Assignments

Week #1:  Fundamentals of Rhetorical Action  

• COMM 388 Survey in Canvas: Please try to complete it as early in the week as possible.

• Discussion Board Assignment: Introduce Yourself

Please introduce yourself to your classmates by creating a video using the Rich Content Editor.  Tell us about you. Where you are from? What is a fun fact or two about you? What are you looking to get out of this course?  Close by telling us what what the #1 song on the Billboard Hot 100 on your 10th birthday. 

What the Video Should Entail: Your post is a short video of you talking that should answer the prompt above. You should embed the video into the Discussion, rather than post a link to it. You can also include a link to the song that was #1 on your 10th birthday, but you do not have to. 

Responding to Your Peers: Respond to at least one of your classmates. Ask them a question to get to know them more, respond to an aspect that you have in common, or something you are interested in learning more about.

•  Report Card #1:  Choose a rhetorical act from a specific section of the New York Times. Fill out the report card form that will be provided to you. 

Week #2:  Resources For Rhetorical Action

• Exam #1: In Canvas. Covers textbook chapters 1, 2, 4,5, and 7. Format includes multiple choice, true-false, fill in the blank, and matching column type questions.

Week #3: Context of Rhetorical Action 

• Report Card #2: Choose a column from the New York Times opinion writer that you will be assigned. Fill out the Report Card form that will be provided to you. 

Week #4:  Understanding Evaluation and Visual Rhetoric 

• Evaluate an assigned NYT Daily podcast, using chapter 11 (Understanding Evaluation) concepts. 

• Write an analysis of the online New York Times, applying chapter 12 (Visual Rhetoric) concepts. 

Week #5: Conversation With a Peer  

• You and a peer will be assigned the same NYT opinion writer. Engage in an Email conversation with your peer about that writer. Before uploading the conversation to Canvas, edit it for grammar/spelling, coherence, and clarity.  A good role model is The Conversation with Gail Collins and Bret Stephens: https://www.nytimes.com/column/the-conversation Notice how each of them usually have about 10-15 emails in the chain.  

Week #6: Final Exam + Rough Outline of Opinion Piece 

• Final Exam: Covers chapters 8,9,10,11,112,13. Same format as Exam #1. 

• Rough Outline of Opinion Piece. Imagine you were going to write a 900-1000 word opinion piece for the New York Times. For this assignment, upload a THESIS STATEMENT for your opinion piece, and three bullet points (one sentence each) that are reasons supporting the thesis statement. 

Week #7: Opinion Piece--Written and Recorded 

• Opinion Piece: Should be 900-1000 words.  Imagine that you will actually submit this piece to the New  York Times. 

• Opinion Piece Recording: Record an audiovisual version of your opinion piece in the discussion board, using the Rich Text Editor. Communicate it with as much clarity, conviction, and confidence as possible.