LIBA 102 Assignment Library¶
See Also
Welcome to the LIBA 102 Assignment Library. This library is organized by major unit. Where applicable, each assignment’s page is subdivided by course theme.
Analysis¶
Paper #1 is an analysis of a single text. This can be a response paper to an author’s argument or a profile or analysis of a person, place, or thing. It should be 3-4 pages with at least a single entry on the Works Cited page and is worth 10% of the student’s final grade.
Areas to Highlight: This assignment will help students learn to look closely at a text (academic or otherwise) and begin the fundamentals of quoting and citation. Because some students may have had a disruption in time between a WRIT 100/101/equivalent course and a WRIT 102 course (even if it is only winter break), it is recommended that instructors go over thesis statements and paragraph construction that students should have learned in WRIT 100/101. Students may also need help in understanding the difference between summary and analysis.
Synthesis¶
Paper #2 is a synthesis paper where students weigh at least two different arguments and synthesize a unique thesis in reaction to these arguments. It should be 4-5 pages with at least two entries on the Works Cited page and is worth 15% of the student’s final grade.
Areas to Highlight: Though themes may ask students to do different tasks, students are often most frustrated with locating and evaluating sources. Instructors should go over plagiarism issues such as correct citation and using paraphrases. Though challenging, this assignment gives students practice in working with texts for their longer research paper.
Research¶
Paper #3 is the research paper where students will come up with their research question in the context of the class theme. This paper should be 7-9 pages and use at least seven credible sources. This assignment is worth 20% of the student’s final grade.
Areas to Highlight: This is the most intimidating assignment for students. Many of them may have never written this length of paper. Some may have only written an “informational” research paper and not an argumentative one. Since the class spends nearly a month of class periods on this assignment, the sequence of homework assignments, in-class work, and other elements of the process are important to a student’s success. Several class periods should be spent on developing a research question alone. This special care and attention will make the process much more manageable. Emphasize their many avenues of support – the instructor, their peers, the consultants in the Writing Center, and the reference librarians.
Multimodal¶
The multimodal assignment revises the research paper into another mode. This assignment is worth 15% of the student’s final grade.
Areas to Highlight: This assignment is perhaps the most individualized by theme; however, problems with technology will the biggest issue. Instructors should take advantage of Andrew Davis (Lamar Hall Ste. B, Rm 22) to learn how to teach the technology to students. Instructors should keep in mind that this assignment can be as low or high tech as wanted. In general, since this assignment is most often paired with the research papers, students may be tired of their subject or be reluctant to cut their papers. Further, failures in the paper version may translate to problems with the multimodal project. Try to return the research paper back as quickly as possible to alleviate this issue and try not to double-penalize them.
Commonplace Book¶
The LIBA 102 Commonplace Book assignment is based on the WRIT 102 curriculum.
