Thursday, October 25, 2007

D#9, HW#7, Deadline Reflection

This weeks homework was extremely helpful to WP#3. It made me think about exactly what I wanted to write about in my paper. I also found out that almost all of my sources cover pro and cons of aiding poverty, which I didn't realize until I started writing my outline. The con sections will be very useful when writing WP#3. (Most of the con information is near the end of the articles so I didn't see it the first time through). Seeing the one other person's outline (haha) made me see that maybe i'm not too far off of what we were supposed to do! I commented on:

http://camlunamcc.blogspot.com/ Deadline #9, HW #1 Reading Reflection
http://laceyariz.blogspot.com/ D#9,HW#4 Toulmin outline
http://ktmdude88.blogspot.com/ D#9, HW#, WP#2 Final
http://sparizek-armywife.blogspot.com/ D9HW6 Outline info

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

D#9, HW#6, Outline

Aside from the Toulmin method, I like using the topic outlining. It's clear and I find it very useful. This project made me think, more than I ever have, about WP#3. Outlining is a great starting point to writing a research paper and it's been very helpful to the overall process. I no longer am wondering what i'm gonna include in my paper, I just have to rewrite my outline in greater depth and that will be the paper.

The government of the United Stated of America does not provide legitimate aid to citizens living in poverty.

1. People with jobs cannot afford food
a. Not enough aid is going to working families
1. Aid is only $2.34 a day per person
b. Local officials are not cooperating
1. Creating unnecessary hurdles
c. Restrictions and cuts made to food stamps
1. It's too hard for people to receive aid
2. Cuts in poverty budget
d. One in ten homes go hungry
2. Limited aid to homeless
a. Address requirements
1. Welfare, food stamps
b. Food banks and homeless shelters is only aid available
1. Unsafe conditions
c. Transportation issues
d. Churches provide more aid than gov't
3. Breakdown of people in poverty
a. Percentages and descriptions
b. Description of who/why their in poverty
1. Families with kids, veterans, handicapped, abusers
c. Children, Mentally Ill, Veterans
Refutations
a. Lighten welfare and food stamp restrictions
1. People may take advantage
b. Solutions for the majority of homeless
1. Special gov't jobs
2. Transportation arrangements
3. Revising address requirements
4. People may take advantage
5. "Special treatment" will create problems
c. Solutions for substance abusers in poverty
1. Free rehab clinics
2. Free, low cost medical treatment/therapy
4. What average Americans can do to help
a. Volunteering
1. Shelters, food services, church organizations
b. In-home service work
1. Special skills, quilts, food, hygiene kits
c. Monetary donations

D#9, HW#5, Cluster Map

Here is the link to my cluster map I made using Gliffy

www.://www.gliffy.com/pubdoc/1307185/L.jpg

D#9, HW#4, Toulmin Outline

The government of the United Stated of America does not provide legitimate aid to citizens living in poverty.

1. There are thousands of American citizens who have jobs, yet cannot afford to provide food for their family
-There is not enough aid going to these families and they are still going hungry
-If they are lucky enough to receive food stamps, they only amount to just over $2 a day per person
-Local officials often times create "hurdles" for people who are applying for food stamps
-There have been several restrictions made to who can receive food stamps in the past 8 years
-Evidence shows that in one in ten homes, the family has problems providing enough food

2. People who are living on the streets have extremely limited aid available to them
-Although people living in poverty who have houses can receive government aid, people without addresses cannot
-The government requires that you have an address on the welfare application to receive their aid
-The only aid available to people living in the streets are food banks and unsafe homeless shelters
-Several homeless people do not have transportation to get to a shelter or food bank
-The easiest way for a homeless person to get aid is from a church when it should be the government

3. The majority of people suffering from poverty are people who deserve government aid the most
-40% of people living in poverty are families with kids, 30% are substance abusers, 23% are severely
mentally ill, 17% are employed and 10% are veterans (Triplett)
-The substance abusers who are living in poverty are understandable, but the other 70% are not receiving enough aid and that is inexcusable
-Veterans have served this country and this countries government turns it's back to them -Severely mentally ill people cannot help themselves and rely on others for help, but if they don't have family or friends they have nobody and are forced to live in poverty
-It's not fair for children to suffer from poverty, yet they are in the majority of those living in poverty

Refutations
1. The restrictions on receiving food stamps need to be lightened and the program itself needs to be improved
-If restrictions are lightened too much, people who do not need the aid may take advantage
2. To keep people out of poverty and off the streets there should be government jobs only available for people in severe poverty, while they are in severe poverty. There needs to be changes in the welfare program so people without addresses can receive government aid. There should also be transportation arrangements to get to homeless shelters and food banks, made by the government, for people who cannot afford a vehicle or a bus fare
-Again, people may take advantages of the job privileges, and transportation benefits.
3. To solve to wide-spread problem of poverty in America, the United States Government needs to provide better, more easily attainable programs to aid families, more free rehab clinics for substance abusers living in poverty who want to change, assistance specifically for the mentally ill, and assistance specifically for American veterans
-Some may say these changes will be too expensive and not worth it. And there are always those who will try and take advantage of the system

D#9, HW#3, Writing Project Reflection

This writing project was fairly easy, just a lot of copying and pasting and adding a few things. I'm most concerned with my citations and if they are correct. It was sometimes hard to find all the information I needed for each citation. I'm most proud of the introductory and conclusion paragraphs. I think they were brief and informational. In this project I tried to improve my word choice and comma usage. By reading the information on the OWL website, I learned a lot and made good improvements. In the next writing project I'll work on the same things, and also probably sentence fluency and voice. This project was overall helpful to writing project 3. I was able to read more in depth about my topic, and learn a ton of new information.

Monday, October 22, 2007

D#9, HW#2, Submit WP#2 Final

Submitted WP#2 Final to turnitin.com

When I copied it over, the formatting changed and it's kind of funky, oh well.

D#9,WP#2 Final
Annotated Bibliography
Coralee Harding
22 October 2007

Poverty in America
Annotated Bibliography

The topic I have chosen to write about is poverty in The United States of America. In the U.S. today, the government provides little aid to people suffering in poverty. These unfortunate people receive even less aid from their fellow American citizens. In this society, few people are regularly active in aiding the needy. These few people who are in favor of helping may be working in shelter homes, volunteering at various charitable organizations, making items such as quilts in their own homes, and performing other similar services. There are also people in the middle who may volunteer once in a while, or not at all, but do not shun those in who need help. On the other end of the spectrum, there are those who do not care. These people may feel that everybody gets what they deserve, and do not want to aid those in poverty.

Berliner, BethAnn. "Educating Homeless Students." 2002. Education Resources Information Center. Mesa, AZ. 11 Oct. 2007. < http://www.eric.ed.gov >
This book is about how homeless children should be educated and taught just as much as children not living in poverty and should be treated the exact same. It suggests that education facilities work with shelter homes, where the children may be living, to make sure they are attending school regularly. This book also suggest that schools help children buy supplies that they need that they cannot afford. This book is directed at solving the problems of poverty, and not just focusing on what the problems are. This is one way that poverty can be aided, at little expense to the school or parents. I will cover this topic and topics closely related in my research paper. This is a very strong resource.

Clemmitt, Marcia. "Evaluating Head Start." CQ Researcher 15.29 (2005): 685-708. CQ Researcher Online. CQ Press. Paul A. Elsner Library, Mesa, AZ. 11 Oct. 2007 .
This book is about the preschool program Head Start that directed for poor children. It has recently been a topic considered by the government. Right now they are deciding how to improve this program and if they want to put it in the hands of state officials instead of the federal government. Although Head Start proves to be working well for these children, they are now requiring that 50% of all the teacher have at least a Bachelors degree by 2011. This is one thing that the government is doing right. They are helping children to see they can have a good future, and not destined to live in poverty as they are now.

Cooper, Mary H. "The Working Poor." CQ Researcher 5.41 (1995): 969-992. CQ Researcher Online. CQ Press. Paul A. Elsner Library, Mesa, AZ. 19 Sept. 2007
< http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/cqresrre1995110300 >.

 The author who wrote this book is extremely passionate about this issue. She gives great detail about the issue, and has interviewed several people about this topic. The author explains in detail what people on welfare can get, and if they are receiving enough aid to support themselves and their family. She feels strongly that people in poverty are not receiving enough aid. This book gives facts as well as emotional appeal, and using these two strategies allowed me to see clear answers to my research question.

"Hard at Work But Can't Buy Food." _CNN Money_. 2004. 11 Oct. 2007. < http://money.cnn.com/2004/12/16/news/economy/poverty_corporate/index.htm >
This article from CNN is all about people who have steady jobs but are still forced to live life in poverty. It talks about how people who are living in poverty usually have a lot of worries, such as where they will get money for their next meal, and thus do not perform work duties as well as they could. This website also gives several facts about poverty, such as 6.2% of all Americans who work live below the poverty standards. In my research paper I will focus on this specific issue. This article does not help solve my research question, but it helps describe the issue in greater detail.

Holosko, Michael, and Marvin Feit. "Living in Poverty in America Today." Journal of Health & Social Policy. 21.1 (2005): 119-131.

 This book is about poverty in America today. It discusses health issues several people living in poverty are subject to. One common health issue is hunger. Several people living in poverty cannot afford to eat enough to sustain their own body. Another health concern many people in poverty are facing is lack of nutrition. If they are lucky enough to afford food, it is not usually a healthy, well-rounded meal. This book also discusses emotional effects caused by poverty. These are all issues that I would like to cover in my research paper.

Koch, Kathy. "Hunger in America." CQ Researcher 10.44 (2000): 1033-1056. CQ Researcher Online. CQ Press. Paul A. Elsner Library, Mesa, AZ. 4 Oct. 2007
< http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/cqresrre2000122200 >.
This book is specifically about hunger issues in America. This book gives numbers and statistics about poverty, and also talks about how many people are declined for food stamps. The author talks about how the governments eligibility requirements are too tight for people to get help. This book is directly about the topic I am focusing on. This is something that I will concentrate on in my project since eating is required for everybody to live and everyone can relate to it. This source is very strong compared to the other one's that I have chosen.

"Poverty in America, One Nation, Pulling Apart." Penn State University. 11 Oct. 2007. < http://www.povertyinamerica.psu.edu/ >
This website is dedicated to informing about poverty in America. It describes how America is pulling itself apart and several communities are below the standard of the economic average. This website discusses the people who are most at risk for ending up in poverty and how most people are living in poverty at no fault of their own. This website also goes into how children are physiologically effected and that they feel they will live in the same conditions as their parents when they are adults themselves. This website targets several areas that I will focus on in my research paper. Some of these areas include the types of people who are most likely to live in poverty, and the effects poverty has on children.

Worsnop, Richard L. "Helping the Homeless." CQ Researcher 6.4 (1996): 73-96. CQ Researcher Online. CQ Press. Paul A. Elsner Library, Mesa, AZ. 4 Oct. 2007
< http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/cqresrre1996012600 >.

 This book is about the government problems, what they are doing wrong, and how they can make changes and start helping the homeless in better ways. It talks about how there are not very many improvements being made to help poverty. It also talks about how some cities are changing their boundaries to exclude the homeless, and cutting them off from their benefits. It also describes how people do not accept group homes and homeless shelters well. This book covers American's reactions to the homeless. This source targets the government and American people. Among other things, I will use these two targets in my research paper, however, I will focus less on the government and more on Americans reactions and actions to people in poverty. This source is strong in certain areas, such as American's reactions.

Although poverty is a ongoing issue in America, I have read about a few ways that the government has stepped in to aid. Aside from the welfare program, they provides special preschools for children living under the economic standards and are currently working on improving these programs to allow children in poverty to gain higher levels of achievement. While studying these programs I have gained a higher respect for the government and their willingness to aid the children. However, it is still not enough. While children are receiving more aid, adults are receiving much less. Government aid needs to be available to people of all ages who need it under all circumstances. Different aid would need to apply to those who have lost their jobs unexpectedly than to those who are drug abusers. It has, however, been difficult to find books or articles that are against aiding poverty. Instead of using viewpoints that are anti-aiding, I will discuss how not aiding people in poverty is beneficial. These resources will be obtained by interviewing.

D#9, HW#1, Reading Reflection

In Everything's an Argument, chapter 7, it talks about arguments of fact. A lot of times facts can be arguments in themselves when they are stating against someone's beliefs. Facts are good to use when there is an issue that is widely mistaken. Developing a factual argument includes identifying the issue, researching the hypothesis, refining, selecting proper evidence, presenting the evidence, and considering the design and visuals. On pages 195-199 there is a detailed guide to help your write an argument of fact. I think facts are great to use in my paper, especially the stats on homeless/people in poverty/starving, etc.

In chapter 8 it goes in depth about arguments of definition. People can interpret things in different ways and it's important to be clear of your definitions. Different kinds of definitions include formal, operational, and definitions by example. To develop a definitional argument you must come up with a claim, craft your definition, connect the claim with the definition, and consider your design and visuals you may use. On pages 235-239 is a detailed guide on how to write an argument of definition. At the end of the chapter there are sample arguments of definition.

Chapter 17 goes into fallacies of argument. It talks about different tactics that can be used while writing such as scare tactics, either or choices, sentimental, and bandwagon appeals. What I basically got from this chapter is to not be stupid when your writing. Don't scare people or make them feel guilty or dumb, just write smart and be considerate of the people who may be reading your paper.

Chapter 11 of the Bedford Researcher is about organizing and outlining. It gives you step by step guidelines of how to organize for your paper. It also gives you several ways to layout your information such as grouping, clustering, mapping, etc. First, create an informal outline before you create a formal one. Outlines can be presented by topics or sentences.

The first website doesn't work and it relocates you to the main webpage, but it helps you to write your paper. The second website is about form, planning your paper, using effective organizing, and analysis and synthesis. The third website is about classical and contemporary arrangement strategies for writing. The fourth website discusses the Toulmin theory. The last website is about developing a strong thesis.

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

D#8, HW#6, Deadline Reflection

This is the earliest I have finished all of my deadlines! This week's work wasn't too bad. Reading the Coldplay essay and looking for the different elements made me see how to identify them and how to apply them into my own paper. I also liked the grammar assignment. I was able to see things that really needed to be improved in my annotated bibliography and fix them. I always enjoy reading what my classmates write in their assignments and blogs, and I like when I can help them out. There's only one other person who's done with part of Deadline 8, so I commented on what I could.

http://laceyariz.blogspot.com/
D#8,HW#4, Essay Analysis

http://laceyariz.blogspot.com/
D#8,HW#3 Peer Review Reflection

D#8, HW#5, Grammar Assignment

The areas I've chosen to improve is using commas and I don't know what's its properly called, but I use the same words a lot in my writing. To learn more about how to improve these grammatical errors, I read the suggestions at this website: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/. I followed the suggestions to revise my introductory and conclusion paragraphs in my annotated bibliography. My introductory paragraph has been revised to:

The topic I have chosen to write about is poverty in The United States of America. In the U.S. today, the government provides little aid to people suffering in poverty. These unfortunate people receive even less aid from their fellow American citizens. In this society, few people are regularly active in aiding the needy. These few people who are in favor of helping may be working in shelter homes, volunteering at various charitable organizations, making items such as quilts in their own homes, and performing other similar services. There are also people in the middle who may volunteer once in a while, or not at all, but do not shun those in who need help. On the other end of the spectrum, there are those who do not care. These people may feel that everybody gets what they deserve, and do not want to aid those in poverty.

My conclusion paragraph has been revised to this:

Although poverty is a ongoing issue in America, I have read about a few ways that the government has stepped in to aid. Aside from the welfare program, they provides special preschools for children living under the economic standards and are currently working on improving these programs to allow children in poverty to gain higher levels of achievement. While studying these programs I have gained a higher respect for the government and their willingness to aid the children. However, it is still not enough. While children are receiving more aid, adults are receiving much less. Government aid needs to be available to people of all ages who need it under all circumstances. Different aid would need to apply to those who have lost their jobs unexpectedly than to those who are drug abusers. It has, however, been difficult to find books or articles that are against aiding poverty. These resources will be easier to obtain by interviewing.

After revising these paragraphs I learned that if I spend more time on them, they become much better! I learned that I can substitute words so there is not a lot of the same word next to each other. And I also saw a few places that needed/didn't need commas.

D#8, HW#4, Analyze Essay

The author of this essay is Jon Pareles. The audience is people who maybe don't know about Coldplay, or who don't really have an opinion about them. The purpose is to inform and give his opinion about the band. The context is current, and the topic is about his dislikes for Coldplay. The arguments claim is that "Coldplay is the most insuferable band of the decade." The reasons given to support this arguement are mainly because of the lead singers voice and the lyrics. The evidence stated to support these reasons include that the lead singer of Coldplay changes his voice from tenor to falsetto while singing, and that the lyrics are all about how he feels sorry for himself. The author uses logos by giving the reader album sales. It is effective when he is explaining that a lot of people like them, just not him. A common objection that the author addresses is that although he does not like the lyrics, many people can relate to them. He refutes this objection by stating that the lyrics are cliches.

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

D#8, HW#3, Peer Review Reflection

Peer reviewing always help to see where your classmates are at compared to you, and it helps to see what things they did that you liked. The classmates drafts I reviewed were Kathy Lacey and Alex Williams. After reviewing their drafts I saw that I needed to change my formatting and that I should make my introductory paragraph more detailed. Jared Zucker reviewed my bibliography so far. Nothing commented really suprised me, but the information will be useful while revising. I saw that I need to fix the spacing problems in my URL addresses, and correct some spelling mistakes.

D#8, HW#2, Peer Review WP#2

I peer reviewed Kathy Lacey and Alex Williams.

D#8, HW#1, Reading Reflection

All of the websites were directly related with writing and gathering information for our research papers. The first website was about writing the research paper and guidelines that should be followed. The second website was an online writing assistant, useful for when you have questions while writing your paper. The third website described how to write, develop, and narrow down your thesis statement. The fourth website was also about thesis statements - supporting the thesis, stating the thesis, and developing the supporting paragraphs. The fifth website was about arguing in context, stating the proposition, anticipating opposition, and expanding your argument. The last website was about how to use sources outside of books and articles, such as films, interviews, radio, tv, etc. I think these outside sources are better to use (but still using some books), but you have to make sure the information is reliable and credible.

In Everything's an Argument, chapter 5 it instructs you in how to think rhetorically. Thinking rhetorically allows you to see the end result of things, and allows you to portray that to your reader. You also have to understand the purpose of an argument - is it meant to stir up emotions, upset people, or whatever the purpose is. It's also important for the reader to understand who is making the argument. This chapter also instructs how to identify your audience and gives you guidelines to keep your paper appealing to them. This chapter tells you about pathos, ethos, style, and logos, which we've already read about. Starting on page 129 there is a very detailed guide to writing a rhetorical analysis.

Chapter 6 is about structuring arguments. It covers in depth how to create a Toulmin argument. The steps in this process include making a claim, qualifier, stating good reasons, warrants, backing, evidence, authority, conditions of rebuttal, and response. Some guideline Toulmin gives is to state your claims clearly, claims should be supported with evidence and good reason, claims should be based on assumptions readers will most likely accept.

In chapter 8 it discusses evaluations. When writing it's important to not leave the reader confused. You need to define your writing. Different ways to do this include formal definitions, operational definitions, and definitions by example. This chapter tells you how to develope a definitional argument-formulating claims, crafting definitions, matching claims to definition, and considering design and visuals. This chapter also has a detailed guide how to write and argument of definition.

Thursday, October 11, 2007

D#7, HW#2, Annotated Bibliography

"Poverty in America, One Nation, Pulling Apart." Penn State University. 11 Oct. 2007. < http://www.povertyinamerica.psu.edu/ >

This website is dedicated to informing about poverty in America. It describes how America is pulling itself apart and several communites are below the standard of the economic average. This website discusses the people who are most at risk for ending up in poverty and how most people are living in poverty at no fault of their own. This website also goes into how children are phycologically effected and that they feel they will live in the same conditions as their parents when they are adults themselves. This website targets several areas that I will focus on in my research paper. Some of these areas include the types of people who are most likely to live in poverty, and the effects poverty has on children.

"Hard at Work But Can't Buy Food." _CNN Money_. 2004. 11 Oct. 2007. < http://money.cnn.com/2004/12/16/news/economy/poverty_corporate/index.htm >

This article from CNN is all about people who have steady jobs but are still forced to live life in poverty. It talks about how people who are living in poverty usually have a lot of worries, such as where they will get money for their next meal, and thus do not perform work duties as well as they could. This website also gives several facts about poverty, such as 6.2% of all Americans who work live below the poverty standards. In my research paper I will focus on this specific issue. This article does not help solve my research question, but it helps describe the issue in greater detail.

Clemmitt, Marcia. "Evaluating Head Start." CQ Researcher 15.29 (2005): 685-708. CQ Researcher Online. CQ Press. Paul A. Elsner Library, Mesa, AZ. 11 Oct. 2007 .

This book is about the preschool program Head Start that directed for poor children. It has recently been a topic considered by the government. Right now they are deciding how to improve this program and if they want to put it in the hands of state officials instead of the federal government. Although Head Start proves to be working well for these children, they are now requiring that 50% of all the teacher have at least a Bachelors degree by 2011. This is one thing that the government is doing right. They are helping children to see they can have a good future, and not destined to live in poverty as they are now.

Berliner, BethAnn. "Educating Homeless Students." 2002. Education Resources Information Center. Mesa, AZ. 11 Oct. 2007. < http://www.eric.ed.gov >

This book is about how homeless children should be educated and taught just as much as children not living in poverty and should be treated the exact same. It suggests that education facilites work with shelter homes, where the children may be living, to make sure they are attending school regularly. This book also suggest that schools help children buy supplies that they need that they cannot afford. This book is directed at solving the problems of poverty, and not just focusing on what the problems are. This is one way that poverty can be aided, at little expense to the school or parents. I will cover this topic and topics closely related in my research paper. This is a very strong resource.

D#7, HW#5, Deadline Reflection

Although this weeks homework was very short compared to previous weeks, it was harder than the past weeks. I am terrible at bibliographies and that's probably why it was bad for me! I can read a million book on bibliographies and still not be comfortable with writing one. Seeing the few other bibliographies that were done helped me to understand the formatting requirements better. I'm looking forward to peer reviews so I can see what I need to fix. These are the people I commented on:

http://sparizek-armywife.blogspot.com/ D7HW2 Annotated Bibliography draft

http://pauletteestrada.blogspot.com/ Deadline #7, HW#1, Reading Reflection

http://laceyariz.blogspot.com/ D#7,HW#3 WP#2 Draft

http://winterjustin88.blogspot.com/ Deadline #7 HW #3 WP #2 Draft

http://jmzucker.blogspot.com/ D7, HW3, WP#2 Annotated Bibliography Draft

Tuesday, October 9, 2007

D#7, HW#1, Reading Reflection

In Everythings an Argument, chapter 2 is about emotional appeals. In this chapter it explains how emotional arguments work. Emotional appeal is when the writing appeals to a persons emotions, such as feeling empathy/sympathy, joy, anger, etc. Emotions also allow the writer to connect with the reader, which always makes the paper more persuasive and enjoyable to the reader. Sometimes people don't enjoy reading facts and statistics, but when you talk about something close to home to them, they are instantly more interested. Emotions also allow you to sustain an argument. Humor is also a great emotion to play, if you know where to draw the line. Some people are easily offended! Arguments may also be from the heart, good for when it is a more serious topic. I think emotional appeals are great to use, especially on sensitive topics, so people can connect with you. I also think it is good to use a variety of emotional appeals, not just concentrate on pure humor or pure sadness.

Chapter 3 is about characters. What I got from this chapter is that you have to use strong voice so your reader can identify who you are as a person and what your standards are from the first paragraph. It's important to use this same voice (character) throughout the entire paper so you don't come off flakey. The reader should know your credibility, authority, and your motives. I think it's sometimes hard to keep a strong voice through an entire paper, but it is neccessary to do so!

Thursday, October 4, 2007

D#6, HW#2, Submit

I submitted my final proposal to turnitin.com

D#6, HW#7, Deadline Reflection

This weeks work was very helpful to the final research paper. Reading and commenting on my peers blog's I was able to see things that I didn't think of while writing my proposal and homework assignments. It was also helpful to read the different strategies for starting their proposals. Writing my proposal gave me greater insight into my final paper. I was able to decide on different topics that I will address in my research paper. Overall this weeks homework was easy.

These are the people I commented on:

http://tmbates1.blogspot.com/, Deadline #5 deadline reflection
http://dbacksbj.blogspot.com/, Deadline #6, HW #3
http://jmzucker.blogspot.com/, D6, HW3, Writing Reflection
http://teufelheunden.blogspot.com/, D6HW3 Writing Reflection
http://sparizek-armywife.blogspot.com/D6HW5 What Counts as Evidence

D#6, HW#6, Resource Selection

One of the resources I will most likely use was found on the CQ Researcher at this web address: http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/cqresrre2000122200. This source is extremely relevant to my issue. Hunger is one of the biggest issues that are involved in the problems of poverty. The author, Kathy Koch, wrote this entire book on hunger in America. I did a google search on the author and she is a Harvard graduate. She has written several books and articles about this topic and she is the founder and president of an organization that is for children in poverty. I believe her credentials are good enough. She is very involved with what she writes about. She practices what she preaches. She completely supports my views.

D#6, HW#5, Evidence

For my research paper, I will be using firsthand evidence (observation, interviews, personal experience) and secondhand evidence (online materials, books, journals, libraries). I will use firsthand evidence because it is more real and it shows that I am involved and care about my topic. I will use secondhand evidence for the hard facts and statistics. Some people may not believe what I say happened, but may believe the hard facts. I have a few people in mind that I would like to interview that I know personally. Hopefully talking to these people can lead me to other people that I can interview that I don't know as well. I know I want to interview a child, someone who was hit with poverty out of nowhere, someone who has been living in poverty for a long time, and I want to get several different opinions of people who are not in poverty. The secondhand evidence will come from various libraries and reliable websites.

D#6, HW#4, Annotated Bibliography

Koch, Kathy. "Hunger in America." CQ Researcher 10.44 (2000): 1033-1056. CQ Researcher Online. CQ Press. Paul A. Elsner Library, Mesa, AZ. 4 Oct. 2007 < http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/cqresrre2000122200 >.

This book is specifically about hunger issues in America. This is something that I will focus on in my project since eating is required for everybody to live. This book gives numbers and statistics about poverty, and also talks about how many people are declined for food stamps. It talks about how the governments eligibilty requirements are too tight for people to get help. This book is directly what I'd like to focus on and I will definitly use this as a source in my final paper.

Worsnop, Richard L. "Helping the Homeless." CQ Researcher 6.4 (1996): 73-96. CQ Researcher Online. CQ Press. Paul A. Elsner Library, Mesa, AZ. 4 Oct. 2007 < http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/cqresrre1996012600 >.

This book is about how the government problems and how they can help the homeless. It talks about how there are not very many improvements being made to help poverty. It also talks about how some cities are changing their boundries to exclude the homeless, and cutting them off from their benefits. It also describes how people do not accept group homes and homeless shelters well. This article covers American's reactions to the homeless.

Glazer, Sarah. "Welfare Reform." CQ Researcher 11.27 (2001): 601-632. CQ Researcher Online. CQ Press. Paul A. Elsner Library, Mesa, AZ. 4 Oct. 2007 < http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/cqresrre2001080300 >

This book is all about the welfare reform. I will cover this in my paper, so this will be a good source. It describes how the reform started, how America was before and after the reform, and how it may become. It has a lot of 'legal talk' which I am not good with. Hopefully I can read enough to get the main points from it.

D#6, HW#3, Writing Project Reflection

To complete this project, the first step I did was free-writing. I wrote out everything I wanted to include in my proposal, then went through it and put things in the correct order, took out the things that didn't belong, and added things that I forgot. Then after that I had a couple people read through my proposal and edit it, then I re-wrote it a couple times and it was complete. Free-writing works well for me, so I will probably use this method again. I'm most proud of how long I was able to make it! I usually state things very short and to the point, but I was able to ellaborate on this topic. My biggest concern with the proposal is that, although I used more than normal, did not use enough detail and explanations. Before I submitted it, I went through it and tried to make things more clear. If I had more time, I'd have more people edit it specifically for that reason. During this writing project I tried to work on my sentance clarity and explaining what things were. I think I did ok on it, although I know I will do better on it next time. Now at least I know how to fix those mistakes. During the next writing project I will continue to work on sentance clarity and describing and explaining. The course outcomes I worked towards were organizing and using peer's feedback to strengthen my paper. By seeing my final paper, I feel like I achieved these outcomes. In the next project I will focus on voice and the structure of the paper.

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

D#6, HW#1, Reading Reflection

In Everything's an Argument chapter 4 is about basing your arguments on facts and reason, which is what we will be doing in our final research paper. The best kind of evidence for stating facts and reason is found in hard evidence, statistics, surveys, testimonies, and interviews. When there is not enough evidence to support your argument, you can also use reason and common sense. This chapter also talks about the logical structure of an argument. This chapter basically tells you what you need to include in your paper.

In chapter 16 it helps you understand what actually counts as evidence. Some evidence is found by researching things yourself, like observing, interviewing, surveying, personal experience, and conducting experiments. Im my paper I will conduct interviews and observe mostly, possible take surveys. You can also use charts and graphs for more of visual evidence. This chapter also goes into second-hand evidence such as the internet, book, catalogs, etc. When stating evidence you also need to consider the audience, and place your strongest evidence in the key places where it will be most effective.

Chapter 19 is about evaluating and using sources. It advices you to evaluate your sources thouroghly before considering using them. You should evaluate them for things like relevance, currency, and the audience it was intended for. This chapter talks about how to evaluate online sources, since a lot of times they are unreliable. It also teaches you how to use proper quotations, paraphrasing, summarizing, and using photographs in your paper.