Edmundson "On the Uses of Liberal Education" Reading Review

Reading Responses (RRs) are one of the core assignments in ENGL 103; they allow us to extend the conversations around selected course readings beyond what we cover in class. These Responses will also provide you with an opportunity to showcase your critical reading and writing skills. After a thorough in-class discussion of various readings from the course, you will be required to construct a multi-paragraph (2 or more) response to the Reading Response prompt posted on Canvas under the “Discussions” tab. You will also take the time to create a discussion question of your own, as well as read and respond to at least one of your peers’ responses.RRs will be graded based on: (1) thoroughness in addressing the prompt—15 pts, (2) utilization of support from the source text—10 pts, (3) adequate response to fellow student—10 pts (4) thoughtful and text-based discussion questions—10 pts, and (5) overall quality of writing—5 pts for a total of 50 points per Reading Response.Tips and Suggestions for RRs:1. When you introduce the author of a source for the first time in a response or essay, use their full name. After that, use their last name only (unless you are dealing with multiple authors with the same last name)2. When utilizing parenthetical citations, don’t use page, p., pp., or pg., simply include the page number(s)3. Also, don’t mention page numbers in the body of your essay or response, only include them in parenthetical (in-text) citations4. Don’t just include a single quote to cover yourself for the assignment requirement, use as much support as is needed in order to adequately prove or explain your point; there is no such thing as  too much evidence5. Related to the above point, never leave a claim or sub-claim unsupported; if you have something to say about the text, back it up with evidence6. When talking about a piece of writing, be sure to call it by the correct name/type (narrative, essay, excerpt, etc.)7. When composing a response, make sure to address every part of the prompt; leaving questions unanswered is an easy way to lose points8. In your discussion questions, refrain from the hypothetical. Avoid questions that do not further our pointed discussion of the text. Keep your questions grounded in the text, the information that the author provides to readers for interpretationa.  A student asks, “If Rodriguez hadn’t excelled in academics, would he have viewed his parents differently?”—This question does not further our pointed discussion of the text, nor does it use the information provided by the author for deeper analysis; it simply speculates about the unknown.b. Try something like this, “In what ways is the conversation in which Rodriguez corrects his parents’ grammar a reflection of the shift in authority figures in his life or even a symbol of assimilation alive and well in America?”—This student has connected a specific piece of the text to larger issues that connect to the experience Rodriguez had. Furthermore, it connects Rodriguez’s experience to a social issue, much like the LEN assignment asks you all to do.