White Paper vs. Long-Form Non-Fiction Essay Structure (30-40 minutes)
Here are the three white paper examples we have gone over:
American Legion: Veteran Suicides
US Department of Agriculture: Climate Change Science
Christian Community Development Association: Immigration
Here are the three long-form non-fiction essay examples we have gone over:
In the text channel today, tell me if you are doing a white paper or a long-form non-fiction essay for your Data-Driven Argument.
For our activity, you will choose one of the examples that is a white paper or long-form non-fiction essay (depending on which genre you are doing for your Data-Driven Argument) and do the following in this Google Doc under the heading of your chosen genre:
- The title of the example document you chose
- How many “sections” the document has. Notice where the white paper or essay “changes” in the types of things it talks about and give that portion a name of some kind. There might be headings that do this for you but there might not be either.
- A brief note on what each section “does.” In other words, what is the purpose of the section? How does it accomplish that purpose?
What do we notice as commonalities between structures within each specific example?
Across different examples of same genre?
Across all examples?
What are the main or notable differences?
Using Examples in Writing with Data (30-40 minutes)
Examples can be helpful for a number of things when writing about data (summarized from Jane E. Miller, 2015, The Chicago Guide About Writing About Numbers):
- To generate interest for a topic that can sound abstract by making something more concrete and engaging (e.g., opening writing with a story relevant to data)
- To quantify differences across groups or time periods (e.g., comparing numbers year to year, or among sub-groups)
- To translate complicated statistical or technical findings into more accessible forms (e.g., substituting technical language like “statistical significance” with “not likely these results were due to chance”)
- To illustrate implications of a statistical finding in a broader context (e.g., talk about how findings about lower honeybee populations as concerning for possible food shortages long-term)
Here is an example…of an example when dealing with quantity (from a student in a past class):
“With a recommended serving size limit of 3 teaspoons of sugar for women and 6 for men daily, Americans nearly tripled this amount by consuming almost 18 teaspoons of sugar per day. This equates to nearly 4,281 teaspoons of excess sugar consumed a year, or 48 pounds of extra sugar. That is an extra 192 chocolate cakes consumed by one person a year. Sugar has run rampant into almost all foods eaten but is extremely prevalent in drinks and snack foods of today. One 12-ounce soda holds as much sugar as one orange, 16 strawberries, and 2 plums combined. If people elected to substitute even a can of Coke a day for these alternative snacks, not only would you quench your thirst through the juices in the fruit, but you would also exceed your daily fruit intake by a whole cup.”
What is useful about an example like this, do you think?
Using a Representative Case
Similar to the above, it is useful to make something more concrete with examples. However, especially for writing about people, it can be helpful to find a representative case that audiences can connect with.
On the last page, for instance, we looked at a graph about wages of women compared to men.
Watch the video on this news site:
In that video, a woman is being interviewed and she talks about an incident where she discovered how she was compensated less than a man who was at a lower position than her and who was less qualified than she was.
Does using this example make the statistics about wage gaps less accurate? If yes, why? If no, then what is the point of offering this example? What does it add?
Data and Excel Resources (5 minutes)
Please see our “Data Resources” page for helpful tips on using Excel (e.g., formulas, filtering, organization). I put all of the stuff in one place so you have easier access than digging through our previous lesson plans, email, etc. Let me know if there is anything else you need help with as you keep analyzing your data sets for your Data-Driven Whtie Papers.
Next Time (2-5 minutes)
-keep working and thinking about the structural/organizational possibilities for your chosen genre in your writing for the Data-Driven Argument assignment. Think too about the sorts of examples you can use and why you might use them. Keep going with preliminary analysis, finding secondary sources, etc. also.
-Fahnestock reading on amplification by class time on March 24
-Response Post 9 by class time on March 24 if you are signed up for it that day
-Comment on Response Post 9 if you are not signed up for it on March 24. Due by 11:59pm on March 24