EXAMPLE Why are so many college students mired in credit card debt? (title is essential question)

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1 EXAMPLE Why are so many college students mired in credit card debt? (title is essential question) I. Introduction: HOOK quote from In Debt We Trust Thousands of college students leave school with not only a diploma in hand but with ever-increasing amounts of debt. (use an example of specific student from source # 2 ) The question that we all need to ask is How does a reasonably intelligent young adult get suckered into mounds of credit card debt? Unfortunately, no easy answer emerges, but the most likely culprit appears to be a complete and utter lack of financial savvy on the part of American teenagers and twenty somethings. [thesis] II. statistics (source # ) establish the issue Include results of survey (source # ) my response to survey Explain how the problem became so mammoth (source # ) my response End with question of what can be done III. Other possibilities (other than thesis) --credit card companies are predators (source # ) my response --soaring cost of tuition (source # ) my response --living beyond means (source # ) my response IV. likely culprit (thesis) (source # and # ) IV. My Response what can be done to increase financial literacy of American teens? Required personal finance/economics course taken by all high school students Teach students how credit card companies work interest/late fees/credit rating/etc. (source # ) Introduce students to stocks/bonds/mutual funds best methods of saving Relate back to survey (source # ) End with another quote from In Debt We Trust V. Works Cited alphabetized Purdue online writing lab (check organization of entries) Elements of Literature

2 They Say I Say Engage with other people s views Summarize what others say first to frame and clarify the issue. Enter the conversation with what they say. Ex. Some say that The Sopranos presents caricatures of Italian Americans. (they say) In fact, however, the characters in the series are very complex! (you say) Use the they say/i say format to disagree with others, to challenge standard ways of thinking, and thus to stir up controversy. (Graff and Birkenstein) Advantages of the They Say/I Say template: 1. helps open your text names issue 2. identifies voices in the controversy 3. introduce quotations in your own words 4. explain the quotation in your own words 5. state your own argument 6. qualify your argument 7. then support your argument with evidence 8. plants an opponent in your text EXAMPLE If ever there were a newspaper headline custom-made for Jay Leno s monologue, this was it. Kids taking on McDonald s this week, suing the company for making them fat. Isn t that like middle-aged men suing Porsche for making them get speeding tickets? Whatever happened to personal responsibility? I tend to sympathize with these portly fast-food patrons, though. Maybe that s because I used to be one of them. David Zinczenko, Don t Blame the Eater In other words They say that kids suing fast-food companies for making them fat is a joke, but I say such lawsuits are justified. Templates for Introducing an Ongoing Debate Example That we are a nation divided is an almost universal lament of this bitter election year. However, the exact property that divides us elemental though it is said to be remains a matter of some controversy. --Thomas Frank, American Psyche

3 The Art of Summarizing Put yourself in their shoes; try to see their argument from their perspective. Play the believing game. Example, don t say that someone is promoting an evil conspiracy unless you believe that the person would say he or she is actually doing just that. Know where you are going; make sure the summary fits with your own agenda as well as being true to the text you are summarizing. Avoid boring list summaries. (First the author says.then he says.in addition he states also he says.and then says ) BORING Use signal verbs that fit. Quoting Quote relevant passages (be selective!!!). Frame every quotation. Blend the author s words with you own. Do not quote by X asserts and idea that or A quote by X is Agree to Disagree Disagree and explain why Agree but with a difference (do more than simply echo; bring something new and fresh to the subject) Agree and disagree simultaneously (go beyond the is too/is not arguments) Distinguish what you say from what they say Determine who is saying what in the texts you read. Use voice markers (both overt and embedded) to signal. Plant a Naysayer in your text Anticipate objections Introduce objections and represent objections fairly Answer objections Establish why your claim matters Answer the who cares? and so what? questions By explaining why it matters, urging readers to keep reading, pay attention, and care

4 TEMPLATES for Responding She argues.., and I agree because Her argument that is supported by new research showing that. He claims that, and I have mixed feelings about it. On the one hand, I agree that. On the other hand, I still insist that. In recent discussions of, a controversial issue has been whether. On the one hand, some argue that. From this perspective,. On the other hand, however, others argue that. In the words of one of this views main proponents,. According to this view,. In sum, then, the issue is whether or. My own view is that. Though I concede that, I still maintain that. For example,. Although some might object that, I reply that. The issue is important because. Templates for Introducing what they say A number of historians have suggested that x s work has several basic problems. It has become common today to dismiss x s contribution to the field of science. In their recent work, Y and Z have offered harsh critiques of X for. Standard Views Americans today tend to believe that. Conventional wisdom has it that. Common sense seems to dictate that. The standard way of thinking about topic x has it that. It is often said that. My whole life I have heard it said that. Many people assume that. Templates for Making What They Say Something You Say I ve always believed that. \When I was a child, I used to think that. Although I should know better by now, I cannot help thinking that. At the same time that I believe, I also believe. Templates for Introducing Something Implied or Assumed Although none of them have ever said so directly, my teachers have often given me the impression that. One implication of X s treatment of is that. Although X does not say so directly, she apparently assumes that. While they rarely admit as much, often take for granted that.

5 Templates for Introducing an Ongoing Debate In discussions of X, one controversial issue has been. On the one hand, argues. On the other hand, contends. Others even maintain. My own view is. When it comes to the topic of, most of us will readily agree that. Where this agreement usually ends, however, is on the question of. Whereas some are convinced that, others maintain that. Templates for Introducing summaries and quotations She demonstrates that. In fact, they celebrate the fact that., he admits. VERBS for Introducing Summaries and Quotations For making a claim Argue insist emphasize suggest assert observe remind us believe claim report Verbs for Expressing Agreement Acknowledge corroborate endorse Admire agree do not deny Praise reaffirm support Verify extol Verbs for Questioning or Disagreeing Complain contend deplore the tendency to Complicate contradict deny Disavow question refute Reject renounce repudiate Verbs for Making Recommendations Advocate encourage exhort warn Call for demand implore Plead recommend urge Templates for Introducing Quotations X states,. As the prominent philosopher X puts it,. X himself writes,. In her article, X maintains that. Writing in the journal Health, X complains that. In X s view,. X agrees when she writes,.

6 X disagrees when he writes,. X complicates matters further when she writes,. *use language that accurately reflects spirit of quoted passage Templates for explaining quotations Basically, X is saying. In other words, X believes. In making the comment, X argues that. X is insisting that. X s point is that. The essence of X s argument is that. *Blend the author s words with your own (integrate your quotes). Templates for Disagreeing, with Reasons I think X is mistaken because she overlooks. X s claim that rests upon the questionable assumption that. I disagree with X s views that because, as recent research has shown,. X contradicts herself/can t have it both ways. On the one hand, she argues. However, on the other hand, she also says. By focusing on, X overlooks the deeper problem of. X claims, but we don t need him to tell us that. Anyone familiar with has long known that. Templates for Agreeing I agree that because my experience confirms it. X is surely right about because, as she may not be aware, recent studies have shown that. X s theory of is extremely useful because it sheds insight on the difficult problem of. I agree that, a point that needs emphasizing since so many people believe. Those unfamiliar with this school of thought may be interested to know that it basically boils down to. Templates for Agreeing and Disagreeing Simultaneously Although I agree with X up to a point, I cannot accept his overall conclusion that. Although I disagree with much that X says, I fully endorse his final conclusion that. Though I concede that, I still insist that. X is right that, but she seems on more dubious ground when she claims that. Whereas X provides ample evidence that, Y and Z s research on and convinces me that. I m of two minds about X s claim that. On the one hand, I agree that. On the other hand, I m not sure if. My feelings on the issue are mixed. I do support X s position that, but I find Y s argument about and Z s research on to be equally persuasive.

7 Templates for Signaling who is saying what in your own writing (avoid being monotonous X says I agree ) X is right that. The evidence shows that. X s assertion that does not fit the facts. Anyone familiar with should agree that. X overlooks what I consider an important point about. My own view is that what X insists is a is in fact a. I wholeheartedly endorse what X calls. These conclusions, which X discusses in, add weight to the argument that. Templates for Entertaining Objections At this point I would like to raise some objections. Perhaps I have been ignoring. Yet some readers may challenge my view that. Indeed, my own argument that seems to ignore and. Of course, many will probably disagree with this assertion that. Templates for Naming your naysayers Here many feminists would probably object that. Social Darwinists would certainly take issue with the argument that. Biologists, of course, may want to dispute my claim that. Nevertheless, both followers and critics of Malcolm X will probably suggest otherwise and argue that. Templates for Introducing Objections Informally Is my proposal realistic? What are the chances of its actually being adopted? Yet is it always true that? Is it always the case, as I have been suggesting that? However, does the evidence I ve cited prove conclusively that? Templates for making concessions while still standing your ground Although I grant that, I still maintain that. Proponents of X are right to argue that, but they exaggerate when they claim that. While it is true, it does not necessarily follow that. On the one hand, I agree with X that. However, on the other hand, I still insist that. Templates for establishing why your claims matter X matters/is important because. Although X may seem trivial, it is in fact crucial in terms of today s concern over. Ultimately, what is at stake here is. These conclusions will have significant applications in as well as in. Although X may seem of concern to only a small group of, it should in fact concern anyone who cares about. **All material taken from They Say/ I Say by Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein

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