Argumentative Essay

Final Essay Due: December 21 (Monday) 2 PM EST (25% of your final grade)

NOTE: See the next page for the topics you can choose.

This assignment asks you to produce an argumentative essay (1000-1250 words) that makes and

supports a claim related to a topic from one of the readings we read for this class. In other

words, unlike the critical response assignment, your job this time is to express an opinion about

the subject matter, not to explain and examine the efficiency of the rhetorical strategies used in

a certain article.

Since this paper focuses on the persuasive nature of writing, during the process of drafting and

revising, you will need to develop a specific thesis statement and support for it based on the

kinds of sources you find. Use at least three outside sources to develop your argument, one of

which must be a scholarly source.1 A part of your job is to discover the kinds of arguments that

are possible to make. Another part of your job is to figure out how to develop a claim that can be

supported with the resources you find. Whenever necessary, you can use direct quotations to

elucidate your point; however, do NOT use block quotations (an indented quotation that is more

than 4 lines) in your essay.

All the outside sources must be documented in MLA style, with in-text citations and a Works

Cited page. The Works Cited page does NOT count toward the word count. All pages should be

numbered and your name should be printed on each page. On the top of the first page, put your

name, my name, the course number (ENG 1100), and the date of submission. Your essay should

be word-processed in 2.0 line spacing and 12-point Times New Roman, with 1″ margin.

Please feel free to e-mail me ([email protected]) if you have any questions.

1 Academic sources, also called scholarly sources, are sources which can include books, academic journal articles, and published expert reports. The content in academic sources has usually been peer-reviewed, which means that it’s been reviewed by experts on its topic for accuracy and quality before being published.

mailto:[email protected]
ENG 111 2

Topics You Can Choose for This Assignment

NOTE: These articles can be used as outside sources. These are not scholarly sources.

1) Blue-collar intelligence

? The topic is related to Mike Rose’s “Blue-Collar Brilliance”

2) Bilingual education

? The topic is related to Maxine Hong Kingston’s “Tongue-Tied, Ng?g? wa Thiong’o’s

“Decolonizing the Mind,” and Richard Rodriguez’s “Aria”

3) Objectivity in writing (e.g. legal/historical writing, the use of “I”)

? The topic is related to Patricia Williams’s “The Death of the Profane”

4) English as the official language of the U.S.

? The topic is related to Dennis Baron’s “Lingua Blanka”

5) Linguistic purism in English (i.e. using “plain English”)

? The topic is related to George Orwell’s “Politics and the English Language”

6) The effects of race, class, and/or gender on language use

? The topic is related to Jaswinder Bolina’s “Writing like a White Guy”

7) Digital literacy (e.g. cognitive changes in reading, technology in learning, computer literacy)

? The topic is related to Nicholas Carr’s “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” Judith Newman’s

“To Siri, with Love,” and Tasneem Raja’s “Is Coding the New Literacy?”

ENG 111 3

Scholarly Sources and Popular Sources

Scholarly Popular

Authors: Experts such as scientists, scholar, and historians

Generalists, including bloggers, staff writers, and journalists; not always attributed

Examples:

Journal of Education; Multilingual Research Journal; books from university presses such as Oxford University Press and the University of California Press

Wikipedia, CNN.com, About.com; People Magazine, USA Today; bestselling books; books from popular publishers like Penguin and Random House; articles available on general college or university websites

Focus: Specific and in-depth (often previously unpublished)

Broad overviews

Language: Dense; includes academic jargon Easier to read; defines specialized terms

Format: Almost always include abstracts, literature reviews, methodologies, results, and conclusions

Varies

Citations: Include bibliographies, citations, and footnotes that follow a particular academic style guide

No formal citations included; may or may not informally attribute sources in text

Before Publication:

“Peer-reviewed”: evaluated by peers (other scholars)

Edited by in-house editors or not edited at all

Audience: Specialists in the subject area: students, professors and the author’s peers

General readers; shouldn’t require any special background

Design: Mostly text, with some tables and charts; very little photography; no advertising

Glossy images, attractive design; photo illustrations and advertising are more common

Purpose: Communicating research findings; education

Entertainment; news

ENG 111 4

Sample Argumentative Paper 1

C. L.

Dr. Clavin

ENG 1100

November 26, 2018

A Bilingual Education in Secondary School Systems

? IMPORTANT! These essays are provided to show you how your classmates respond to the same assignment. They are NOT provided for you to build your essay on.

Keep in mind that building your essay structure (and ideas) on someone else’s essay

counts as plagiarism and will not be tolerated.

? For the final paper, you will need a good title. Think about an effective title in advance—if you already have a title for your argumentative paper, you can use the

same title. Make sure to capitalize and lowercase the title properly (See Chapter 45

in Rules for Writers or my Grammar Pointer).

The increase of immigrants, global workforces, and desire to travel the world has put

American people in constant contact with other languages and cultures. The results from

different cultures blending together makes it difficult to communicate with people who speak

different languages. With the increase of contact with speakers of different languages, it is

important to enforce a bilingual education in all secondary school systems. A bilingual education

should be necessary in all of United States’ secondary school systems as it not only allows

people to better communicate with others, but it also enables students to have future job

opportunities, a well-rounded personality, and positive impacts on the brain.

? The thesis is clearly stated at the end of the introduction. Note that you are making an argument of your own on one of the given topics this time. In other words, you

are not analyzing the rhetorical strategies of an article; for this reason, you would

not start with an essay in our textbook.

Students attending secondary school are at the age in which they are beginning to think of

future career paths. [<- The student provides three points to support her thesis in the ENG 111 5 beginning. She explains one of those points in this body paragraph. She also uses a topic sentence effectively here.] A bilingual education should be mandatory in secondary school systems as it allows students to have a better chance of obtaining their future career, and it creates future opportunities for students. As companies come into contact with customers or people of another language, it is important for companies to have employees that are able to communicate effectively with customers. An article from New American Economy mentions that “employers increasingly desire workers who speak multiple languages, particularly in industries that provide services involving a high degree of human interaction.” [<- She mentions the article title because the article doesn’t have an author. Do NOT mention the article title if there’s an author; you should only mention the author’s name.] The author also states that “over the past five years, demand for bilingual workers in the United States more than doubled. In 2010, there were roughly 240,000 job postings aimed at bilingual workers; by 2015, that figure had ballooned to approximately 630,000” (“Demand for Bilingual Workers”). [<- The student puts the shortened title of the article in double quotation marks because the article does not have any information on its author. There is no page number because it is an online source.] The demand for future employees who can speak another language shows that there are more job opportunities for people who have the ability to speak another language. Hence, a bilingual education in secondary school systems is important so that students can have a better opportunity of being employed after they graduate high school. The knowledge of the demand for more employees who can speak another language has provoked schools to implement dual-language programs. According to “Dual-Language Learning Programs on the Rise,” Margaret Ramirez explains that a New York City Education Department decided to create forty dual-language programs for elementary, middle, and high ENG 111 6 school levels. Also, Ramirez writes that “dual-language schools and education programs are on the rise as a way to better prepare students for jobs in a globalized economy.” The increase of dual-language programs has become popular because of the increased desire for bilingual people in the workforce (Ramirez). As more companies are in demand for bilingual employees, schools are preparing their students for future employment. Schools are beginning to enforce language courses in order for students to obtain knowledge of a second language in hopes of becoming bilingual. Schools hope that providing their students with a bilingual education will help their chances of obtaining a job in the future. Not only does a bilingual education provide more career opportunities, but it also positively impacts students’ personalities as it makes them more well-rounded. The author of “List of Pros and Cons of Bilingual Education” mentions that “studies prove that learning a second language enhances the mind and provides the student with a much brighter future, making it easier for them to understand and relate to other cultures throughout the world.” [<- Use the present tense even if the article was published in the past (e.g. “The article mentions that…”). Using the present tense is the convention in the field of English.] In addition, the author also explains that students who can speak a second language are “more likely to be cultured and worldly” and have “positive interactions with other races, which lead to personal growth and more rapid development of other important social skills” (“List of Pros and Cons”). [<- It is a good practice to support your idea with evidence, but make sure not to use direct quotations (quotations that use double quotation marks) too much. Avoid using direct quotations by paraphrasing. However, note that you must provide in-text citation information even when you paraphrase.] Therefore, a bilingual education should be mandatory as it can strengthen the overall characters and personalities of students. The ENG 111 7 knowledge of a second language allows students to become more open minded, enabling them to be more willing to learn and accept people of other cultures and ethnicities. ? While the student effectively incorporates all direct quotations, the quotations are a bit too much. If you must cite a source that is longer than four lines in a paragraph, consider using indirect quotations (paraphrasing). When you paraphrase, make sure to change the entire sentence structure as we practiced in class. Additionally, studies have shown that monolingual speakers have language based social biases, and they prefer to be with people who speak their language. For instance, Heinlein Krista Byers writes that an experiment was done involving monolinguals and bilinguals. Among each other, the monolinguals and bilinguals in the experiment had to choose whom they wanted to be friends with. The experiment shows that “monolingual children from a monolingual or bilingual community preferred to affiliate with a monolingual speaker over a bilingual speaker, while the bilingual children did not show a preference for monolingual versus bilingual speakers” (Byers). This experiment shows that bilingual people are more willing to associate with other people who may not speak their native language, while monolingual people would rather not associate with people of another culture or nationality. This shows that the ability to speak another language helps in developing important social skills. Bilingualism allows students to be more ethno- relative, and bilingualism makes students open-minded about communicating and being friendly with someone that is culturally different. Moreover, all secondary schools should mandate a bilingual education because it has profound cognitive effects. Gaia Vince explains that bilingualism can prevent dementia. He cites a study conducted by Ellen Bialystok, who compares “an aging population of monolinguals and bilinguals.” After her research Bialystok states that “the bilinguals showed symptoms of Alzheimer’s some four to five years after monolinguals with the same disease pathology” (qtd. in Vince). [<- “qtd. in” is used when you cite an indirect source. That is, Bialystok is quoted in ENG 111 8 Vince’s article, and the student has read Vince’s article, not Bialystok’s original article. Note that MLA citation rules will be even more important than before, so make sure to cite all sources accurately; if you’re not sure how to cite a source, ask me in advance.] This research shows being bilingual can prevent dementia from occurring early on in a person’s life. The ability to speak another language gives people more time before experiencing the devastating effects of dementia, allowing them to live longer and healthier lives. In addition, a bilingual education would also enhance a student’s cognitive effects related to learning. In “Cognitive Benefits of Being Bilingual,” Marian and Shook explain that being bilingual can improve learning. The author mentions that “the improvements in cognitive and sensory processing driven by bilingual experience may help a person to better process information, leading to a clearer signal for learning.” The author also explains that being bilingual can lead to acquiring “larger gains in vocabulary” since bilingual people have the ability to process and handle more information than a monolingual individual (Marian and Shook). Bilingualism contributes to strengthening cognitive function; therefore, a bilingual education should be mandatory in all secondary schools to enhance students’ cognitive abilities. Although a bilingual education may positively impact students, people believe that a bilingual education can actually harm students. For example, in “Aria,” Richard Rodriguez explains that being forced to learn English when his native language was Spanish hurt him. Rodriguez writes that being forced to learn a second language caused a lack of “closeness at home.” In addition, he describes his situation in which he was at a loss for the “desperate, urgent, intense feeling of being at home among those with whom [he] felt intimate. [His] family remained a loving family, but one greatly changed. [They] were no longer so close, no longer bound tightly together by the knowledge of [their] separateness from los gringos” (Rodriguez ENG 111 9 468). The experience that Rodriguez had while learning a second language negatively affected his childhood. Rodriguez blames the mandatory English education for ruining his culture and environment at home, which he possessed from his native language. He no longer felt as close to his Hispanic culture and self because of the enforcement of learning a second language. ? Using one of the articles we read in class, the student provides a counterargument. Putting a counterargument to consider “the other side” of your opinion is an effective writing strategy. Remember, however, that you should refute the counterargument effectively in the next paragraph; additionally, carefully decide where you should put the counterargument. However, the enforcement of a bilingual education in secondary school systems would not be handled the way it was for Rodriguez. Rodriguez was completely stripped of his native language as he was forced to speak English in all of his classes. Today, the enforcement of a bilingual education would be handled differently. Secondary school systems can provide numerous language classes, such as Spanish, Italian, French, Chinese, German, or any other language. While school systems should make language classes mandatory for students, these students would not be forced to speak their newly learned language in any of their other classes, such as their Math, Science, or History class. A bilingual education would be enforced in a way that students would be required to take a language class, but they would not be forced to use the new language outside of their language class. This method will allow students to learn a language and acquire all of the benefits from learning it without affecting a student's native language and culture. ? The student refutes the counterargument she has provided above. The increase of language barriers and inadequate communication with those from different cultures and backgrounds make communicating difficult. If students are provided a bilingual education in school, students would be able to overcome these barriers in the future and ENG 111 10 also gain other valuable benefits. [<- The student puts a summary statement to indicate that this is the conclusion.] Although there is a criticism that forcing a bilingual education can affect a student’s native culture, the enforcement of language classes will be handled in an efficient way to allow students to learn a new language without compromising their cultural and ethnic identity. A bilingual education in secondary school systems should be mandatory as a bilingual education provides students with future job opportunities, an improved character, and a healthy and actively engaged mind. ? The sentence-level skills are rather plain, but this is a solid paper (the student received an A-). It has a clear thesis, well-developed supporting points (that support the thesis), and a firm essay structure. Note that these elements are more important than sophisticated sentences—that is, “fancy” words—with poorly developed ideas. ENG 111 11 Works Cited Byers, Heinlein Krista, et al. “Monolingual and Bilingual Children’s Social Preferences for Monolingual and Bilingual Speakers.” Developmental Science, vol. 20, no. 4, July 2017, n.p. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1111/desc.12392. Accessed 29 Nov. 2018. ? This is a scholarly source. The topic of a scholarly source is very focused (“children’s” “social preferences” “monolingual and bilingual speakers”), and it usually has a volume number and an issue number (“vol. 20, no. 4”). ? Indent the bibliographic information and your annotation so that the author’s last name is the only text that is flush left. Here’s how to indent: select the paragraph ->

right click and choose “Paragraph” -> go to “Indentation” in the middle of “Indents

and Spring” (first section) -> choose “Hanging” in “Special.” If you’re using Google

Docs, follow the instructions on this page: https://docs.google.com/document/d/

1QGAEu5JjHNHZMzmwtnXstgYOuZnjCQRFoCnwp7M_OsA/edit

“Demand for Bilingual Workers More than Doubled in 5 Years.” New American Economy, Mar.

2017, newamericaneconomy.org/press-release/demand-for-bilingual-workers-more-than-

doubled-in-5-years-new-report-shows. Accessed 8 Nov. 2018.

“List of Pros and Cons of Bilingual Education.” Occupy Theory, Jan. 2015, occupytheory.

org/list-of-pros-and-cons-of-bilingual-education/. Accessed 8 Nov. 2018.

? All entries should be organized in alphabetical order. Do not number the sources.

? If no author information is available, start the reference entry with the title of the article.

Marian, Victoria, and Anthony Shook. “Cognitive Benefits of Being Bilingual.” Future Learn,

2012, futurelearn.com/courses/multilingual-practices/0/steps/22658. Accessed 8 Nov.

2018.

Ramirez, Margaret. “Dual-Language Learning Programs on the Rise.” Education Digest, vol. 81,

no. 8, Apr. 2016, pp. 26–31. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct

=true&AuthType=cookie,ip,cpid&custid=s8865286&db=fth&AN=114073708&site=eho

st-live. Accessed 29 Nov. 2018.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1QGAEu5JjHNHZMzmwtnXstgYOuZnjCQRFoCnwp7M_OsA/edit
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1QGAEu5JjHNHZMzmwtnXstgYOuZnjCQRFoCnwp7M_OsA/edit
ENG 111 12

? Although this article has a volume number and an issue number, this is not a scholarly source. The general title (Education Digest) indicates that it’s not an

academic periodical. If you’re not sure about a source, again, ask me first.

Vince, Gaia. “Why Being Bilingual Works Wonders for Your Brain.” The Guardian, Aug.

2016, https://www.theguardian.com/science/2016/aug/07/being-bilingual-good-for-brain-

mental-health. Accessed 8 Nov. 2018.

? There is a mistake: the student forgot to cite Rodriguez (reason for point deduction).

ENG 111 13

Sample Argumentative Paper 2

Sandra B.

Dr. Clavin

English 1100

25 November 2018

A Message to Silicon Valley

When a student gets a job that can be classified as “service work” or “blue-collar”, such

as a barista or cook, the job is only considered temporary, as if it was only a placeholder for a

career with more respect. Would people be able to brew a perfect cup of coffee every day before

work? Would they understand exactly why their car’s heating system was not working? Could

they be able to build their own homes if they could not find one? Most of these situations seem

trivial, or even outlandish, for people to think about. After all, they live in a world where most of

the materials that they use are not made by them at all; everything is just displayed to them like

pastel-colored boxes of treats, waiting to be taken. Beautiful houses spring up out of nowhere,

and if something is wrong, people give it to somebody else in order to fix it. They pay wads of

cash to anybody that claims to make them look lovely. Many rarely have the time to come make

a good, healthy meal every morning, so somebody does it for them. Such is America, where the

people doing the real work are frowned upon for choosing not to pursue a higher education.

Likewise, people that say that blue-collar workers are misguided are misguided themselves.

Workers make up more than half of America’s workforce and they are scorned for it, cast aside

like something lesser, because they choose jobs that do not provide high pay or good social

status. This stereotype of blue-collars worker fuels the discouragement of second-class work in

the education system, which tends to support white-collar jobs.

ENG 111 14

? All sample papers have received at least an A-. As you might have noticed, however, all papers include a number of sentence-level—especially punctuation—issues.

Although punctuation is still important, note that a thorough and thoughtful

examination of your ideas and outside sources counts more (and that punctuation

rules are not easy to master in one semester).

? This is the same student who wrote her rhetorical analysis on Mike Rose’s “Blue- Collar Brilliance.” Read the sample rhetorical analysis paper again (entitled “Blue-

Collar Breakdown”) and compare it with this argumentative paper. Doing so will

help you see the differences between the two assignments.

? Make sure to put your introduction in one page. The argumentative paper is still a short paper, and your introduction should not exceed one page.

In a nutshell, blue-collar work is an umbrella term that describes a wide variety of service

and labor jobs. These jobs can be divided into five subsequent categories: self-employed, craft,

marginally employed, core sector, and periphery sector (Adams and Canak). [<- Note the student is not following the typical Point 1, Point 2, Point 3 body paragraphs. Instead, she provides detailed background information on blue-collar work to establish her points.] There are also multiple subdivisions, all dependent on the type of industry, organization of labor, and the economic strength of the employing company. Within those divisions of blue-collar work lies a rigid structure of labor work all based on the concept of upward mobility. For example, the more somebody works, the more chances that worker’s work will be appreciated, and he or she will advance and get a tidier sum for their hours. However, since the 1990s, blue-collar work has been under attack (Adams and Canak). There are multiple factors as to why, the most well- known being changes in global marketing and advancements in technology that decrease the value of a skilled workforce. There is also the social aspect, which touches more on the change of stereotype: race, class, gender, and the media. Education, however, rarely comes to mind as the tying reason. ENG 111 15 Nearly every child in the United States has heard the constant ramble of the importance of a college education. [<- She introduces the problem of the society’s devaluing of blue- collar work to establish her points more clearly.] Every parent’s dream for his or her children is for them to become a part of the country’s intellectual elite. The change starts to occur in middle school, when jobs like firefighter and policeman become careers like engineer and lawyer. There is a reason for that: the education system favors white-collar jobs. Compared to blue-collar laborers, white-collar workers have higher standards of living, pay, and status in society. It is wonderful that the human race as a whole can solve problems to help humanity and the environment thanks to scientists and intellectuals. The potential to become the next Steve Jobs is in everybody, should students choose to pursue it. However, what if they choose not to? What if their families do not have the time or money to send their children to university? What life will their children have? According to America’s ever-changing culture, those children will have no life at all. The media’s portrayal of the working class has reinforced this ideology by showing burly, scarred redneck mechanics, teenage Latinas taking over supermarkets, and African-Americans working at fast food chains. Ads run on TV that show laborers covered in dirt, grease, and grime; and characters in sitcoms lament about insufferable hours and measly pay at their waitressing jobs in the local eatery. It definitely sounds racist and classist, but people cannot help looking over those workers. With this kind of representation in American society, it is no wonder that workers are treated the way they are. The education system uses this stereotype (a combination of the impoverished, uneducated minority) to further distance blue-collar work as an alternative option to traditional four-year, higher education. In addition, complex classwork, temporary jobs, and student debt prevent students from finding out about more practical ways to make a living. Surprisingly, labor ENG 111 16 jobs are becoming higher in demand, but most young people become jaded after hearing how much work labor needs. As one airplane manufacturer explains it, “Today’s young people, moreover, tend to regard craft work—plumbing, masonry, and carpentry, for instance—as unfashionable and dead-end, no doubt because they’ve been instructed to aspire to college” (Kotkin).There is an obvious difference between … Read more Applied Sciences Architecture and Design Biology Business & Finance Chemistry Computer Science Geography Geology Education Engineering English Environmental science Spanish Government History Human Resource Management Information Systems Law Literature Mathematics Nursing Physics Political Science Psychology Reading Science Social Science Home Homework Answers Blog Archive Tags Reviews Contact twitterfacebook Copyright © 2021 SweetStudy.com