UNIT 9 LIVE TUESDAY SEMINAR: OVERVIEW OF UNIT 9

Welcome to Effective Writing 1- CM 107

Christine Danelski, Ph.D.

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Are there any questions from Units 1-9?

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Review of Unit 9:

Reading: For learn about some valuable editing

strategies, please review the following Writing Center information: https://kucampus.kaplan.edu/DocumentStore/Docs11/pdf/WC/EditingWorkshop.pdf https://kucampus.kaplan.edu/DocumentStore/Docs11/pdf/WC/Proofreading.pdf https://kucampus.kaplan.edu/DocumentStore/Docs11/pdf/WC/WC_Presentation_Proofreading_22811%5b1%5d.pdf

For sample essays, review Chapters 21 and 27 in The KU Guide to Successful Writing.

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Review of Unit 9:

Discussion Board: Part One: After reviewing Chapters 21 and 27 of The Kaplan

Guide to Effective Writing, select one of the sample essays in either chapter and write a brief paragraph in which you explore what you think is effective (or ineffective) in the thesis, development, grammar, and use of sources in this essay. How might reading this sample essay help you with making final revisions on your Final Project essay?

Part Two: Select two or three sentences from your Final Project essay draft that need editing. Post the original sentences and then your revision of these sentences. What strategy did you use to edit these sentences? What did you specifically correct and why is the revised version of these sentences more effective than the original version? Respond to two classmates’ primary posts.

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Unit 9 Review:The Final Project Guidelines:

1. It must be an essay of between 750-850 words.

2. It must be informative, rather than persuasive in nature.

3. It must have a clear introduction and conclusion.

4. It must have a clear thesis that limits the topic and establishes the essay’s main point.

5. It must develop the thesis with a combination of original thought and resource material.

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Unit 9 Review:The Final Project Guidelines:

6. It must use at least three reliable sources appropriately; source material should be used to develop the writer’s ideas, rather than becoming the focus of the paper. At least one of those sources must be from the Kaplan University Library.

7. It must avoid unreliable sources or sources inappropriate for an academic essay, including but not limited to Wikipedia.

8. Source material, whether it is quoted or paraphrased, must be given appropriate credit, including in text citations and a citation in the References page.

9. It must follow APA format requirements, including an appropriately formatted title page, 12 point Times New Roman font, double spaced paragraphs and one inch margins.

10. It should be written with an appropriate level of formality, avoiding first and second person.

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Grading Rubric: A work (200-180 pts)

Essay has a thoughtful main point or thesis and a clear audience and purpose.

Project demonstrates substantial revision of the Unit 6 Project. Paragraphs are effectively organized and include effective transition

devices. The introduction hooks the reader and the conclusion effectively draws

the essay to a close Ideas are developed thoroughly and effectively Sentence structure is strong and sentences have complexity and

variety. Grammar and mechanics demonstrate superior control of the elements

of Standard edited American English, although some minor errors may be present.

Meets source requirements and insightfully incorporates well-chosen sources, while still demonstrating original thought.

All source information is given credit through both in text citations and an appropriately formatted References page.

Demonstrates APA formatting. Meets length requirements.

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Grading Rubric: B work (179-160 pts)

Essay has a clear main point or thesis and a clear audience and purpose.

Project demonstrates effective revision of the Unit 6 Project. The introduction hooks the reader and the conclusion is effective. Paragraphs are clearly organized and include appropriate transition

devices. Ideas are developed well and effectively. Sentence structure is strong and demonstrates some sentence

complexity and variety. Grammar and mechanics demonstrate good control of the elements

of Standard edited American English, although some minor errors may be present.

Meets source requirements and incorporates appropriate and reliable sources, while still demonstrating original thought.

All source information is given credit through both in text citations and an appropriately formatted References page.

Demonstrates APA formatting, with some minor errors . Meets length requirements.

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Grading Rubric: C work (159-140 pts)

Essay has a clear main point or thesis and an audience and purpose, although the essay may sometimes stray from that focus.

Project demonstrates adequate revision of the Unit 6 Project. Paragraphs are organized and include effective transition devices. Introduction may not motivate the audience to read on or the conclusion may

merely repeat what has already been written. Ideas are generally developed, although some points may need clarification and

more information. Sentence structure is adequate and generally clear, although little sentence

complexity or variety is present. Grammar and mechanics demonstrate adequate control of the elements of

Standard edited American English, although some errors are present. May use only two sources or include source material that is not relevant to the

thesis. May rely too much on quoted material or may have minimal original thought. 

Source information is given credit through both in text citations and a reference page, but multiple errors may be present.

Demonstrates APA formatting but may have several errors. Is ½ page short of the length requirements.

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Grading Rubric: D work (139 -120 pts)

Thesis or main point is unclear or the audience and purpose are not established.

Project demonstrates very little revision of the Unit 6 Project. Project may be disorganized or include no transitions. The introduction makes no attempt at hooking the reader or the conclusion

may be ineffective. Development is weak, with most points needing clarification or more

information. May be one or more pages short of the length requirement. Sentence structure is ineffective and confusing. Multiple errors in grammar and punctuation are present, often affecting

meaning. May use only one source, use irrelevant or unreliable sources or may simply

cut and paste quotes from the sources. May have multiple errors in citations or be missing some in text citations. Lacks originality. Very little attempt at APA formatting is demonstrated.

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Grading Rubric: F work (119 - 0 pts)

Had no controlling idea or thesis and lacks an audience or purpose.

Ideas are lacking in development. Disorganized. Sentence structure is poor and creates a lack of

clarity. Severe problems with grammar and mechanics that

result in incoherence. Does not use any sources, merely copies or cuts and

pastes sources, or has no originality of thought. Includes no in text citations or is missing the

References page. Is plagiarized (zero grade is automatically awarded).

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Common Mistakes . . .

APA errors are easily avoided with a little care. Like spelling and grammar, correct APA format is an essential part of your essay. Adhering to a specific format is a hallmark of good writing and editing.

If you have questions about APA, check out the Writing Center’s help sheet at http://www.kaplan.edu/MyDesk2/Studentcenter/success/writing/pdfs/research/An_Introduction_To_APA.pdf

APA Manuscript format Include three parts: A title page, the body of the essay and a reference page. Use standard margins: 1 inch on all sides. Use standard 12-point font size. Use standard double-spacing: average of 22 lines per page, and between 20

and 24 lines per page. Use left-aligned text. Do not right-justify. There should be no subtitles or spaces between paragraphs within the

paper. Any source should be referenced with an in-text citation in the body of the

essay and with a full citation on the reference because the APA citation system is a dual citation system! Keep in mind that 3 sources are required. At least one source must be an article from the KU library.

The Basics of In-text Citations:A Summary Use a parenthetical citation:

Stephen Glass went to a high school that emphasized high achievement and inventiveness (Bissinger, 1998).

Or use in introductory phrase: According to Buzz Bissinger (1998), Stephen

Glass went to a high school that emphasized high achievement and inventiveness.

Both these examples are examples of paraphrasing. Keep in mind that paraphrases need citations, too!

Use a block quote format for quotes 40 words or longer. Example (71 words):

Glass was not the only professional plagiarizing:

Janet Cooke had done it in 1980 in a Pulitzer Prize winning piece for The Washington Post. Nik Cohn, 21 years after the fact, blithely admitted to having made up most of the New York story that inspired the film Saturday Night Fever. More recently, Boston Globe columnist Patricia Smith was fired for making up parts of her columns. But none of these journalists approached the sheer calculation of Glass’s deceptions. (Bissinger, 1998)

Glass had brought plagiarism to a new level.

Long quotations

Reference page citations, also calledfull citations:Example:

ReferencesBissinger, B. (1998). Shattered Glass.

Vanity Fair. Retrieved from www.vanityfair.com/magazine/archive/1998/09/bissinger199809?currentPage=all

Any questions on citations?

Remember the Writing Center has great handouts on them: My Studies > Academic Support Center > Writing Center > Writing Reference Library > Research, Citation, and Plagiarism > Basic Citation Guidelines or Common Citations in APA format

How did the writing process going for you?

What did you learn in this course? Writing as a process? Essay structure? Grammar and spelling tips? Using sources for a research project? APA formatting and citations? Time management?

Has your confidence improved?

Somewhat?

More than you expected?

A great deal?

Q & A Are there any questions about the

final project? Or any other material that we have covered in this course?

Course Deadlines

This is the last live seminar in this course. All work is due by midnight, Tuesday, tonight! If need be, I will accept late work until midnight Sunday,

June 24. Points will be deducted for late work unless the extenuating circumstances have been communicated to the instructor.

Incompletes should only be used as a last resort. If you feel you need an incomplete, contact me by via email, stating the reason why an incomplete is necessary as soon as possible. I will consider your request. The granting of incompletes is done on a case by case basis.

Looking ahead to …. The future!

Composition 2 will be the next composition course you take. In it you will write a longer research paper, using more sources.

If you wish to share your final project with your fellow students, please post it onto the Unit 10 Discussion Board of this class.

Thanks for attending live seminar!

Remember all work is due Tuesday, tonight at 11:59 pm.

It has been my pleasure to be your instructor!

I wish you every success as you continue your

hero’s journey here at KU!