...As an American citizen in high school, I believe the popular topic of gun control in schools is most relevant to me at the moment. There have been OVER 300 school related shootings since 2013—an average of about one a week. As a student who has never been put in the position of having to protect oneself from an active shooter, I believe teachers should not have guns. Michael Drayton (1596) created a wise saying: “add fuel to the fire” this is still relevant today. By allowing teachers to have guns it is adding fuel to a fire, meaning it can only make a situation worse. If teachers are allowed to have guns in the classroom, students may be afraid to go to class, may feel uncomfortable knowing there is a weapon in the classroom. It also can...
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...during election season. This essay will examine the gun control issue. It will provide a brief history, statistics, and quotes from gun control experts to describe the present state of gun control in the United States. In addition, it will offer a brief analysis of gun control efforts. This examination and analysis will demonstrate that stronger gun control is necessary to reduce gun violence and ensure the safe use of guns in the United States. “Since the American Revolution, when colonists went to war against Great Britain, the right to bear arms has been central to – and controversial in – American culture. Take a look back over milestones in America’s relationship with and regulation of firearms”. Following by U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, news reports. Gun control is nothing new in the United States, and neither is the controversy surrounding the control of gun ownership. According to an author , gun control has been an issue since at least 1934, when Congress passed a law restricting machine guns and sawed-off shotguns . An Author points out that after the assassinations of Senator Robert F. Kennedy and the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968, a law was passed that banned the importation of inexpensive handguns called "Saturday Night Specials;" in 1993, the Brady Bill was passed, which required background checks for handgun purchases; and a 1994 law banned the sale of semiautomatic assault guns . Since 1994, there has...
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...an Argument No one structure fits all written arguments. However, most college courses require arguments that consist of the following elements. Below is a basic outline for an argumentative or persuasive essay. This is only one possible outline or organization. Always refer to your handbook for specifics. I. Introductory Paragraph o Your introductory paragraph sets the stage or the context for the position you are arguing for. o This introduction should end with a thesis statement that provides your claim (what you are arguing for) and the reasons for your position on an issue. A. Your thesis: o states what your position on an issue is o usually appears at the end of the introduction in a short essay o should be clearly stated and often contains emphatic language (should, ought, must) B. Sample Argumentative Thesis o The production, sale, and possession of assault weapons for private citizens should be banned in the U.S. II. Body of your Argument A. Background Information o This section of your paper gives the reader the basic information he or she needs to understand your position. This could be part of the introduction, but may work as its own section. B. Reasons or Evidence to Support your Claim o All evidence you present in this section should support your position. This is the heart of your essay. Generally, you begin with a general statement that you back up with specific details or examples. Depending on how long your argument is, you will need to devote one to two well-developed...
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...To complete this assignment, go to this week's Argumentative Paper link in the left navigation: Argumentative Paper An Argumentative Paper is due in Week Five. Below is a list of potential topics. Please see “Graded Writing Assignment Notices” in your Discussion Forum. This set of topics and the topics on the grading forum have all been tested over time and can be successfully argued from different perspectives. Thus you need to choose a topic where you can see at least two points of view and present both points. You will have your own opinion and need to present that in Part III of your argument. If you feel so strongly about a topic that you cannot see another point of view, avoid writing about it. Suggested Topics * Should abortions be legal? * Are Affirmative Action laws fair? * Should America have stronger Gun Control laws? * Should assisted suicide be legal? * Are charter schools/vouchers detrimental to the American educational system? * Should the death penalty be abolished? * Should homosexuals be allowed to legally marry? * Should homosexuals be allowed to be Christian ministers/pastors? * Should animals be used in medical research? * Is global warming a genuine threat to the planet earth? * Should human cloning be legal? * Should embryonic stem cell research be federally funded? Select one of the above issues and construct a six-to eight-page argument in which you use the following format. Your paper will...
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...Danielle Born EN102 November 10, 2012 Portfolio How has this course benefited me in my career? This course has shown me another type of writing styles. We were taught to to plan out and write an argumentative essay. This course will help me in my career because I now know another advanced writing style. Writing is very important in the business world. With amazing direction from my professor, I was able to see where I had gone wrong and fix and learn from my mistakes. I believe this course has made me an even stronger writer than I was before. What specific skills have I learned in this class? The specific skills that were learned in EN102 were, constructing a strong thesis statement, compiling strong supporting ideas and learning how to write argumentative essays. Instructor Comments regarding my performance: Lesson 1: You did a good job creating ten solid questions and presenting them in a manner to produce a quality response. You handled each stage of the interview professionally, well done. Thank you, Karen You came up with some solid ideas for topics that will work well as a final project. Do some preliminary research and make sure you will have no trouble finding enough information on your topic to meet the minimum requirements (1,400 words at least) of the project. Thank you, Karen Lesson 2: You did a solid job on your chosen activity. Good work eliminating all spelling and grammar errors. Thank you, Karen This assignment will serve as the foundation...
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...UNIT 1 Special Note: The argumentative essay is a very useful test of a student’s ability to think logically. Argue: v. 1. to persuade someone to do or not do something. 2. to give the reasons for your opinion, idea, belief, etc. Argumentative: adj. someone who is argumentative often argues or like arguing. Argument: n. a set of reasons that show that something is true or untrue, right or wrong etc. When you have an opinion and try to convince your listener or reader to accept your opinion, you are agreeing with or disagreeing with something. For example: In an everyday situation, you may try to convince a friend to go somewhere or in a composition or speech class, the instructor may make an assignment in which you must support or oppose the use of nuclear energy to produce electricity. If you agree or disagree on an issue, you will want your reader or listener to accept your point of view. There are a few types of argumentative compositions such as: 1. Advantages and disadvantages 2. Expressing opinions/providing solutions to problems 3. Expressing arguments for and against a topic 4. Compare and contrast something or somebody PURPOSE of ARGUMENTATIVE ESSAYS * An argument follows when two groups disagree about something. * People can have different opinions and can offer reasons in support...
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...what controversial (has more than one side / answer / opinion / etc) issues exist in your discipline / major and which are most interesting to you and/or relevant in your field today. To help you with that, you may want to move through the brainstorm / freewrite below to see if you can develop some of those ideas. You should use this to help you come up with ideas that you could discuss and develop on the DB. You may even want to post portions of what you came up with here on the DB. Thoughtful interaction could earn you some BONUS in the CE column and allow you to SPIN some ideas and nail down some solid topics. With that in mind, each student’s essay is to be unique with regards to its TOPIC / ISSUE / STANCE / ETC; therefore, the Board is meant to be a place to help shape ideas, not see one and “steal” it for your own essay. Topics will be reserved for those individuals who first bring them up and if similarities exist it will be the responsibility of the students to determine what different aspects of the issue will be explored by each (first poster gets first choice). I will NOT allow the “casual” student (one who is hanging around on the roster but not really submitting assignments and/or participating on the previous Boards) tell me at the last minute that “X” is his/her project when a conscientious student already articulated this on the Board. What you want to do is complicate the issue. Look at the issue from multiple perspectives and see what collaborations and...
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...Introspective Analysis: My Limited Writing Experience in a Nutshell I have never kept a journal or a diary. Writing things down never made me feel better so my first real experience in any type of writing was in school. Before then I had not given writing much thought. I read a lot of books, magazines and papers; how hard could it be? It wasn’t long before I had a real eye opening experience trying to write my first real formal paper. Writing has never been easy for me so when I started writing formal papers in college it was one of the more difficult assignments for me. In the first part of this essay, I will review my first experience in writing a formal college paper, how the Professor encouraged me to actually finish the paper, then in the second part of my paper I will describe my experiences with research and MLA formatting style. I will never forget my first college English Composition class. When I walked into the class it looked like any other classroom. People were sitting in what I was sure was their comfort spots in the classroom, some in front, some in back. I, of course, chose a middle seat. I pulled out the books and papers I needed for the class and sat quietly. When the Professor started the class we all signed in and of course, we had to write an introduction of ourselves to him. That seemed easy enough. I wrote it out and handed it in and was passed back a syllabus. The final draft of our first paper wasn’t even due for four weeks. At that time I never imagined...
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...Vazaskia V. Crockrell-Caldwell Prof. Margaret Griesse T SOC 455: Sociology of Gender 8 December 2014 Domestic Violence in the Lives of Black Women in the U.S. This essay will explore the cause and impact of domestic violence in the lives of black women in the U.S. It will provide general information, such as the definition of domestic violence, statistics, and resources to help survivors leave domestic violence relationships. Following the review of the literature I identify areas which need further research. Since I can remember black women have been characterized as mean and argumentative, but also strong and self-sacrificing for their families. Black families on TV were always portrayed as single mother households. In my community there was also a reoccurring reality of domestic violence against women. This was is in direct contrast to stereotypes I heard about white women, who were portrayed as weak, frail and needing to be protected. Examples include June Cleaver on Leave it to Beaver and the Brady Bunch. But what justified the brutality of domestic violence against black women then and now? In 2011, black females were murdered at a rate more than two and a half times higher than white females: 2.61 per 100,000 versus 0.99 per 100,000. [1] In the U.S. domestic violence against black women has escalated. In 2010, Marissa Alexander an African American woman shot a warning shot at the wall in order to scare Rico Gray, her estranged, abusive...
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...RESEARCH and WRITING CUSTOM EDITION Taken from: Writing Research Papers: A Complete Guide, Eleventh Edition by James D. Lester and James D. Lester, Jr. To the Point: Reading and Writing Short Arguments by Gilbert H. Muller and Harvey S. Wiener ISBN 0-558-55519-5 Research and Writing, Custom Edition. Published by Pearson Custom Publishing. Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Custom Publishing. Taken from: Writing Research Papers: A Complete Guide, Eleventh Edition by James D. Lester and James D. Lester, Jr. Copyright © 2005 by Pearson Education, Inc. Published by Pearson Longman, Inc. New York, New York 10036 To the Point: Reading and Writing Short Arguments by Gilbert H. Muller and Harvey S. Wiener Copyright © 2005 by Pearson Education, Inc. Published by Pearson Longman, Inc. Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Custom Publishing All rights reserved. Permission in writing must be obtained from the publisher before any part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system. All trademarks, service marks, registered trademarks, and registered service marks are the property of their respective owners and are used herein for identification purposes only. Printed in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 ISBN 0-536-97722-4 2005240359 AP Please visit our web site at www.pearsoncustom.com ISBN 0-558-55519-5 PEARSON CUSTOM PUBLISHING ...
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...11 Position Papers I f you like to argue, you will enjoy writing position papers and argument essays. The purpose of a position paper or argument essay is to explain both sides of a controversy and then argue for one side over the other. This two-sided approach is what makes position papers and argument essays different from commentaries (Chapter 10). A commentary usually only expresses the author’s personal opinion about a current issue or event. A position paper or argument essay explains both sides and discusses why one is stronger or better than the other. Your goal is to fairly explain your side and your opponents’ side of the issue, while highlighting the differences between these opposing views. You need to use solid reasoning and factual evidence to persuade your readers that your view is more valid or advantageous than your opponents’ view. In college, your professors will ask you to write position papers and argument essays to show that you understand both sides of an issue and can support one side or the other. In the workplace, corporate position papers are used to argue for or against business strategies or alternatives. The ability to argue effectively is a useful skill that will help you throughout your life. 221 CHAPTER AT–A–GLANCE Position Papers This diagram shows two basic organizations for a position paper, but other arrangements of these sections will work too. In the pattern on the left, the opponents’ position is described up front with its...
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...this situation sounds familiar, you may find it reassuring to know that many professionals undergo these same strange compulsions before they begin writing. Jean Kerr, author of Please Don’t Eat the Daisies, admits that she often finds herself in the kitchen reading soup-can labels—or anything—in order to prolong the moments before taking pen in hand. John C. Calhoun, vice president under Andrew Jackson, insisted he had to plow his fields before he could write, and Joseph Conrad, author of Lord Jim and other novels, is said to have cried on occasion from the sheer dread of sitting down to compose his stories. To spare you as much hand-wringing as possible, this chapter presents some practical suggestions on how to begin writing your short essay. Although all writers must find the methods that work best for them, you may find some of the following ideas helpful. But no matter how you actually begin putting words on paper, it is absolutely essential to maintain two basic ideas concerning your writing task. Before you write a single sentence, you should always remind yourself that 1. You have some valuable ideas to tell your reader, and 2. More than anything, you want to communicate those ideas to your reader. These reminders may seem obvious to you, but without a solid commitment to your own opinions as well as to your reader, your prose will be lifeless and boring. If you don’t care about your subject, you can’t very well expect anyone else to. Have confidence that your ideas are...
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...fourth EDItION fourth EDItION This clear, learner-friendly text helps today’s students bridge the gap between Its comprehensiveness allows instructors to tailor the material to their individual teaching styles, resulting in an exceptionally versatile text. Highlights of the Fourth Edition: Additional readings and essays in a new Appendix as well as in Chapters 7 and 8 nearly double the number of readings available for critical analysis and classroom discussion. An online chapter, available on the instructor portion of the book’s Web site, addresses critical reading, a vital skill for success in college and beyond. Visit www.mhhe.com/bassham4e for a wealth of additional student and instructor resources. Bassham I Irwin Nardone I Wallace New and updated exercises and examples throughout the text allow students to practice and apply what they learn. MD DALIM #1062017 12/13/09 CYAN MAG YELO BLK Chapter 12 features an expanded and reorganized discussion of evaluating Internet sources. Critical Thinking thinking, using real-world examples and a proven step-by-step approach. A student ' s Introduction A student's Introduction everyday culture and critical thinking. It covers all the basics of critical Critical Thinking Ba ssha m I Irwin I Nardone I Wall ace CRITICAL THINKING A STUDENT’S INTRODUCTION FOURTH EDITION Gregory Bassham William Irwin Henry Nardone James M. Wallace King’s College TM bas07437_fm_i-xvi.indd i 11/24/09 9:53:56 AM TM Published by McGraw-Hill...
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...fourth EDItION Critical Thinking A student ' s Introduction Ba ssha m I I rwi n I N ardon e I Wal l ac e CRITICAL THINKING A STUDENT’S INTRODUCTION FOURTH EDITION Gregory Bassham William Irwin Henry Nardone James M. Wallace King’s College TM TM Published by McGraw-Hill, an imprint of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., 1221 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020. Copyright © 2011, 2008, 2005, 2002. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written consent of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., including, but not limited to, in any network or other electronic storage or transmission, or broadcast for distance learning. This book is printed on acid-free paper. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 DOC/DOC 0 ISBN: 978-0-07-340743-2 MHID: 0-07-340743-7 Vice President, Editorial: Michael Ryan Director, Editorial: Beth Mejia Sponsoring Editor: Mark Georgiev Marketing Manager: Pam Cooper Managing Editor: Nicole Bridge Developmental Editor: Phil Butcher Project Manager: Lindsay Burt Manuscript Editor: Maura P. Brown Design Manager: Margarite Reynolds Cover Designer: Laurie Entringer Production Supervisor: Louis Swaim Composition: 11/12.5 Bembo by MPS Limited, A Macmillan Company Printing: 45# New Era Matte, R. R. Donnelley & Sons Cover Image: © Brand X/JupiterImages Credits: The credits section for this book begins on page C-1 and is considered...
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...ACT/SAT T EST Preparation and Practice Workbook Grateful acknowledgment is given to authors, publishers, and agents for permission to reprint the following copyrighted material. Every effort has been made to determine copyright owners. In case of any omissions, the Publisher will be pleased to make suitable acknowledgments in future editions. Excerpt from The Mystery of Comets by Fred L. Whipple. Copyright © 1985 by Smithsonian Institution. Reprinted by permission. Excerpt from Freedom’s Children: Young Civil Rights Activists Tell Their Own Stories, by Ellen Levine. Copyright © 1993 by G.P. Putnam’s Sons. Reprinted by permission of Penguin Putnam. Excerpt from New Essays on the Psychology of Art by Rudolf Arnheim. Copyright © 1986, University of California Press. Reprinted by permission. Excerpt from The Natural History of Cats by Claire Necker. Copyright © 1970, A.S. Barnes and Co., Inc. Reprinted by permission. Copyright © by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the United States Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without prior permission of the publisher. Send all inquiries to: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill 8787 Orion Place Columbus, OH 43240-4027 ISBN-13: 978-0-07-876567-4 ISBN-10: 0-07-876567-6 Printed in the United States of America. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 021 12 11 10 09 08 07 06 ACT/SAT Test Preparation and Practice ...
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