Persuasive Communication in Personal, Professional, and Academic Contexts

Assignment Introduction:
We engage in persuasion every day. Whether we are posting on a social media site about the need to build sidewalks to keep our children safe when they are walking to school, emailing our boss to propose a new safety procedure, or writing an academic essay that advocates a mandatory spay/neuter program in our city, we have to consider the most appropriate audience, method of communication, and evidence to make our case.
For the Unit 2 Assignment, you will select examples of persuasive communications that you have encountered or produced yourself in personal, professional, and academic contexts. These should be examples that you have encountered or produced in written form or in oral conversation. You will describe the examples and analyze what made them effective. Considering what makes persuasion work will help you to craft a strong argument for change in the upcoming units.
Assignment Instructions:
In this assignment, you will write three paragraphs describing and analyzing effective persuasive communication you have encountered or produced in personal, professional, and academic contexts. In each of the three paragraphs, include at least one concrete example of effective persuasion that you have experienced or produced yourself to illustrate your points. Your examples can include instances of persuasion that has been written, spoken, or a combination of both. Describe that example, identify the parts of the rhetorical situation (audience, speaker, text, purpose, and context), and offer specific reasons why the example was effectively based on the concepts covered in the Units 1 and 2 Reading. You can also include information on tone, style, formality, voice, correctness, evidence, and word choice as you develop your analysis.
Follow APA formatting guidelines for the document. Paragraphs should be well-developed (use the “point, illustrate, explain” method), cohesive, and edited for clarity and correctness. Cite any sources used in APA style, including the course reading.
Use the following chart to help ensure that you meet the following expectations in the final version of your Unit 2 Assignment:
Paragraph 1
Describe an example of persuasive communication in a personal context. This could be a social media post, an email to a friend, or even a conversation.
Identify the parts of the rhetorical situation.
Analyze what makes this example effective.
Draw connections to concepts from the Unit 1 and 2 Reading.
Paragraph 2
Describe an example of persuasive communication in a professional context. This could be a memo, email, presentation, or professional conversation.
Identify the parts of the rhetorical situation.
Analyze what makes this example effective and consider the expectations for professional communication in your field.
Draw connections to concepts from the Unit 1 and 2 Reading.
Paragraph 3
Describe an example of persuasive communication in an academic context. This could be an essay you wrote for a class, an article you read, or a discussion post.
Identify the parts of the rhetorical situation.
Analyze what makes this example effective and consider how academic persuasion differs from other contexts.
Draw connections to concepts from the Unit 1 and 2 Reading.
References
Since you will reference concepts from the Units 1 and 2 Reading or may draw ideas from the PG Writing Center, include signal phrases and citations, like this: According to the PG Writing Center, persuasive writing should. . .
Include a references page with citations for the reading and any other sources you use.