Welcome to the Unit 2 Seminar!College Composition 1

Feel free to chat before we begin. We will start class at the top of the hour!

Agenda

• Picking Topics• Brainstorming• Forming Research Questions• Intro to the Writing Process

Topics

topics

• Persuasive• Legal element• Clear opposing side

• Environment • * Should recycling be mandatory? • * Should wolves be reintroduced to public lands?

* Should the logging industry be allowed to harvest public forests? • * Should mountain-top removal continue? • * Should off-shore drilling be banned? •

Moral/Cultural debates • * Should state lotteries be banned?

* Should the Internet be censored? • * Should music lyrics be censored?

* Should extremist groups (i.e. KKK, skinheads) be banned? • * Should parents of teen vandals be held responsible for their child's

damage? * Should females in the military be excluded from combat and other "hazardous" duties?

• * Should Native Americans be allowed to have gambling casinos on their reservations?

* Should affirmative action laws which give special privileges to minorities be eliminated? * Should families of victims be allowed to decide the punishment of those who commit crimes?* Should people pulled over for DUI have their license suspended for life?

* Should semi-automatic weapons be banned? * Should teens who murder be executed? * Should hunting be outlawed?

* Should legal immigration be stopped?

Science * Should research on cloning be discontinued? * Should free, disposable needles be given to drug addicts? Education * Should high schools be segregated by the sex of the student?

* Should parents of students who are excessively absent from school be prosecuted under the law?

• Should "home schooling" be permitted?* Should school funding come from local property taxes? *Should students be required to pass proficiency tests in order to graduate from high school?

• Economy issue/government * Should welfare be limited by time? (other factors?) * Should the U.S. phase out the Electoral College (regarding presidential

elections)?* Should the U.S. provide foreign aid?

Artificial intelligence Outer space exploration programs Crime and Law Animal rights Bar entrance age Criminal psychology

Hate crimes Insanity defense Juvenile delinquency Militias Organized crime

Other random ideas: Insanity defense Juvenile delinquency Militias Organized crime DiscriminationAIDS--employment AIDS--Law and legislation Discrimination in education Employee rights Gay marriage Gay rights Genetic screening Learning disabilitiesPolitical Correctness Racial Stereotypes Racism Reverse discrimination White supremacy Women and the military

Whatever you choose….

• Make sure your argument has a logical contrasting opposition.

• Make sure you can make a LEGAL argument about it. (Change, implement, amend some law/policy)

• Make sure it affects society in some way.

After you choose a topic or two

• Brainstorm some ideas about it (or each topic) to see what you might be able to argue about it.

Brainstorming

K-N-D Chart

K-N-D Chart

What do we KNOW?

What do we NEED to know?

What do we need to DO?

Webs

Homelessness

Chronic Circumstantial

Mentally ill “Sane”Types

DepressionDrug useOther medical

Causes

ListsWho What When Where How Why

Lists: Pro ConGovernment involvement in Stem Cell

research

Pro Con--U.S. competitive academically--More $ than private funds--Make use of discarded embryo/fetus

--Limited funds--little control over allocation--protesters of fetus “rights”

Research Questions

• How widespread is homelessness?• Why is it happening/increasing?• What would the government need to do to

help solve this problem?• What is already being done?• Is there a way for citizens to help?

Asking Controversial Questions

• Should the Government help the homeless?• Should American citizens help the homeless?• Should there be a tax added for every

“working American” to help fund homeless children?

• (why/why not?)

Stating the Argument

Question: Should there be a tax added for every “working American” to help fund homeless children?

Argument: A tax law should be implemented so that 1% of every working American’s pay goes to fund child homelessness.

Thesis Statement

• X = 1, 2, and 3

• X: Argument statement• =: the transition word/phrase• 1: 1st thesis point• 2: 2nd thesis point• The word and to separate the points• 3: 3rd thesis point

Thesis Statement• X = 1, 2, and 3

• X: Argument: A tax law should be implemented so that 1% of every working American’s pay goes to fund child homelessness.

• =: because we have• 1: a civic responsibility• 2: a moral obligation• and• 3: a means to end the problem

Thesis Statement

• X = 1, 2, and 3

• A tax law should be implemented so that 1% of every working American’s pay goes to fund child homelessness because we have a civic responsibility, a moral obligation, and a means to end the problem.

Thesis Statement

• Test the grammar: • X = 1• X = 2• X = 3

• A tax law should be implemented so that 1% of every working American’s pay goes to fund child homelessness because we have a civic responsibility.

Thesis Statement

• Test the grammar: • X = 1

• X = 2• X = 3

• A tax law should be implemented so that 1% of every working American’s pay goes to fund child homelessness because we have a moral obligation.

Thesis Statement

• Test the grammar: • X = 1• X = 2

• X = 3• A tax law should be implemented so that 1%

of every working American’s pay goes to fund child homelessness because we have a means to end the problem.

Thesis Statement

• A tax law should be implemented so that 1% of every working American’s pay goes to fund child homelessness because we have a civic responsibility, a moral obligation, and a means to end the problem.

• The Statement of Argument should be a complete sentence AND persuasive (has two clear sides).

• Thesis “points” should have “parallel” wording (a civic, a moral, a means).

Questions?

See you in the Discussion Board!