F Jan 20 - Research proposal due

Sun Jan 22 - Proposal Presentation materials due

Week of Jan 23 - Proposal Presentations

Sun Feb 12 - Research Paper draft due

W Feb 15 - Peer Review

T Feb 21 - Draft of academic presentation due

Sun Feb 26 - Revised Academic Presentation materials due

Week of Feb 27 - Academic Presentations

M March 6 - Revision of Research Paper due

M March 13 - Group Presentations

Varies for each assignment. See individual assignment sheets.
research resource links
 
Students will spend the majority of the quarter researching a project on digital rhetoric, technology, or e-rhetoric. This source-based project will integrate a variety of primary and secondary sources into a provocative, original argument. The project itself is composed of several components including a formal written proposal and a linked hypertext.
How does a research project fit into PWR 2?
PWR 2 as a course focuses on the delivery of argument in different media. Accordingly, as your central project for eRhetoric, you will conduct research on a topic related to digital culture, technology, and/or electronic rhetoric and then present that research both orally and as a traditional academic research paper. The purpose of the project is to encourage you to refine your researching and writing skills, and to encourage you to experiment with creating rhetorically effective texts across different media.
What should I research for the project? How should I research it?

The exact focus of your topic is your choice, subject to instructor approval. You should research this project using a variety of sources, including the internet, the library (both Socrates and the databases), and (where appropriate) data collected through fieldwork, surveys, and interviews: your bibliography for this project should contain no fewer than 10 sources -- balanced between both primary and secondary sources. Fieldwork (interviews, surveys) is encouraged where appropriate for your topic. If you are feeling unsure about your research skills or just plain rusty, consider revisiting SKIL. Please note: you must have a minimum of 8 sources that you found on your own (i.e. that weren't linked through the class links page or that weren't part of the class readings).
What are the stages of this project?

This project contains many different stages:

  1. Topic selection (see below) - During this stage students select their topics, write a research proposal, present their topics orally to the class, meet in conference with me to discuss their research ideas, and receive peer and instructor feedback designed to facilitate their successful research.
  2. Research - For this part of the assignment, you will work with primary and secondary sources, as dictated by the needs of your particular topic.
  3. Drafting - At this stage, you will write up a preliminary complete draft of researched argument, using visuals as necessary. In addition, you also will draft a formal presentation designed to convey your argument to an academic audience.
  4. Peer review & conferencing - Having completed their drafts, students will conference with me about them and also meet with a group of classmates for peer review to receive feedback to help them during their revision process.
  5. Revision - Taking into account feedback on their drafts, students will revise their presentations and papers to produce forceful, academically rigorous researched arguments in both genres. This stage may involve not only revision of the style and/or language of the draft, but organizational changes and perhaps even further research.
  6. Collaborative work - As the final step in your research project, you will work on a group focused on your general research theme to produce both an abstract and presentation to designed to convey the relevance of this issue or theme with the class.
How do I get started?

As mentioned above, the first stage in the project involves, necessarily, deciding on your topic. To brainstorm ideas, look at the topic headings on the course schedule, search "digital culture" or "e-rhetoric" on-line, look at a list of past topics, talk to friends, read the technology section of the Daily or the national newspaper of your choice, or e-mail and IM me to generate ideas. You might also look at the Past Topic list linked through to this page. The best topics will be one that you connect with personally or that you feel passionately about, and about which you feel you can argue a position. Please note: you should not work on a topic that you have already worked on for another class.