cake has been proven to increase concentration. A study found that children who eat just one piece of cake per day have 30% better concentration than children who have no cake (Wonka, 2011). An increase in concentration can allow students to cope with increased class demands, especially in more difficult classes, such as math, which require concentration to solve complex problems. Cake also has a positive effect on reaction time. The chemicals in cake improve the function of the reticular formation, allowing cake eaters to more quickly process visual and auditory information (Jones, 2009). Increased reaction times allow students to answer questions faster and to more readily understand explanations and examples.

All that’s missing is a concluding sentence!

Argumentative Writing - ExampleBody paragraph 1:

Cake increases study performance. Elementary school students have increasing pressures to do well in school as expectations of what they should learn and how much they should learn change. As a result, elementary school students now study more difficult subjects, such as math, for longer periods of time. By increasing study performance, cake can help students cope with these new demands. First, cake has been proven to increase concentration. A study found that children who eat just one piece of cake per day have 30% better concentration than children who have no cake (Wonka, 2011). An increase in concentration can allow students to cope with increased class demands, especially in more difficult classes, such as math, which require concentration to solve complex problems. Cake also has a positive effect on reaction time. The chemicals in cake improve the function of the reticular formation, allowing cake eaters to more quickly process visual and auditory information (Jones, 2009). Increased reaction times allow students to answer questions faster and to more readily understand explanations and examples. By providing a much needed increase in study performance, cake should clearly be included on the daily menu of elementary school cafeterias.

Argumentative Writing - SourcesYou may have noticed these in the example:

(Wonka, 2011)

(Jones, 2009)

These are called “citations”.

Citations give credit to the source of your information.

APA Style: CitationIt is necessary that you use expert, reliable sources to provide information and support your position.

Citing a source means to tell the reader where you got your information. This is done IN the essay.

Example:

Students who are motivated by money tend to learn less than students who are motivated to learn by their own interest in a subject (Brown, 2007).

APA Style: CitationWhy cite?

1. Because you must give credit to the idea’s originator.

2. Citing RELIABLE sources in your own work significantly strengthens your points/arguments.

3. If you make a statement without a source, I could say “That’s just what you think.”

4. If you make a statement supported by a relevant, reliable source, it is much harder for me to argue with you.

APA Style: Citation

Why cite?

5. If you don’t, you are plagiarizing.

Source: radiantshadows.ca

Citation

But, when do I cite?!

Source: geardiary.com

APA Style: CitationCite whenever you present someone else’s idea.

i.e., If you state a fact

The population of South Korea is 48,754,657 (The U.S. Department of State, 2012).

APA Style: CitationWhen you cite a source in the text of your essay, it follows the following format:

(author(s)’s last name, year published).

Examples:

(Brown, 2007)

(Smith, Rogers, & Timmons, 1968).

APA Style: CitationWHAT ABOUT WEBSITES ?!?!

If there is no author listed on a website, you can reference as follows:

(website name, date of publication or update).

(The U.S. Department of State, 2013)

(Stats Canada, 2010)

APA Style: CitationWHAT ABOUT WEBSITES ?!?!

If there is no author listed on a website, you can reference as follows:

(website name, date of publication or update).

If there is no date available, use ‘n.d.’

(The U.S. Department of State, n.d.)

APA Style: CitationNOTE: there are several ways to cite sources in-text.

See the website link about HOW this is done.

http://www.lib.sfu.ca/help/writing/apa#websites (APA style guide from Simon Fraser University).

APA Style: CitationAuthor directly cited in text:

Gould (1989) attributed Darwin’s success to his gift for making the appropriate metaphor.

Author not directly cited in text:As metaphors for the workings of nature, Darwin used the tangled bank, the tree of life, and the face of nature (Gould, 1989).

APA Style: CitationDirect quote from author:

Gould (1989) explains that Darwin used the metaphor of the tree of life “to express the other form of interconnectedness-genealogical rather than ecological-and to illustrate both success and failure in the history of life” (p.14).

Direct quote without name of author:Darwin used the metaphor of the tree of life “to express the other form of interconnectedness-genealogical rather than ecological” (Gould, 1989, p.14).

APA Style: CitationMultiple sources in the same parentheses:

- Separate sources with a semi-colon ;- List sources alphabetically, by author’s surnames.

i.e., Several studies (Balda, 1980; Kammil, 1988; Pepperberg & Funk, 1990) confirm the use of metaphors increases learning.

APA Style: CitationSources with 3 or more authors:

First citation in text:• Wasserstein, Zappula, Rosen, German, and Rock (1994) found. . .• The use of metaphors was found to be helpful (Wasserstein, Zappula,

Rosen, German, & Rock, 1994)

Subsequent citations (3 or more authors):• Wasserstein and colleagues (1994) found• Wasserstein et al. (1994) found• The use of metaphors was found to be helpful (Wasserstein et al., 1994)

APA Style: ReferencesAll works cited in a paper must also appear in a references section.

- References are given in list form at the end of the paper.

- This list gets its own page(s): References

APA Style: ReferencesAll works cited in a paper must also appear in a references section.

- Each references provides full information about the source.

- This list tells the reader how to find a particular source.

APA Style: ReferencesBasic elements of a References entry:

- Author information- Date of publication- Title of the source- Publication information

Example (Book):

Duke, T. (2003). How to Be Awesome at Life: A Guide forLosers. New York: Oxford University Press.

APA Style: ReferencesDuke, T. (2003). How to Be Awesome at Life: A Guide for

Losers. New York: Oxford University Press.

Little, D. W. (200l). Leading change: Creating the future foreducation technology. Syllabus International, 15(5), 22- 24.

- First line of a reference entry is at the margin.

- All subsequent lines of an entry are indented.

- Each entry is single-spaced (double space BETWEEN entries)

APA Style: ReferencesDuke, T. (2003). How to Be Awesome at Life: A Guide for

Losers. New York: Oxford University Press.

Little, D. W. (200l). Leading change: Creating the future foreducation technology. Syllabus International, 15(5), 22- 24.

Sillick, T. J., & Schutte, N. S. (2006). Emotional intelligence and self-esteem mediatebetween perceived early parental love and adult happiness. AppliedPsychology, 2(2), 38-48. Retrieved from http://

ojs.lib.swin.edu.au/index.php/ejap

- There are different formats for different types of sources (see guide)

- References section is in alphabetical order (by author’s surname, or organization’s name).

APA Style: ReferencesDuke, T. (2003). How to Be Awesome at Life: A Guide for

Losers. New York: Oxford University Press.

Landsberger, J. (n.d.). Citing Websites. In Study Guides and Strategies. Retrieved May 13, 2005, from http://www.studygs.net/citation.htm.

Little, D. W. (200l). Leading change: Creating the future foreducation technology. Syllabus International, 15(5), 22- 24.

Sillick, T. J., & Schutte, N. S. (2006). Emotional intelligence and self-esteem mediatebetween perceived early parental love and adult happiness. AppliedPsychology, 2(2), 38-48. Retrieved from http://

ojs.lib.swin.edu.au/index.php/ejap

Paper 1 SourcesYou must use at least 5 sources (1 per body paragraph) in this paper.

The paper must contain in-text citations AND reference section entries for each source that you use. You will receive further instruction in class.

Paper 1 DatesRough draft: As soon as possible (you will revise and edit

this draft yourself).

Oct. 1 (Tuesday): Bring first draft to class “first draft” = polished rough draft

Oct. 3 (Thursday) : Second draft (send to me)

Oct. 8 (Tuesday): Final draft

Argumentative Writing - SourcesCitations are important for several reasons:

- Gives proper credit to the information source (it is not you information, after all).

- Allows your reader to find more detailed information if they are interested.

- Information from reliable sources strengthens your own position.

- NOT giving credit = plagiarism.