834 3p

UNIT 2: SCHOLARLY WRITING

LITERATURE REVIEW

Instructions:

1 – Choose a topic on which you’d like to focus. This topic should be in a field in which you’ve taken or are currently taking at least one class. The topic should be some ongoing issue, question, or line of inquiry in the field. Keep in mind that this will be the topic for all of your remaining projects this semester. It should therefore be something that you’re interested in and of which you already have at least a basic understanding.

2 – Choose a journal that publishes literature reviews in your field. This will be the journal in which you’ll “publish” your lit review. You’ll begin by doing a rhetorical analysis of several of these literature reviews. This project will be a simplified and scaled-down version of the scholarly lit review, due to our time constraints.

Note: As you study examples, make sure that you’re reading literature reviews and not other types of academic articles, such as original research or meta-analyses. If you’re not sure in which category an article fits, ask me as soon as possible.

3 – Do some research on your topic. The purpose of a lit review is to gather sources that deal with the same questions or issues and to synthesize that information. You can think of it as a way for scholars to “take stock” of what’s going on in the field. You’ll need to rely primarily on a variety of academic journals, as they will be more current, but you may also use books or other sources as appropriate. DO NOT USE LITERATURE REVIEWS AS SOURCES. You should focus on original research articles. You will need to incorporate at least 5 scholarly sources (and no more than 10). They should not all be from the same journal.

4 – Cite your sources according to the style required by the journal. This information should be readily available in the submission guidelines on the website or within the journal itself. It’s a good idea to cite as you go so you don’t have to hunt down citation information later on.

5 – Make a contribution to the discourse. Your purpose is 1) to synthesize the sources you’ve found to provide a snapshot of the work in the field and 2) to make some kind of observation about the status of this work. You might make an observation about which ideas seem most promising, about something that seems to be missing, about an approach you think someone ought to take, etc. Your observation should be something that will help the field move forward.

6 – Compose your lit review to clearly convey your observation and the status of your topic in the field. As you organize your paper, avoid summarizing each source separately. How can you group sources together? Do some sources agree on something? Do some sources disagree? What common themes, approaches, or problems do you notice? Follow examples in your journal to make organizational and structural choices. Consider what will make the information easily accessible to the reader. You’ll need to cite your sources and use specific evidence as you explain what’s going on in the field and what observation you’d like to make about it. You’ll need to refer back to the observations you made in your analysis of the example literature reviews and implement those strategies as appropriate.

Audience:

Scholars in your field (those who read the journal for which you’re writing)

Purpose:

With the knowledge you developed in Unit 1, you will now approach the lit review with a set of tools that will help you understand – and then reproduce – that genre. This unit also addresses writing for a scholarly audience, with the particular opportunities and constraints that audience provides. Finally, this is an opportunity to pursue a topic in your field that interests you.

Evaluation:

Sample Analysis, Plan, and Drafts will be graded on timeliness and completion. Final Draft will be graded according to the rubric below.

Requirements:

2500-3000 Words

Citations – use the style required by the journal

Resources:

I encourage you to come to my office hours (or make an appointment). You may also visit the Writing Center at any point in the process, and the library can offer additional help with research and citation.

CONTEXT MEMO

Because you’re writing for a scholarly audience in your field, you’ll need to include a context memo with your literature review to facilitate access to your paper for me and your classmates. The context memo is a brief document that provides contextual information and, perhaps, further explanation of the material in the lit review.

The context memo must include the following:

- The name of the journal for which you’re writing

- A statement of why you’ve chosen that journal

- The citation style required for that journal (you can include the page or provide a link)

- A list and brief explanation of the 3 most important rhetorical strategies you used in your article:

- What is the strategy that you used?

- Why did you choose this strategy?

- What effect does the strategy have on your audience?

- How does that effect contribute to your goal for the article?

It may also include:

- A glossary of key terms

- Explanations of key concepts

- Any other supplementary information you think would be helpful

These are things that your audience would know but that you’d like to explain further for me and your classmates.

The Context Memo DOES NOT COUNT toward the word count

ASSIGNMENTS AND DATES

Sample Analysis: 2/19

Find and analyze 3 literature reviews from the field you’ve selected. They can be on any topic within the field; they do not need to be about the topic you’re studying, as they are serving as examples of the genre.

1) For each literature review:

- Identify the rhetor, audience, and goals.

- List at least 3 rhetorical strategies you’ve observed

- What is the strategy and how is it used in the literature review?

- How do you think this strategy would affect the audience?

- Do you think this strategy effectively works toward the goal? Why/why not?

2) Consider all three literature reviews together

- What strategies or features do the literature reviews have in common?

- Why do you think those strategies are common to the genre?

Plan: 2/21

This plan must include:

- The field of study you’ve selected

- The topic you’ve selected

- An explanation for why you’ve selected that field and that topic

- 3 of the sources you plan on using

- Questions or concerns about the unit

Draft 1: 2/26

This draft should be at least 1250 words. It should include an introduction and an outline for each of the sections you’ll include. Some of those sections can be incomplete. Make sure you include the context memo.

Draft 2: 3/5

This draft should be as complete and finished as possible, including the context memo.

Final: 3/12

Introduction/Purpose	0-9	10-11	12-13	14-15
	-The purpose is unclear - The paper does not accomplish the assignment - The purpose is inconsistent - The paper has no identifiable goal - The introduction provides no indication of the topics the review will cover, or the explanation is very difficult to understand	-The purpose is unclear or does not correspond with the assignment - The purpose is inconsistent or varied - The paper attempts a particular goal - The introduction provides a vague or confusing sense of the topics the review will cover	- The purpose is apparent and corresponds with the assignment - The purpose is mostly consistent throughout - The paper mostly or nearly accomplishes its goal - The introduction gives the reader some indication of the topics the review will cover	- The purpose is readily apparent and corresponds with the assignment - The purpose is consistent throughout - The paper accomplishes its goal - The introduction clearly outlines the topics the review will cover
Sources and Evidence	0-12	13-15	16-17	18-20
	- Many or all of the sources are not scholarly and/or not from the field selected - The review discusses fewer than 4 sources - Evidence is missing, inappropriate, or merely taking up space - Evidence may be entirely lacking in integration, explanation, or analysis	- Some of the sources are not appropriate for the assignment - The review discusses at least 4 sources - Evidence from sources is insufficient and may be inappropriate - Evidence may be poorly integrated, explained, or analyzed	- Most of the sources are appropriate for the assignment - The review discusses 5-10 sources - Evidence from sources is appropriate, but may not be sufficient - Evidence is not fully integrated, explained, or analyzed (1 of the 3)	- The review uses appropriate, scholarly sources from the field selected - The review discusses 5-10 sources from a variety of publications, authors, and perspectives - Evidence from sources is appropriate and sufficient - Evidence is integrated, explained, and analyzed
Synthesis	0-12	13-15	16-17	18-20
	- Material is summarized separately - The review summarizes with no attempt to explain or discuss - Evidence is often misread or misrepresented	- Material is poorly synthesized - The review summarizes sources without sufficient explanation or discussion - Some evidence is misread or misrepresented	- Material is synthesized - The review helps the reader understand the material with sufficient explanation and discussion - There may be minor misreadings or oversimplification of evidence	- Material is synthesized thoughtfully - The review guides the reader through the material with clear explanations and insightful observations
Organization	0-12	13-15	16-17	18-20
	- The review is not logically organized, the structure is not discernible, or is inappropriate for the genre - Many sections or paragraphs have no clear purpose - Transitions are absent or mostly absent between sections - The review is difficult to follow	- The structure of the review is not appropriate or is difficult to follow - The purpose of some sections or paragraphs is unclear - Some of the review makes transitions between sections - Much of the review is choppy or disconnected	- The structure of the review is an appropriate choice - Most sections and paragraphs have a clear, distinct purpose - Most of the review makes transitions between sections - The organization and sections may not always fit together logically or smoothly	- The structure of the review thoughtfully contributes to its goal - Each section has a clear, distinct purpose - Transitions between sections make the review flow smoothly - The organization and sections are logical and present a clear set of ideas
Conclusion	0-9	10-11	12-13	14-15
	- Conclusion is disconnected from the main purpose of the review - Trends, gaps, or ongoing questions in the field are absent, poorly explained, or disconnected from the review	- Conclusion re-explains the main points OR contains material unrelated to the rest of the review - Conclusion gestures toward the trends, gaps, or ongoing questions in the field, but does not adequately explain them	- Conclusion reminds the reader of the main points, but may delve into greater detail than necessary - Conclusion explains the trends, gaps, or ongoing questions in the field	- Conclusion concisely reminds the reader of the main points - Conclusion clearly articulates thoughtful observation of the trends, gaps, or ongoing questions in the field
Grammar/Style	0-1	2	3-4	5
	- The writing has many grammatical problems - The problems disrupt the meaning - Many of the sentences are not clear - Language is very choppy and difficult to read	- The writing has frequent grammatical problems - The problems may disrupt the meaning at times - Most of the sentences are clear - The language may be choppy or difficult to follow at times	- The paper is mostly free from grammatical problems - The problems don’t disrupt the meaning - Sentences are clear - Most of the paper reads smoothly	- The paper is (nearly) free from grammatical problems - Sentences are clear - The paper reads smoothly
Citation	0-1	2	3-4	5
	- In-text citations are incorrect or absent - Works cited list is incorrect or absent	- In-text citations are sometimes incorrect -Works cited list is sometimes incorrect	- In-text citations are mostly correct - Works cited list is mostly correct	- In-text citations are correct - Works cited list is correct, including formatting