Assignment:

Leading a Discussion on a Literacy Essay

Prepare to lead a 30 to 40 minute discussion (not deliver a lecture) on the literacy essay assigned to your group.  All other members of the class will have read the essay, so there is no reason to summarize the essay.  Your task is to develop a set of questions that clarify the essay and encourage those in the class to make connections to other essays from the readings.  As you formulate questions, try to anticipate class members’ responses and be prepared with follow-up questions.  You may ask students to respond in writing to a question or two, either individually or in pairs, and use the responses during the discussion.  During the discussion, encourage class members to voice differing responses and encourage your classmates to negotiate the various points of view rather than simply supplying the “right” answer.

In addition, prepare a study guide to be handed out after the discussion on the article your group has been assigned.  Follow these general guidelines:

1.      Identify your group members, the article, and the author.

2.      Describe the thesis or focus of the article in your own words.

3.      How does the author support the thesis – specific details, examples, and descriptions?  What supporting evidence might be useful to illustrate an argument on the exam about the essay?  You can use powerful quotes, statistics, and so forth.

4.      What key terms, concepts, and definitions did you encounter in this essay?

5.      Write two essay questions we could use for the exam.  In each question, connect your article with at least one other article from the readings.  For example, “Compare and contrast what constitutes literacy in article x with articles y and z.”

Design your study guide so the information is accessible and clear.