Critical Thinking Questions - Assignment Example

?Part One: Critical Thinking Questions. Please answer the questions below. To each letter, you should dedicate 150 to 250 words. a. Argument: What isthe importance of objectivity in the college essay? Of Evidence? Of Analysis? How does one “make an argument”? How does one select evidence to support it? Name your best source this term and why it proved particularly useful in supporting your thesis. What is the importance of credibility, authority, utility, thoroughness, objectivity, intelligence, accuracy, and /or relevance in a source? What is the difference between a primary and secondary source? What are logical fallacies (cite an example)? Objectivity in a college essay is essential to make your point clear and more understandable. Analysis is used in a college essay to conclude evidences and used in a college essay to make your point of view more strong and persuasive. An argument may be based on logic or practical evidence and the evidences are selected on the basis of relevance and conclusiveness. The best source I used this term was Wikipedia and it not only gives me all the information I needed but also gives me the primary sources of the information to enhance my knowledge and also any information that is linked to my thesis in any other way. A reference source used in a paper must be credible to be conclusive and the authority it possesses makes the source more credible and usable. Primary sources give first-hand information about the subject of research while Secondary Sources give information that has been discussed elsewhere. However Primary and Secondary sources are relative terms and can be described as per the usage of the information. It is described that “a fallacy is usually incorrect reasoning in argumentation resulting in a misconception.” A logical fallacy is one which is a logical flaw in the argument due to which the argument becomes invalid. A post hoc is a good example of logical fallacy in which people try to link events and deduce conclusions with out considering the other relevant factors. b. Structure: What defines a thesis? Give us an example of two of a good thesis vs. a bad thesis. Explain the structure of a typical essay, the function of a thesis, an introduction, a conclusion, summary, background, topic sentences, supporting analysis, counter-arguments, and transitions. As per Wikipedia, "A dissertation or thesis is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings". A good thesis statement does not include subject only but it also possess attitude. For example: “The War of 1812 set into motion the main events that caused the Civil War.” (Good example) “The War of 1812 came before the Civil War.” (Bad example) “In order for the judicial system to judge whether a law is constitutional, it must have the power to overturn a temporary law of Congress.” (Good example) “The judicial system needs to have power over Congress in order to do its job.” (Bad example) A typical essay includes thesis statement, introductions, body paragraphs and conclusion. The introduction of the essay must be deductive in nature and presented precisely. A good introduction includes topic of the essay and the background information regarding it. The thesis statement is usually presented in one single statement and author shows his point of view that will be later proved in the body paragraphs through a logical chain of arguments. A thesis statement never asks a question but shows a point of view. A conclusion comprises of a paragraph and concludes the arguments presented in the body paragraphs. The conclusion is basically a summary of the essay. A counter-argument is a reason given by your opposition. The counter-arguments are used in thesis to be evaluated on logic and then answered. Transitions are used to connect different paragraphs and give a complete picture of the essay. c. Integration of Evidence: What is the difference between paraphrasing, summary and direct quotes? Please select a paragraph (Any paragraph will do, but I ask that you retype it in its entirety so that I can evaluate you properly here.) Provide us with an example of a paraphrase, an example of a summary, and an example of a direct quote from that paragraph. Paraphrases, summaries, and direct quotes are three types of in-text citations. What are the elements of an in-text citation? How is one put together in either MLA or APA style? Name its parts. Explain the importance of integrating one’s evidence into a paragraph. What defines “good integration”? In either MLA or APA, give us an example of proper integration of a citation and another of improper integration of a citation. Paraphrasing is rewriting the same thing without copying it while summary is just the central idea of the main paragraph. A direct quote will be the re-presentation of the same paragraph without any changes. The original paragraphs will be: "In some countries/universities, the word "thesis" or a cognate is used as part of a bachelor's or master's course, while "dissertation" is normally applied to a doctorate, while in others, the reverse is true". The above paragraph will be a direct quote if used in a thesis. The paraphrase will be like this: "It is reported that the word thesis is used for graduate level courses and word dissertation is used for doctorate level in some countries while other countries use the reverse terms". A summary will be: "Thesis is written for graduate courses while dissertation is for doctorate level." MLA in-text citations format uses the author-page method which means that the author’s name and the page number of source must appear in the text. The author's name can appear in any format but the page number should appear in parentheses in any case. For example, Wordsworth stated that “Romantic poetry was marked by a spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings" (263) Good integration means proper citation of sources used to derive conclusions instead of plagiarism. Take following example of good integration of citation in MLA style: “Students are often instructed not only to use their intuition to determine if a text is biased but also to check the credentials of authors and the respectability of the publication in which the article occurs” (McCormick 43). An improper citation will look like this and can be considered as plagiarism. “Students are often instructed not only to use their intuition to determine if a text is biased but also to check the credentials of authors and the respectability of the publication in which the article occurs” d. Documentation and Format: What is the function of Documentation in the college essay? Define the Works Cited page or References page? What are its relevant parts? Provide an example entry in both styles. Explain their main features, similarities, differences? What is either APA or MLA manuscript format? In other words, how does text appear on the page? What is the importance of a Header and Footer? What information do you include? Where? There is no specific format of documentations in the college essay. By learning the different type of documentation formats, a person can display professionalism in his work and make it more understandable. Works cited page or Reference page is a list of works or sources from which references are taken to make the assignment or essay. Work Cited Page is used in MLA style and Reference Page is used in APA style. MLA style does not include a title page but APA style does include it. Example of Work Cited: “Dean, Cornelia. "Executive on a Mission: Saving the Planet." New York Times. New York Times, 22 May 2007. Web. 25 May 2009.” Example of Reference: Harlow, H. F. (1983). Fundamentals for preparing psychology journal articles. Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology, 55, 893-896. Manuscript formatting: 1. Title Page includes a title page with full title of manuscript and authors' names. 2. Abstract is needed in case; it must be on a separate page after the title page. 3. Key Words should be listed on the page of abstract. 4. Text Formatting: All text should be in 12-point font and double spaced. 5. Margins must be 1 1/4 inches. 6. The first page of the text should start with the title and be on a new page of text. 7. Footnotes and Endnotes: A footnote is used for title page and tables while an End note is used in the rest of the text to add further information. Header includes last name of the Author along with the page number on the right corner with half inch margin from top. No footer is required in MLA formatting style. Part Two: Self-Analysis In 500-700 words, narrate your 291 Experience this term. Please tell the story of your journey in WRTG 291 from Persuasive Paper, to Synthesis Paper, to the Final Research paper. Tell us about the experience of writing each paper from start to finish. How did each of these papers differ, and develop? How did you develop as a writer from each experience? What obstacles did you encounter along the way? How did you overcome them? What was your original topic? What questions did you ask about your topic to narrow it and focus your research? Tell about your experiences researching your subject, brainstorming, organizing, composing, critiquing, and revising? What did you concepts did you learn about writing and research from the Modules, from the Textbook, from the Conferences, from Research, and from the Writing? What skills did you acquire? What do you feel, at this point, are your strengths and weaknesses as a writer? What are your plans for improving upon these skills in the future? (F.Y.I: My first paper was a persuasive about Managing Teams Effectively: Dealing with Slackers and Obstructionists, 2nd was a synthesizing about The Diverse Nature of Counseling, the last paper was a research paper about Developing strategies for preventing workplace violence/managing the aftermath of workplace violence.) For some people, writing is a very difficult thing but for some it is a heaven made by them which they can alter and rebuilt as per their choice. However writing college papers are not easy as it is always done at the spur of the moment. Like all other students I always plan to finish my essays early to avoid last minute pressure but again like all other students I failed to accomplish my plan. I drank tea after tea in the long hours of night to boost my brain and tried to get an idea that put the vehicle of thinking on track. I think that only reading is not enough to prepare a good paper. It is not the fact that makes things interesting but the dimension given to it by the author. It is like through the Looking Glass. You will see what you want to see. My favorite paper was The Diverse Nature of Counseling because it had more to understand about people than dealing with them. The best thing with the paper was that my all big ideas came during very last hours. Even I was amazed after completing the paper that I could write so well in such a pressure. What I truly lacked in the beginning was organizing and transitioning from one point to another at the time of writing because it was necessary that the reader also follow my line of thinking at the time of reading. I was really in need to overcome that flaw as it was causing double organizing and proof reading time. I started to write more and more with out concerning the word count limitation to figure out that how many words I needed to express my point? For my utter amazement, this strategy really worked. As I wrote despite of time or words limitation; I actually made my point clear with out vagueness or repetitiveness. Such a draft was much easier to organize and proof read subsequently and took lesser time than previous one. As a writer my strengths are proper and thorough expressions of emotions and events that some writers really lack these days as they write with their mind and not with their feelings. As I am a very imaginative person; I am also good in using metaphors. Sometimes I lack consistency in my argument and just drift away from the main line of argumentation but it usually happens if I write with an occupied mind. An occupied is not good for writing and especially not for thesis writing. So in order to overcome my weakness; I started to empty my mind from all the other thinking and just focus on my objective. It helps me a lot in building my concentration and makes me a better writer. I believe that there are two things required to be a good writer. First is the passion to know or curiosity to seek the truth of a matter and second the art to express your knowledge. And both of these elements are essential as neither every curious person can be called as a good writer nor people like to read a writer who has no knowledge. My aim is to polish my both abilities i.e. the passion to know and the art to express to be a more stable and heart-touching writer in the industry. Read More