english

 A 1.5-2 page synthesis using our 3 sources on social media that we read and discussed in class. The requirements are below. You will turn this in at the end of class on monday, and you will have about 20 min of class time to finish it & ask any questions. You can put this in your journal (if your writing is clear, or print it out). 

I will also be collecting journals on monday, will grade them, and give them back on Wed. Journals will reveive a grade out of 5: 

1-2 points: basic requirement; 

3-4 points: good engagement with course text and ideas; 

5: complex engagement and critique of sources (reading against the grain and counter argument) and unique insights about texts; complex reasoning, and putting together ideas from multiple readings.  

Synthesis in Every Day Life

Whenever you report to a friend the things several other friends have said about a film or CD you engage in synthesis. People synthesize information naturally to help other see the connections between things they learn; for example, you have probably stored up a mental data bank of the various things you've heard about particular professors. If your data bank contains several negative comments, you might synthesize that information and use it to help you decide not to take a class from that particular professor.

Synthesis is related to but not the same as classification, division, or comparison and contrast. Instead of attending to categories or finding similarities and differences, synthesizing sources is a matter of pulling them together into some kind of harmony. Synthesis searches for links between materials for the purpose of constructing a thesis or theory.

Key Features of a Synthesis

(1) It accurately reports information from the sources using different phrases and sentences;

(2) It is organized in such a way that readers can immediately see where the information from the sources overlap;.

(3) It makes sense of the sources and puts them together in new ways

(2) It is organized in such a way that readers can immediately see where the information from the sources overlap;.

(3) It makes sense of the sources and helps the reader understand them in greater depth.

Synthesis requirements: 

1. Pages 1.5-2 

2. The introduction (usually one paragraph)

1. Contains a one-sentence statement of your synthesis claim

-Your claim should combine the information you have found from our 2-3 sources on social media in ways that help readers to see that information and the topic in question in a new way.

Your claim should show readers that you are familiar with the field and are thus qualified to offer your own opinions and reasons and perspective on social media. Your larger purpose is to show that in spite of all this wonderful research, no one has addressed the problem in the way that you intend to in your paper.

1. Also introduces the texts to be synthesized:

(i) Gives the title of each source (following the citation guidelines of whatever style sheet you are using);

(ii) Provides the name of each author/s, summarizes the texts, explains the general topic from which the texts are drawn. Begin by summarizing briefly the points, themes, or traits that the texts have in common and how they are different.

3. The body of a synthesis essay: paragraph 2-4

This should be organized by point, similarity/difference, or aspect of the topic.

Be sure that each paragraph:

1. Begins with a sentence or phrase that informs readers of the topic of the paragraph;
2. Includes information from more than one source;
3. Clearly indicates which material comes from which source using lead in phrases and in-text citations. [Beware of plagiarism: Accidental plagiarism most often occurs when students are synthesizing sources and do not indicate where the synthesis ends and their own comments begin or vice verse.]
4. Shows the similarities or differences between the different sources in ways that make the paper as informative as possible;
5. Represents the texts fairly--even if that seems to weaken the paper! Look upon yourself as a synthesizing machine; you are simply repeating what the source says, in fewer words and in your own words. But the fact that you are using your own words does not mean that you are in anyway changing what the source says.

4. brief Conclusion: 

When you have finished your paper, write a conclusion reminding readers of the most significant themes you have found and the ways they connect to the overall topic. You may also want to suggest further research or comment on things that it was not possible for you to discuss in the paper.