DB 1

The discussion forums are opportunities to share ideas with your classmates.  Each forum addresses a different topic related to the reading and coursework. Review the instructions for the forums; then respond to all the prompts/questions and respond to classmates’ posts.

· Main post: Your initial post should be 75-150 words in length but may be longer if necessary to address all the questions. Respond to all questions/prompts. The main post is due on Sunday.

· Incorporate ideas from the reading and multimedia into the main post and credit (specifically identify) the source. EN102 focuses on using and citing sources to support discussions. For these discussions, identify the foundation source(s) for the weekly discussion by author or title or use APA citation format.

· Crediting sources using general terms such as the text, the book, the video does not specifically identify the source(s). Citing sources is a content and grading factor.

· Follow-up Responses:

. Respond to two posts from your peers by Tuesday.

. Provide specific and meaningful information to your classmates, and invite further interaction by asking specific questions.

· Use standard conventions of English in the forums: punctuation, usage, grammar, sentence structure, and spelling.

· Follow the . 

· Review the grading rubric to familiarize yourself with the content and grading factors for these discussions.

DB2

Main post: Respond to all questions/prompts Support your discussion with ideas from the reading and/or multimedia and credit the source(s).

1. Select a photo from an ad, meme, or other source. There should be NO writing on the image. Include a link to the image or paste the image into your post.

2. Analyze the formal layer of the image: emphasis, framing, point of view, degree of focus, distance from subject, lighting and contrast, and color.

3. Analyze the social layer of the image: shapes of images, narrative, action, and actors.

Follow-up responses: Provide specific and meaningful information to your classmates. Comment on the content of your classmates’ posts, offer new information, and ask specific questions in order to invite further interaction in the forum.

DB 3

This week the focus moves from analyzing a single image to a multimedia analysis of a video. This discussion is based on this week’s reading in Becoming Rhetorical.  Support your discussion with ideas from the reading and/or multimedia and credit the source(s).

Main post: Go to YouTube and select a music video. For this particular discussion, it’s best to use a song, artist, or genre that is mostly new to you. However, keep in mind that you will be sharing this video and your notes with the class, so select something appropriate (no overt sex, blood, gore, and so forth). Once you have chosen a music video, complete the following steps in order:

1. First, include a link to the video or embed the video in the main post.

2. Second, turn off your computer screen or turn away from the screen and listen to the song. Take notes on the effects of the auditory modality on you: How does listening to the song affect you bodily—your emotions, bodily sensations, etc.

3. Third, turn off the sound and replay the video while watching the screen this time. Jot down how the moving images and other visual elements that affect you. Describe your sensations in as much detail as possible.

4. Lastly, watch the video with both the sound and image. What changes between the three different modalities (auditory, visual and multimodal) did you notice?

Follow-up Responses: Provide specific and meaningful information to your classmates. Comment on the content of your classmates’ posts, offer new information, and ask specific questions in order to invite further interaction in the forum.

DB 4

Main Post: For this discussion, choose an article or video from a well-established news source that was published within the last eight weeks that strikes you as interesting. Note: Choose an article or video that has reader/viewer comments attached at the end. Include a link to the article chosen.

1. Read/view the entire article or video and identify at least five comments with differing perspectives on the issue(s) discussed. (If you cannot identify at least five different perspectives, select a different article.)

2. In your post, identify the main point of the original story and five different perspectives.

3. Did any of the comments change your perspective on the topic, and, if so, how?

Follow-up Responses: Provide specific and meaningful information to your classmates. Comment on the content of your classmates’ posts, offer new information, and ask specific questions in order to invite further interaction in the forum.

DB 5

1. Share the topic you’ve chosen to write about for your Week 6 Rough Draft.

2. Exigence: What has prompted you to respond to this topic? (Other than the exigence of having to write a paper to earn a grade. This is a given.)

3. Identify three potential audiences who might be interested in or affected by this topic. Your audience cannot be “everyone,” “the general public” or any other broad or vague audience. Be as specific as possible in defining potential audiences.)

4. Generate a research question for your paper. A research question differs from a thesis statement (which is the answer to a question). Instead of deciding in advance what position you want to argue, a research question is open-ended and allows you to search for and examine sources related to your topic.

You might want to structure your response in a table:

Follow-up Responses:

1. Provide feedback on the topics that your classmates have chosen for their essays

2. Include a link to a scholarly or credible source about the topics

DB6

Main Post:

1. Share your thesis statement with your classmates. Please note: As with last week’s discussion, nothing here is set in stone. Be open to changing everything about your topic, including your position and audience, as you research it and get feedback from your classmates.

Topic + Position/Purpose + Supporting Points =Thesis Statement

Example: Suppose the question you posed in the Week 5 discussion was something like, “Should pit bull terriers be banned in my community?” After doing some preliminary research, you have concluded that pit bulls, if raised properly, are no more dangerous than other breeds of dogs. Your thesis statement can be something like, “Pitbulls should not be banned in Kansas City, MO, because X, Y, and Z.” (Fill in the letters with reasons that support your claim.)

2. Next, list reasons why readers might disagree with your thesis statement. These points of disagreement are counterarguments.

Example: “Some readers might disagree because there have been actual instances of pit bulls attacking people, even children. Not all pit bulls are raised properly. Pit bulls have a natural, aggressive instinct.

Follow-up responses: Use the following questions to focus your responses.

1. Weigh in on each other’s thesis statements and counterarguments. Does the thesis statement present a clear, arguable position? Why or why not?  Be specific.

2. Do the counterarguments seem valid? Why or why not? Be specific.

3. What other counterarguments can you think of?

DB7

This week, you will be engaging with the work of other students through Peer Review. In Week 6, you were instructed to submit a copy of your rough draft to the discussion forum. If you have not done so, please submit a copy as an attachment in a new thread with your name as the subject. For guidance on giving feedback during peer review, watch the video “".

This week, read and respond to at least two other students’ essays and provide specific and helpful feedback. Use the Peer Review Template to provide constructive feedback, incorporating specific, positive remarks as well as helpful suggestions so your peers can see you genuinely evaluated their rough draft.

Main post: Post your persuasive rough draft.

Follow-up responses:

1. Use the  to provide constructive feedback to at least two of your classmates. Read the instructions for completing the Peer Review Template and complete each section of the Template. 

2. Copy and paste the completed templates into your responses to your classmates OR attach the completed template document (your choice).

3. You are welcome to respond to classmates in addition to posting the two required peer reviews (your option).

DB 8

This final discussion invites you to reflect on your experience in this course. Polishing and expanding writing skills is an ongoing process and is something every writer works on for the rest of his or her life. You don’t have to feel you’ve mastered it all now or even made tremendous strides (though it’s great if you have). However, an honest self-appraisal can show how far you’ve come and what areas to focus on, going forward.

Main Post: Respond to all questions/prompts:

1. Did the course meet your expectations? Be specific.

2. What assignments, lectures, or discussions have been most meaningful to you in understanding the definitions and purposes of rhetoric and doing research?

3. What new skills and/or information have you acquired from taking EN102?

4. Review the definition you wrote initially in the W1 discussion about what begin rhetorical means. Has your understanding of rhetoric changed during the last eight weeks? If so, how?

Follow-up Responses: Provide specific and meaningful information to your classmates. Comment on the content of your classmates’ posts, offer new information, and ask specific questions in order to invite further interaction in the forum.