Academic Summary
This quarter you will write a researched, academic essay. This step is a multi-part process, and the Academic Summary is the first part.
Below you will find a list of essays, all of which can be found in our text book. These essays cover a wide variety of disciplines, and will serve as a spring board to your research this quarter. Your job is to pick ONE essay, read it, and compose a brief (no more than one page) academic summary. In your summary, you MUST give the title of the article, and the author’s name. You may comment on their credentials if you would like, but it is not required. Some other aspects you can comment on include:
-The rhetorical situation
-The article’s claims
Keep in mind that this article summary will be the foundation of your research through the quarter, so be sure you pick an article that interests you. Some other guidelines to keep in mind:
-Do not give your personal opinion (no “I” in this paper)
-Use good transitions as you move from point to point
-Be sure your final sentence brings closure to the summary.
-Use 12 point font, typed and double spaced.
A rough draft is due in class for peer review on January 17th and the final is due by 11:59 PM on Wednesday, January 18th on Canvas. Unless there are outstanding circumstances, hard copy and email submissions will not be accepted. I will only accept the following formats: Microsoft Word (.doc, .docx) or Rich Text Format (RTF). Files in PDF, TXT and Pages will not be accepted. This paper will be worth 100 points.
RUBRIC
CONTENT 50 points
Including, but not limited to: thesis, organization, idea development
STYLE 30 points
Sentence structure and word choice issues.
GRAMMAR 20 points
Punctuation, spelling
Articles
All articles can be found in our text book.
Education
“Still Separate, Still Unequal: America’s Educational Apartheid”
Jonathan Kozol 347-359
Media Studies
“Post-Princess Models of Gender: The New Man in Disney/Pixar?
Ken Gillam and Shannon R. Wooden
469-481
Sociology
“The Myth of Race”
Austin Fuentes 515-535
Biology and Psychology
“Gender and Geometry” Jesse J. Prinz 625-640
Environmental Studies
“The Politics of the Natural in U.S. History and Popular Culture”
Noel Sturgeon 709-727
Business and Marketing
“No Logo”
Naomi Klein 776-788
Here is a sample summary:
Summary of “Hidden Intellectualism” by Gerald Graff (summary by a student author)
In the article “Hidden Intellectualism,” author Gerald Graff, an English professor from the University of Chicago, argues that intellectualism is not something demonstrated only with academic subjects, but also with subjects that students are truly interested in, such as fashion and sports. Graff suggests that we tend to call the intellectual activity involved in learning about non-academic subjects “street smarts” and academic subjects “book smarts.” His theory is that the intellectual activities required of both kinds of “smarts” are similar. In this peer-reviewed article, Graff’s hope is to reach an audience of K-12 teachers and college professors who train future teachers and to convince them that by understanding the intellectual nature of “street smarts,”
teachers can better reach students who do struggle with academic subjects. In addition, Graff states that educators should let students pick topics of study for major reading and writing assignments to keep them engaged. To support his points, the author provides personal experiences from his youth involving sports and music. While learning to analyze baseball statistics, something Graff loved, he was unknowingly developing the skills needed for “book smarts” so that he could excel in academic subjects. Graff concludes with several examples of how high school and college English teachers can bring the topics of sports, fashion, music, gaming, etc., into the classroom to teach the skills of critical thinking, reading, and writing.
