Question

Stewart-Steele1

MWP #1:

Profile of a Culture or Ethnic Group

Weight: 20% of final grade

Length and Formatting: 2-3 pages, typed, double-spaced, Black 12-point Times New Roman font, using standard MLA format.

Assignment Preparation: Brainstorm about a culture or ethnic group. (Useful for Mind Map Assignment) Think of all the ways that a culture or ethnic group has impacted the way individuals live, learn, and behave socially. Next, beside each of your top picks with the category’s, clarify for yourself why that impacts the culture or ethnic group specifically. Then write for 5-10 minutes about what outsiders in general might think about the culture or ethnic group. After this, list who on Campus or within a community might be a good insider for information regarding the culture or ethnic group, and why?

Assignment: Write a profile of a culture or ethnic group that surrounds beliefs, education, and social preferences. Remember this assignment is not about you but about profiling a culture or ethnic group, therefore the essay should be written in 3rd person.

Work to Describe the culture or ethnic groups key features: What makes it a distinct culture or ethnic group, and what experiences or outcomes may someone have who enters that culture or ethnic group reasonably expect?

The profile you provide should work to enlighten your readers about the culture or ethnic group that you have chosen. Your readers should leave your essay not with a general encyclopedia-level understanding of the culture or ethnic group, but with a refreshed and expanded understanding—beyond common knowledge or stereotypes—of what the culture or ethnic group concerns. Focus your paper on 3 key takeaways for your readers.

Audience: First-year college students who have not thought extensively about other cultures or ethnic groups in which you have chosen to write about. They are comprised of an indifferent audience that encounters your essay in a booklet called “Campus Life” written for undergraduates and focusing on the many options for work and study at the College.

Research: If you choose to obtain outside sources you are limited to 2 sources only. Do not use Google. Resources that can be used for this assignment should only be comprised of in-class text, Jstor, or the library. If you choose to utilize quotes from these sources for this paper, you will need to make sure you are introducing the quote or quotes correctly, make sure that it is absolutely necessary to have the author's words exactly and not your own words.

Rationale: This assignment forces you to describe and explain a topic with a sense of your purpose and audience—fundamental concerns for anyone who wishes to write rhetorically. Furthermore, it pushes you to be specific, to commit to 3 key points rather than try to list and explain several points about your topic. Doing this will give you practice organizing your ideas differently than via the five-paragraph theme; this is a crucial step for college writers.

Professor Stewart-Steele

English 1301

MWP #1

Mind Map Instructions

Purpose: Mapping out your ideas helps with the writing process, and for some, seeing that process visually helps with organization. Before diving into writing, you will spend some time collecting your thoughts and how those thoughts function in your essay.

Assignment : Create a power point that is a both written and a visual representation of your thoughts. Tip: Use your brainstorming activity from the essay instructions.

Constraints: You will create a 7-slide power point that establishes a visual flow chart of your essay. The power point will need to include the following:

· Heading Information MLA format (slide #1)

· Introduction (slide #2)

· Thesis Statement (slide #3)

· 3 key terms (slides #4, #5, #6)

· Conclusion (slide #7)

Complete your Brainstorming activity found within the essay instruction before you attempt this assignment.

Components:

Introduction: Your introduction is a way to help the reader understand what the main idea is of your essay, or what your essay will be comprised of. Think of your reader as a person who knows nothing about what you have learned or read about. Meaning provide background information about the major subject, here you should provide a minimum of four sentences.

Thesis: Your thesis should do two things, help the reader transition from your introduction into

the body of your essay and support the ways you have chosen to argue your main idea. Your thesis should include your key terms and be presented in the same order you have selected for your body paragraphs (Chronologically, Logical, or Importance). Your thesis should be only one or two sentences.

Key Terms: First work on the body of your essay (labeled Key Terms there should be 3 for this essay); doing so helps you focus your ideas before attacking the introduction or your thesis. Write a minimum of three-four sentences about each key term. Your key terms should flow in order, whether that be (Chronologically, Logical, or by Importance). The order you choose should in some way link itself to the next key term.

Conclusion: After you have your key terms in order, focus on what you want, the reader to take away from your essay. (The Conclusion). Write three sentences with your reader in mind. What are you trying to help the reader understand, take on as their own beliefs, and or what do you want the reader to do with the information you have provided?

Research: You should be using your knowledge for this essay. DO NOT use google to gain information. If you need to further your knowledge you can obtain Scholarly journals/ articles from the following approved search engines; Jstor, and libraries Data Base. I have provided you with these links within the course forum. Make sure to keep notes of your research (if needed) for both in text citations and a work cited page.

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