Claim and Evidence (20-30 min)

Trump won’t win New York so this is not me trying to influence your vote today! This is of educational value because he’s a big figure and we are talking about claims and evidence.

How many claims do you count here? How are those claims linked to evidence?

Here is another claim about voter fraud, but linked to evidence:

I should be clear right out of the gate, the number of voter fraud cases in this country is not statistically significant enough to have any impact on a federal election. If we look at the last presidential election, in 2020, there were fewer than 475 potential instances voter fraud out of more than 25 million votes cast in six states. A number that small would not even come close to changing the outcome of an election.

What is different in this instance above? What rhetorical moves help do this?

Alternatively, here is a claim linked to evidence in the realm of rhetorical analysis from a student in a past class, analyzing the podcast Nice White Parents about gentrification and race in NYC schools [Chana is the narrator of the podcast / we might even use the producer or editor or “creators of the episode” instead of the narrator’s name here]:

In order to first establish the mystery [of why white activist parents abandoned their project of integrating an elementary school in the 1960s], Chana exposes us to the phenomenon that was white parents in 1963 being overly passionate about the integration of the new I.S. 293 school. “Dear Mr. Rubin,” Chana began each sentence as she read out loud some of the personal letters from white parents addressed to the president of the NYC Board of Education. Chana shared how one of the white parents spoke of the importance of integration in a well-rounded education for children, while another parent said that she wanted an integrated school so that her child doesn’t end up being part of a “small, white middle-income click.”  Instead of simply summing up what all these letters said, Chana wanted us to hear the advocacy in the parent’s own words to establish the credibility of how passionate they seemed about integration. But only one of these letter writers, Carol Netzer, was given the opportunity to read out loud her own letter.  After Carol finished reciting her own letter on how “bland and homogenous” white communities were, we see Carol sound almost surprised by the context of her own letter. We hear the sounds of crackling paper as she holds up her letter and reflecting on her words says, “it sounds like I was really impassioned by it like it meant something…. but I honestly can’t think what it meant.”

Chana strategically only had Carol Netzer read out loud her letter so that her confession stays with us. And immediately after Carol’s statement, Chana cuts to a mysterious music segment to give us a moment to fully absorb what Carol had just admitted. How genuine can these letters be if the letter writers themselves were surprised by their passion? Do these white parents actually want integration like they claimed, or are their letters just filled with empty words?

After letting us formulate our own doubt, Chana cuts the music and reinforces our speculations by revealing that not even one of these parents actually sent their kids to I.S 293 and then asking the rhetorical question: “why didn’t they show up[?]” Chana used the letters and Carol’s confession to make us suspicious of the white parents before even sharing their hypocrisy, and then, posed a rhetorical question to keep the mystery going and to keep us wondering as we transition to another segment.

How do links between claims and evidence look different in analysis of rhetoric vs. analysis of voter fraud?

Peer Review (45-60 min)

Let’s go over these Peer Response Guidelines (link right here).

You will be with one other partner. If we have an odd number, there will be a group of three. Any independent workers today due to writing about something sensitive will also alter how we organize things.

Each person takes turns reading while following the “Writer” and “Responder” roles on Peer Response Guidelines. Each person should have about 10-15 minutes. I’ll help anyone who is in a group rather than a pair.

Let me know if you what you are writing about is too personal and you want to be in a specific group with people you know/trust. Or if you want to work one on one with me today, instead, rather than share with other classmates.

Once you are finished reviewing each other’s work, I want you to return to your partner’s paper and write down more in-depth feedback than what you shared verbally. That way, they have a record from their own notes and also a record from your own thoughts.

Guidelines for the Peer Review Letter are on Brightspace, which is the same place you will submit the assignment. I’ll go over that once you have had a chance to talk with your partner.

Grade Boost option for peer review (but keep in mind all grade boosts!)

Independent Writing Time (15-20 min)

Let’s keep working. If you are finished your draft, you can now revise your draft. The only difference for the revision is that I will be expecting the cover letter just as I did for the literacy narrative revision AND I will be expecting at least 1,600 words.

Next Time (5 min)

-We will have a guest speaker coming on Wednesday, November 6 that will relate to our next unit on research.

-Weekly journal is due on Wednesday. Complete your 10 minutes of private writing for the week in your composition book. Write about a time since the semester began where you used something you have learned or thought about in college when in a conversation with a family member or friend. You could also write about reading or watching the news, a TV show, a film, playing video games, etc. when you used something you learned or thought about from a college class. How did you use that thing you learned or thought about? If you can’t think of anything, instead write about something else in relation to the usefulness or excitement you have felt about something you’ve learned so far.

-A reading about finding and evaluating sources is due on Wednesday

-That reading needs to be annotated

–Submitting to Refract Magazine: just send in your literacy narrative if you believe in it! Talk to me if you are interested in submitting your piece.

-Andre, Wilson, Ethan, Rachel, Nathaniel O., Kory, Garson, Eva, Deona, Azrin: wanted to talk to you after class