Informal Writing Assignment: Kantz

Informal Writing Assignment: Kantz

Author/Title:

Margaret Kantz, “Helping Students Use Textual Sources Persuasively”

Summary:

In her article “Helping Students Use Textual Sources Persuasively,” Margaret Kantz narrates the story of two students (Shirley and Alice) as they approach writing a research paper. She argues that students (like Shirley) have only been taught how to find main ideas and agree or disagree with them. Because we want to elevate our students writing to also include critical thinking and analysis (like Alice), Kantz suggests instructors need to find a way to teach the concept of rhetorical situations.

Synthesis/Mapping Theory:

Kantz’s piece reminds me of Kleine’s essay (see earlier blogs), in that both authors are seeing a lack in the student writing process and attempting to fill that gap. For Kleine, it was the writing process itself and attempting to develop a non-linear model. For Kantz, it is the Rhetorical situation; she gives Kinneavy’s Triangle as an example of one way to approach teaching these skills

. Kinneavy’s Triangle

Another way of seeing into the rhetorical situation would be the Rhetorical Triangle:

Pre-Reading Exercise:

Facts/claims in commercials

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-t6AIMSCdw Old Spice

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZGZGA_6i-M Doritos

http://www.youtube.com/user/SKITTLESbrand?v=dwe9Qxo3_Cs Skittles

There were no “facts” presented in any of these commercials, and only the Old Spice commercial made a claim—if you wore Old Spice you would “smell like power.”

Using commercials to highlight “Facts” and “Claims” is a great idea for the classroom—I could see building this into a lesson plan!

Questions for Discussion:

1. According to Kantz, facts, opinions, and arguments are “In a rhetorical argument, a fact is a claim that an audience will accept as being true without requiring proof, although they may ask for an explanation. An opinion is a claim that an audience will not accept as true without proof, and which, after the proof is given, the audience may well decide has only a limited truth, i.e., it's true in this case but not in other cases. An audience may also decide that even though a fact is unassailable, the interpretation or use of the fact is open to debate” (76).

2. According to Kantz, students do not know or understand the follow:

• ·         Sources
• ·         Building notes into original ideas
• ·         Management skills
• ·         Planning
• ·         Organizing patterns—cause/effect and general-to-specific
• ·         Retooling the paper into something that answers a person’s questions—teaches

This is not an inclusive list; however, the above represent very significant areas students need help with.

Based on my own experience, as a graduate student I am much more versed in these ideas and concepts than the undergraduates I teach, however, I could still benefit from gaining a deeper understanding of the above.

Applying and Exploring Ideas:

2. Creativity and Research

I think many people would assume that creative writing is not part of the research writing process, however, Kantz disagrees. I have always used creativity to my benefit in many of my academic papers; I feel giving my papers that extra flourish adds voice and depth. Kantz sums it up perfectly, “And after all, creativity is what research should be about” (81).

Meta Moment:

What constructs or conceptions is Kantz trying to analyze?

One of the constructs I see Kantz attempting to break down is the conception that facts are inherently true statements. She explicitly tells us they are not inherently true and thus constitute claims. It is very important to understand this as “facts” play significantly into our claims, argument, and audience, among other things. Questioning facts produces better researchers, and better research makes for better and more convincing arguments.

Final Thoughts:

The use of “Shirley” and “Alice” was an interesting way to frame the essay. I would think many students would identify with one or both of these characters, and by doing so, become more engaged with the text. Kantz examples her concepts and ideas well—I especially like that a sample paper is included. However, despite the praise I can give this piece, I do not think freshman will enjoy reading it. I worry about how well a discussion will go over this piece and what I might be able to do in order to create larger understanding—especially with the Kinneavy Triangle.