What is an argumentative essay?
The argumentative essay is a genre of writing that requires the student to investigate a topic; collect, generate, and evaluate evidence; and establish a position on the topic in a concise manner.
Assignment 1 | Reading and Responding to Others’ Ideas
Length | 3-4 pages
Due Date | END OF WEEK 4, 7 February 2025
Purpose | In this paper, you will analyze an argument, locating and describing its essential elements. “Analysis” involves breaking something down into its parts. When writing this assignment, you will learn how to work with two essential elements of argument: claims and evidence.
Topic and Assignment | Compose an argument analysis of one of the readings from our first unit. In your analysis, identify and evaluate the primary claims the author(s) make and the evidence used to support those claims.
Organization | The opening of your paper should introduce the topic of the source text, provide its complete title and identify its author. You will also offer your readers a brief summary of the source text (no longer than a paragraph) and provide your thesis. Your thesis will offer an overview of the analysis that follows in the body of your essay. Producing a good summary in your own words takes care and diligence. You must fully understand the source text to do this well.
You can employ one of two organizational schemes for the body of your analysis: block or alternating. Under a block format, you will discuss all the claims, then all the evidence. Under an alternating format, you will discuss a claim and its evidence, then another claim and its evidence, and so on. Your conclusion will offer a summary of your analysis.
Criteria | I will base your grade on how well you do the following:
- Focus on the presentation of the writer’s claims and evidence.
- Organize your paper.
- Use the templates and suggestions from Part 1 of They Say/I Say.
- Summarize the source text to demonstrate your understanding of the subject matter.
- Author a writer’s memo about your writing process.
- Use of APA style to identify the source text, other texts and in-line references.
Essays
Mannes, E. 2011. Mind Bending Notes: Can Music Make Us Smarter? Chapter 6 in The Power of Music : Pioneering Discoveries in the New Science of Song.Walker and Company. NY. pp.72-87.
Roach, A. 2019. A concept analysis of adolescent friendship. Nursing Forum, 54(3), 328–335.
Torres Burtka, A. Coming Out of the Pandemic, Sport Programs Are More Important Than Ever for Kids’ Mental Health. Global Sports Matters. Wednesday, Apr 12, 2023.
Welcome to a Seminar on Academic Writing 