Writing about Writing. Klein. 32-33 Q 1,3,4

Before You Read.

I just looked through my syllabi for the courses I am taking this semester. This is the only class that requires researched writing. I do plan on doing the research for this class. I am going to use all of the information that I have received from this class and books so far.

Summary.

In Klein's, "What is it we do when we write articles like this one- and How can we get students to join us?", he is telling/explaining about research papers. He says that people and/or students, don't even research about what they are trying to write a research paper about. He says how they just copy text from other articles or books and overall, just don't learn anything about what they are writing about. -The students just don't care too much; they do it because they have to. He says in a way that students can learn more and get a better understanding about what they are writing about if they can base everything off of a research based model. Klein decided to conduct an experiment with colleagues so that he could see what they did to research and how they did it. He concluded that everybody had their own style of learning and people did their own thing.

Synthesis.

In Klein's, "What is it we do when we write articles like this one- and How can we get students to join us?", he is trying to get a the point across that having back-up sources to prove the topic is correct or not is key. He uses terms such as "hunting" and "gathering" for getting information to use. I completely agree with what Klein is trying to teach and the more I think about it, he is just trying to make the reader a better writer. Also, Klein is saying to do research about the topic to know more. The more you know, the better you will become and the better research you will create.

Thoughts.

Let me first start off with saying that Klein is a smart person. He uses certain techniques that are in fact very useful. If the reader really sees what he is trying to teach and takes what he/she can from it, then ultimately, the reader will become a stronger writer because of information gathering. I thought it was very interesting what Klein had to say.

Questions for Discussion and Journaling.

1. I am just going to start off with saying that I am not the strongest writer. Yes, I know that the more I write and learn, the better I become. So I happened to find what Klein was saying to be helpful and it opened up more doors. Basically, what angers/upsets Klein is that he thinks that students aren't good at writing research papers. Yes, I agree with him. Students do what they want to do with their school work, whether it is right or wrong. I believe that if the student is writing about something that he/she wants to, it will be a better paper. I somewhat can see myself in what Klein is talking about. But with his thoughts and ideas, I can improve myself and my writing skills.

3. I believe that sources are key to have. They are very important because they can spark ideas into your own head and that can give you a place to start. Not only that, but they will also give you more information which will help what you are trying to accomplish too. I have used a various amount of sources in my past. Anytime my class would write papers, we would have to have at least a few different sources so that we could gather as much information as possible and back up what we were trying to get across.

4. I feel that after reading what Klein had to say, he has opened my vision of how to gather more information. Clearly, the more information that is known, the better the paper will be and the more you yourself can learn about what the topic is on. Honestly, gathering more information, having sources and doing more research can only help in the long run of all things.

Greene Writing About Writing: Questions on pages 20, 21

Summary.

In Argument as Conversation, Greene is giving his thoughts and ideas of making an argument. With the conversation going back and forth with the reader, he uses a technique called framing (explained later) that helps with making your topic more clear. After reading the article, the reader should be able to have a better understanding of how to argue and how to focus on the point that you are trying to prove.

Synthesis.

Both articles, "Create a Research Space" by John Swales and "Argument as Conversation" by Stuart Greene, the main point to get from reading is how to read and write various research articles. Even though they are based around a main theme, they both have different points to give from their own opinions. Yes, they don't give the same information but overall, they want to get across that it is easier to get a point across if you focus on a single main point and use support to back up that point.

Before You Read.

I believe that the word argument is defined as a word that describes a disagreement between two or more people, where each individual exchanges or gives their own opinion about a certain topic. It can easily get out of hand because each person thinks he or she is correct. I think that in everyday conversation the word argument can been seen as a way to prove one person's knowledge against another persons. It is almost like a fight or a competition to see who is correct. In an academic setting, I think that the word argument can be seen as a way to understand another persons views without getting into a fight or out of hand. Being in a academic setting is much different than in an everyday setting because a classroom is a learning environment and therefore more people are open into calm discussion about each others views.

Questions for Discussion

2. I believe Greene quotes this passage because these are some of the exact ideas that he is trying to teach/tell about and get across to the reader. It just goes to show that people will always be arguing about something and it will never be forgot because people will always have different view points. No matter what, even just joining in on a debate/argument halfway through, more points will be brought about about the topic and the debate will just go on until someone leaves or gives up.

3. Framing is taking an idea and really stressing down on a certain point to get across to whomever it is being presented to to make it more clear. A camera lens is used as the metaphor in this passage. To remember something in a photograph, the camera lens should focus on that by itself. The writer is able to describe exactly what he or she wants the reader to get/understand.

Applying and Exploring Ideas

2. After reading this, I feel that Greene is really trying to connect with the reader, especially if the reader agrees with him. It is almost as if he is trying to have a conversation with him/her. Greene really uses framing because he is able to focus on a specific point to get across to the reader and therefore can get is points across a lot easier. It also makes it easier for the reader to understand. (Less broad). Yes, I do think that Greene practices what he preaches because he can back up what he says with his various points.

Thoughts.

Reading these two articles was very interesting. From reading Greene's article, I was able to better understand of how to write a paper/argue with backup. (Framing too). From reading Swales' article, I was able to get a better understanding of how to compare other information in papers. (Can support the main point). Finally, something that I found to be very helpful is framing. I now can use this in the future and will know how to use it correctly. I am not the strongest writer, but I now have new information/help to get my main point across in a paper. Thank you Greene and Swales.