CO150 College Composition

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Overview: When we're involved in meaningful inquiry, listening carefully as other voices shape ideas, we often want to discuss with others what we're learning and the questions our research raises. It can help, too, if we seek out others in our community who may have different ways of looking at the ideas we want to discuss. This assignment asks you to initiate a critical conversation by synthesizing some of the materials that have informed our discussion of “the rhetoric of green.”  We will begin this discussion by creating individual blogs to present and share on our class website, extending the conversation we've begun in class about the rhetoric of green with people who are likewise thinking critically about these issues.

Purpose: To create a substantial blog entry aimed at initiating a critical discussion with your classmates.  You should synthesize an issue raised by one of the films with one of the course readings.  You will need to inform your readers of the content of the materials (film and article) and convince your readers that the discussion you are initiating is worth having, especially in light of the class’s exploration of green rhetoric. 

Audience: Your audience is the instructor and the class—in other words, members of a closed blogging community.

Synthesis: Choose an issue from one of the following films to synthesize with one of the class readings. Use this synthesis to prompt your blog entry as you begin to engage in the critical conversation:

Films:

• The 11th Hour
• The Story of Stuff
• Ted Talk: Bjorn Lomborg Sets Global Priorities

Articles:

• Russell, Cristine. “Climate Change: Now What?”
• Montenegro, Maywa. “Is There a Better Word for Doom?”
• Lyons, Rob. “The Deification of Earth”

Author: Demonstrate you are someone who has watched the films and read the articles closely and critically. From this position, engage your readers in working towards a broader and deeper understanding of the issue.

 Strategies. To achieve your purpose with your audience, use these strategies:

• Introduce your readers to the subject and purpose of your blog entry, establishing its critical focus, forecasting your blog entry’s contents, and gaining your reader’s attention.
• Explain why you want your readers to read your post and consider your ideas. You will need to state a central claim that creates a relationship between the ideas in the film and the ideas expressed in the article.
• Synthesize materials accurately and objectively, supporting it with summary, paraphrase, and quotation.  Demonstrate how materials connect through an issue and why this connection is important. Be sure your reader can distinguish your ideas from those of the authors by using appropriate attribution.
• Use blogging etiquette as discussed in class.

Response:   After you have completed your blog entry, read blog entries of three designated classmates.  Respond in a way that demonstrates you’ve read their entries thoroughly and critically.  Your response engages the material, shows respect for the student’s entry, and is accurate and pertinent to the ideas presented. The objective here is to keep the discussion going.

The Response Should:

• Be thoughtful and informed
• Represent accurately the blogger’s synthesis
• Supply additional relevant points raised from course readings to continue the conversation
• Be a minimum of 250 words

Details

Length: 1200-1400 words-blog post & 250 words for each response comment
Percentage: 15%
Due: TBD