From Inquiry to Academic Writing: A Practical Guide

Preface for Instructors 

Brief Contents 

How This Book Supports WPA Outcomes for First-Year Composition

1 Starting with Inquiry: Habits of Mind of Academic Writers

What Is Academic Writing? 

What Are the Habits of Mind of Academic Writers? 

Academic Writers Make Inquiries 

       Steps to Inquiry 

       A Practice Sequence: Inquiry Activities 

Academic Writers Seek and Value Complexity 

       *Moves to Model in Academic Writing

       Steps to Seeking and Valuing Complexity 

       A Practice Sequence: Seeking and Valuing Complexity 

Academic Writers See Writing as a Conversation 

       *Moves to Model in Academic Conversations

       Steps to Joining an Academic Conversation 

       A Practice Sequence: Joining an Academic Conversation 

Academic Writers Understand That Writing Is a Process       

       Collect Information and Material 

         Steps to Collecting Information and Material 

Draft, and Draft Again 

         Steps to Drafting 

Revise Significantly 

         Steps to Revising 

Academic Writers Reflect

         Steps to Reflection 

         A Practice Sequence: Reflection Activities 

Becoming Academic: Three Narratives 

       Ta-Nehisi Coates, from Between the World and Me 

       Richard Rodriguez, Scholarship Boy 

       *Tara Westover, from Educated 

       A Practice Sequence: Composing a Literacy Narrative

2 From Reading as a Writer to Writing as a Reader 

Reading as an Act of Composing: Annotating 

Reading as a Writer: Analyzing a Text Rhetorically 

E. D. Hirsch Jr., Preface to Cultural Literacy 

       Identify the Situation 

       Identify the Writer’s Purpose 

       Identify the Writer’s Claims 

            *Moves to Model for Making a Claim 

       *Identify the Writer’s Appeals: Ethos, Pathos, and Logos

       Identify the Writer’s Audience 

            Steps to Analyzing a Text Rhetorically 

            A Practice Sequence: Analyzing a Text Rhetorically 

*Nick Hanauer, Education Isn’t Enough 

       Writing as a Reader: Composing a Rhetorical Analysis 

David Tyack, Whither History Textbooks? 

       An Annotated Student Rhetorical Analysis 

Quentin Collie, A Rhetorical Analysis of "Whither History Textbooks?" (Student Writing) 

       Writing a Rhetorical Analysis 

Sherry Turkle, The Flight from Conversation 

       A Practice Sequence: Writing a Rhetorical Analysis

3 From Writing Summaries and Paraphrases to Writing Yourself into Academic Conversations 

Summaries, Paraphrases, and Quotations 

Writing a Paraphrase 

       Steps to Writing a Paraphrase 

       A Practice Sequence: Writing a Paraphrase 

Writing a Summary 

Clive Thompson, On the New Literacy 

       Describe the Key Claims of the Text 

       Select Examples to Illustrate the Author’s Argument 

       Present the Gist of the Author’s Argument 

       Contextualize What You Summarize 

            Steps to Writing a Summary 

            *Moves to Model for Summarizing

            A Practice Sequence: Writing a Summary 

Writing Yourself into Academic Conversations 

       Steps to Writing Yourself into an Academic Conversation 

       A Practice Sequence: Writing Yourself into an Academic Conversation 

Tom Standage, History Retweets Itself 

4 From Identifying Claims to Analyzing Arguments 

Identifying Types of Claims 

Dana Radcliffe, Dashed Hopes: Why Aren’t Social Media Delivering Democracy? 

       Identify Claims of Fact 

       Identify Claims of Value 

       Identify Claims of Policy 

            Steps to Identifying Claims 

            A Practice Sequence: Identifying Claims 

Analyzing Arguments 

       Analyze the Reasons Used to Support a Claim 

       Identify Concessions 

       Identify Counterarguments 

            *Moves to Model for Analyzing Arguments

An Annotated Student Argument 

Marques Camp, The End of The World May Be Nigh, and It’s the Kindle’s Fault (Student Writing) 

       Steps to Analyzing an Argument 

       A Practice Sequence: Analyzing an Argument 

Susan D. Blum, The United States of (Non)Reading: The End of Civilization or a New Era? 

       Recognizing Logical Fallacies

       Analyzing and Comparing Arguments 

Stuart Rojstaczer, Grade Inflation Gone Wild 

Phil Primack, Doesn’t Anybody Get a C Anymore?        

       A Practice Sequence: Analyzing and Comparing Arguments

5 From Identifying Issues to Forming Questions 

Identifying Issues       

       Draw on Your Personal Experience 

       Identify What Is Open to Dispute 

       Resist Binary Thinking 

       Build on and Extend the Ideas of Others 

       Read to Discover a Writer’s Frame 

       Consider the Constraints of the Situation 

            Steps to Identifying Issues 

       Identifying Issues in an Essay 

Anna Quindlen, Doing Nothing Is Something 

       A Practice Sequence: Identifying Issues 

Formulating Issue-Based Questions       

       Refine Your Topic 

       Explain Your Interest in the Topic 

       Identify an Issue 

            *Moves to Model for Identifying an Issue

       Formulate Your Topic as a Question 

       Acknowledge Your Audience 

            Steps to Formulating an Issue-Based Question 

            A Practice Sequence: Formulating an Issue-Based Question 

Academic Writing for Analysis 

*Ronald E. Purser, Mindful Schools

6 From Formulating to Developing a Thesis 

Working versus Definitive Theses 

Developing a Working Thesis: Four Models 

       The Correcting-Misinterpretations Model 

       The Filling-the-Gap Model 

       The Modifying-What-Others-Have-Said Model 

       The Hypothesis-Testing Model 

            A Practice Sequence: Identifying Types of Theses 

Establishing a Context for a Thesis 

An Annotated Student Introduction: Providing a Context for a Thesis 

Colin O’Neill, Money Matters: Framing the College Access Debate (Student Writing) 

       Establish That the Issue Is Current and Relevant 

       Briefly Present What Others Have Said 

       Explain What You See as the Problem 

       State Your Thesis 

            *Moves to Model for Formulating a Thesis

            Steps to Establishing a Context for a Thesis       

       Analyze the Context of a Thesis 

Kris Gutiérrez, from Teaching Toward Possibility: Building Cultural Supports for Robust Learning 

       *Moves to Model for Developing a Working Thesis

       A Practice Sequence: Building a Thesis 

An Annotated Student Essay: Stating and Supporting a Thesis 

Veronica Stafford, Texting and Literacy (Student Writing)

7 From Finding to Evaluating Sources 

Identifying Sources 

       Consult Experts Who Can Guide Your Research 

       Develop a Working Knowledge of Standard Sources 

       Distinguish between Primary and Secondary Sources 

       Distinguish between Popular and Scholarly Sources 

            Steps to Identifying Sources 

            A Practice Sequence: Identifying Sources 

Searching for Sources       

       Perform a Keyword Search 

       Try Browsing 

            Steps to Searching for Sources 

            A Practice Sequence: Searching for Sources 

Evaluating Library Sources 

       Examine the Table of Contents and Index 

       Read the Introductory Sections 

       Skim for the Argument 

       Check the Notes and Bibliographic References 

            Steps to Evaluating Library Sources 

            A Practice Sequence: Evaluating Library Sources 

*Evaluating Internet and Social Media Sources

       Evaluate the Author of the Content 

       Evaluate the Organization That Supports the Content 

       Evaluate the Purpose of the Content 

       Evaluate the Information  

            Steps to Evaluating Internet and Social Media Sources 

            A Practice Sequence: Evaluating Internet and Social Media Sources 

Writing an Annotated Bibliography 

            Steps to Writing an Annotated Bibliography 

            A Practice Sequence: Writing an Annotated Bibliography


8 From Synthesis to Researched Argument 

Writing a Synthesis 

Paul Rogat Loeb, Making Our Lives Count 

Anne Colby and Thomas Ehrlich, with Elizabeth Beaumont and Jason Stephens, Undergraduate Education and the Development of Moral and Civic Responsibility 

Laurie Ouellette, Citizen Brand: ABC and the Do Good Turn in US Television

       Make Connections among Different Texts 

       Decide What Those Connections Mean 

       Formulate the Gist of What You’ve Read 

            Steps to Writing a Synthesis 

            *Moves to Model for Writing a Synthesis 

            A Practice Sequence: Writing a Synthesis 

*Maryanne Wolf, Skim Reading Is the New Normal

*Maria Gilje Torheim, Do We Read Differently On Paper Than On a Screen?

*Naomi Baron, Do Students Lose Depth in Digital Reading?

Avoiding Plagiarism 

       Steps to Avoiding Plagiarism 

*Integrating Sources into Your Writing 

       *Identify the Source

       *Take an Active Stance 

*Using Quotations       

       *Use Signal Phrases to Introduce Quotations

       *Indicate Changes and Omissions in Quotations

       *Set Off Long Quotations as Block Quotations

            *Moves to Model for Integrating Quotations 

            Steps to Integrating Sources into Your Writing 

            A Practice Sequence: Integrating Quotations 

An Annotated Student Researched Argument: Synthesizing Sources 

Nancy Paul, A Greener Approach to Groceries: Community-Based Agriculture in LaSalle Square (Student Writing)

       A Practice Sequence: Thinking about Copyright

9 From Ethos and Pathos to Logos: Appealing to Your Readers

Connecting with Readers: A Sample Argument 

James W. Loewen, The Land of Opportunity 

Appealing to Ethos 

       Establish That You Have Good Judgment 

       Convey to Readers That You Are Knowledgeable 

       Show That You Understand the Complexity of a Given Issue 

            Steps to Appealing to Ethos 

Appealing to Pathos 

       Show That You Know What Your Readers Value 

       Use Illustrations and Examples That Appeal to Readers’ Emotions 

       Consider How Your Tone May Affect Your Audience 

            Steps to Appealing to Pathos 

            A Practice Sequence: Appealing to Ethos and Pathos 

Appealing to Logos: Using Reason and Evidence to Fit the Situation       

       State the Premises of Your Argument 

       Use Credible Evidence 

       Demonstrate That the Conclusion Follows from the Premises 

            Steps to Appealing to Logos 

            *Moves to Model for Appealing to Ethos, Pathos, and Logos

Analyzing the Appeals in a Researched Argument 

*Lisa V. Blitz, Denise Yull, and Matthew Clauhs, Bringing Sanctuary to School

       A Practice Sequence: Analyzing the Appeals in a Researched Argument

10 From Analyzing Visuals to Using Them in Writing 

Analyzing Visual Advertisements 

       Notice Where the Ad Appears 

       Identify and Reflect on What Draws Your Attention 

       Consider the Ethos of the Ad 

       Analyze the Pathos in the Ad 

       Understand the Logos of the Ad 

            A Practice Sequence: Analyzing the Rhetoric of an Advertisement 

*Analyzing Infographics

       *Consider the Images and Text That Draw Your Attention

       *Identify the Organization, Its Ethos, and Framing Concepts

       *Determine the Credibility of the Data

       *Analyze How an Infographic Appeals to Logos

       *Analyze How an Infographic Appeals to Pathos

            Steps to Visual Analysis 

            *A Practice Sequence: Analyzing an Infographic

Using Visual Rhetoric: Photographs, Maps, Tables, and Graphs       

       Using Photographs to Provide Context or Stir Emotions 

       Using Maps to Make a Point 

*Richard Florida, How the One Percent Is Pulling America’s Cities and Regions Apart

       Using Tables to Present Findings 

*Amina Chaudhri and William H. Teale, Stories of Multiracial Experiences in Literature for Children, Ages 9–14

       Using Graphs to Visualize Data 

            Steps to Using Visuals in Writing an Argument 

            A Practice Sequence: Using Visuals to Enhance an Argument 

Nathan Jindra, Neighbors Need LaSalle Branch (Student Writing)

11 From Introductions to Conclusions: Drafting an Essay

Drafting Introductions 

       The Inverted-Triangle Introduction 

       The Narrative Introduction 

       The Interrogative Introduction 

       The Paradoxical Introduction 

       The Minding-the-Gap Introduction 

       *The Reframing Introduction

            Steps to Drafting Introductions: Six Strategies 

            A Practice Sequence: Drafting an Introduction 

Developing Paragraphs 

Elizabeth Martínez, from Reinventing "America": Call for a New National Identity 

       Use Topic Sentences to Focus Your Paragraphs 

       Create Unity in Your Paragraphs 

            *Moves to Model for Changing the Conversation        

       Use Critical Strategies to Develop Your Paragraphs 

            Steps to Developing Paragraphs 

            A Practice Sequence: Working with Paragraphs 

Drafting Conclusions 

       Echo the Introduction 

       Challenge the Reader 

       Look to the Future 

       Pose Questions 

       Conclude with a Quotation 

            Steps to Drafting Conclusions: Five Strategies 

            A Practice Sequence: Drafting a Conclusion 

Analyzing Strategies for Writing: From Introductions to Conclusions 

Barbara Ehrenreich, Cultural Baggage

12 From Revising to Editing: Working with Peer Groups  

Revising versus Editing 

The Peer Editing Process 

            Steps in the Peer Editing Process 

Peer Groups in Action: A Sample Session 

An Annotated Student Draft 

Rebecca Jegier, Student-Centered Learning: Catering to Students’ Impatience (Student Writing) 

Working with Early Drafts       

       Understand the Writer’s Responsibilities 

       Understand the Reader’s Responsibilities 

       Analyze an Early Draft 

Tasha Taylor, Memory through Photography (early draft) 

Working with Later Drafts       

       Understand the Writer’s Responsibilities 

       Understand the Reader’s Responsibilities 

       Analyze a Later Draft 

Tasha Taylor, Memory through Photography (later draft) 

Working with Final Drafts 

       Understand the Writer’s Responsibilities 

       Understand the Reader’s Responsibilities 

       Analyze a Near-Final Draft 

Tasha Taylor, Memory through Photography (near-final draft) 

       Further Suggestions for Peer Editing Groups 

13 Other Methods of Inquiry: Interviews and Focus Groups

Why Do Original Research? 

Getting Started: Writing an Idea Sheet 

A Student’s Annotated Idea Sheet 

Dan Grace, Idea Sheet for Parent/Child Autism Study (Student Writing) 

Writing a Proposal 

       Describe Your Purpose 

       Review Relevant Research 

       Define Your Method 

       Discuss Your Implications 

       Include Additional Materials That Support Your Research 

       Establish a Timeline 

            Steps to Writing a Proposal 

An Annotated Student Proposal 

Laura Hartigan, Proposal for Research: The Affordances of Multimodal, Creative, and Academic Writing (Student Writing) 

Interviewing 

       Plan the Interview 

       Prepare Your Script 

            *Moves to Model for Interviewing       

       Conduct the Interview 

       Make Sense of the Interview 

       Turn Your Interview into an Essay 

            Steps to Interviewing 

Using Focus Groups       

       Select Participants for the Focus Group 

       Plan the Focus Group 

       Prepare Your Script 

       Conduct the Focus Group 

       Interpret the Data from the Focus Group 

       Important Ethical Considerations 

            Steps for Conducting a Focus Group 

Appendix: Citing and Documenting Sources

Index of Authors, Titles, and Key Terms