WEEK 2 EXCERCIESES

WEEK 2- EXERCISE 1

 Summarize the key points made by the author in the section titled  Strategies for Evaluating
Arguments on pages 53- 54 of text (100 words).
o According to the author, the two basic points of their essay is to be open minded, and to
carefully read the argument before drawing conclusions too quickly. It’s okay to agree or
disagree with the author, especially if there is evidence to support the argument. To get
the most out of what the author is trying to say about their claim, it’s important to be
very analytical about every element of the essay, including: vocabulary use, whether or
not the author wavers in their argument, if the essay is clear or not, consider what are
strengths and what are weaknesses, and consider the useful methods of argumentation.

WEEK 2- EXERCISE 2

 Summarize the key points made by the author in the section titled  Strategies for Critical
Listening on page 90 of text (100 words).
o The point that the author was trying to make in their essay was that listening is essential
in aspects not only that involve reading or writing, but also that involve life in general.
Good listeners consist of people who do not let their prejudices get in the way of
listening to somebody’s argument, and that don’t focus on the appearance and delivery
of a speaker’s claim. The ability to listen is something that takes practice, as most things
do. Some tips that the author provides to improve our listening skills is to concentrate,
try to avoid being focused on facts only, take notes, and to pay attention to the claim
and support.

WEEK 2- EXERCISE 3

 On page 126, the author makes 4 points regarding how to avoid plagiarism. Explain each one of
them in two or three sentences. 
o The point that the author was trying to make in their essay was that listening is essential
in aspects not only that involve reading or writing, but also that involve life in general.
Good listeners consist of people who do not let their prejudices get in the way of
listening to somebody’s argument, and that don’t focus on the appearance and delivery
of a speaker’s claim. The ability to listen is something that takes practice, as most things
do. Some tips that the author provides to improve our listening skills is to concentrate,
try to avoid being focused on facts only, take notes, and to pay attention to the claim
and support.

WEEK 2- PROGRESS EVALUATION

1. Where does the audience get most of its information? Newspapers, T.V., other people? Are
these reliable sources?
a. The audience will probably get most of its information from a mixture of media sources,
such as the news, and other people in their community.
2. Does the audience have a vested interest in the topic? Is that interest distorting their view?
Enhancing it?
 a. The audience is personally connected to the topic because it’s an infamous crime that
took place in their hometown. Because of the personal connection, the audience’s view
is distorted in an emotional way. This could be very helpful in terms of interest in my
argument.
3. What is their age, sex, sexual orientation, religion, value system, political affiliation?
a. Their ages vary, but most of them are probably older than 20 years old. Again, there’s a
variety of sexes and sexual orientation because it would be the Sacramento area in
California. Their religion would be mostly Protestant and Catholic, but there’s also quite
a few people who are non-religious also. California is more liberal than conservative,
which works well in my favor because I’m more liberal as well.
4. Where do they live? Is there a regional bias of some sort?
a. The audience lives in Sacramento, California. This definitely creates a bias because that
is where the subject of my essay takes place.
5. What is their socio-economic background?
a. I believe their socio-economic background includes being integrated as a whole and
working together in terms of economic and social factors. California has many different
kinds of people and opinions mixed together, but as a whole I would think that the
audience I’m writing to would be rather unified.
6. What is their level of education?
a. The level of education for the audience would be either very prestigious, or a high-
school drop out level.
7. Do they have kids? Are they married or single?
a. The audience has kids of their own, and there are also some who don’t have kids. Lots
are married and some are single.
8. Is this a purely hypothetical issue for them or might it affect their lives?
a. This absolutely will affect their lives for many reasons. First of all, because an infamous
cold case from their community was finally solved decades later. Second of all, because
there’s a new ethical issue that involves everyone interested in genetic or family history,
which I imagine will be many people in the audience.
9. Can they personally do anything to change this issue? What?
a. Yes, if anyone in the audience doesn’t want their DNA that they willingly submit to
ancestry programs to be used in criminal cases, they shouldn’t send it in.
10. Are they openly antagonistic or supportive of the issue?
a. I think that there would be a mixture of both, just because that’s how audiences react
whenever there’s an argument. Not everybody is going to agree with my claim, so it’s
important to include facts from the opposing side in order to connect them to my
argument as well.
11. Have they published anything on the topic?
a. Yes! I imagine that there were many local news stations reporting about the recent
discovery of the Golden State Killer’s identity, because it’s a significant breakthrough in
cold case history.
12. Who would be an authoritative source in the eyes of this audience?
a. Probably a mixture of genetic scientists and the criminal justice system. With this team
of experts, we’d be guaranteed the best sources due to the circumstances of the topic
of my argumentative essay.