Prompt 1: In the 21st what is the most important thing colleges do to help students graduate and have successful careers and lives? Don’t create a list of things colleges an do. Your thesis should focus on one idea and fully develop it. Don’t create a list of 3 ideas. Focus on a specific need students have and think about what came up in our readings.
Support your argument with at least two and no more than three sources from the “Is College the Best Option” section of They Say/I Say as well as the Sara Goldrick-Rab and Barack Obama articles or the TSIS Blog. Do not use any other sources. Use the templates and techniques from the chapters. Create one overall argument in your thesis. Do not list 3 ideas.
Prompt 2: In the 21st century should everyone go to college? Why or Why not? You must support your argument with at least two and no more than three sources from the “Is College the Best Option” section of They Say/I Say as well as the Sara Goldrick-Rab and Barack Obama articles or the TSIS Blog. Do not use any other sources. Don’t create a list of reasons everyone should go or should not go. Your thesis should focus on one idea and fully develop it. Don’t create a list of 3 ideas.
Keep in mind:
Your task is not as simple as agreeing or disagreeing with one of the authors we’ve read. Rather, you need to figure out for yourself what colleges can do to support 21st century students OR whether in the 21st century everyone should go to college and then support your point of view effectively.
Review what the various authors have to say on the topic you chose. Make sure you understand and can summarize their arguments. Then think about whether you agree or disagree with their positions and why. How do their ideas influence your own point of view? Mark passages that reinforce your ideas―in agreement or disagreement―as you read. Choose at least two and no more than three articles from the text that you would like to use to support your argument or to use as opposition to your argument.
Make connections between the various sources you use. Do they agree or disagree with each other?
Finally bring these ideas together to form your argument and your thesis. Your thesis in this argument should summarize the point you want to make in your paper, the conclusion you want your reader to reach with you, the goal you hope to accomplish.
Each of your body paragraphs should clearly help you prove/support your argument. Don’t forget about the sandwich method and the templates from the textbook. Use quotations to define terms and concepts and to offer examples of those ideas that reinforce your position.
Be sure to add your own ideas to support your position.
Be sure to include naysayers/skeptics (Chapter 6) and make your topic matter (Chapter 7).
Your critical thinking and support scores will depend on your fulfillment the goals of the assignment and use of the terms and techniques from the chapters.
