BYU Course Memo

Note: This text is a course memo I wrote as a writing consultant at BYU's Research and Writing Center. Certain elements have been removed to maintain anonymity. In collaboration with the instructor of this course, I was tasked with creating a concise but still thorough description of each of the major assignments within the course for both students in the class and consultants at the RWC to reference. 

Class Name:	Writing 150
Instructor Name:	(INSTRUCTOR NAME)
Assignment(s):	Op-Ed, Issues Paper, Annotated Bibliography, Multimodal Project (students likely won’t come to the RWC for this project)
Due Dates:	Opinion Editorial: (date) Annotated Bibliography: (date) Issues Paper: (date) Multimodal Project: (date)

Students in this course will attend the Research and Writing Center for assistance with four different central assignments: the opinion editorial, annotated bibliography, issues paper, and multimodal project.

Op-Ed

Students have been asked to develop a clear opinion-based claim and construct a 3-4 page opinion editorial that unpacks one piece of supporting evidence for that claim. Sources (academic or non-academic) are not required for the opinion editorial, though they may be used if the student would like.

Structure: The op-ed should focus on an opinion-based claim and one supporting piece of evidence. A call to action (explicit or more implicit) is required as well as a brief rebuttal of any anticipated counterclaims.

Audience: The assigned audience is college students, though writers may focus on a more specific sub-group of college students (i.e., students of particular major, university, town, etc.) Additionally, the writer needs to address those students who don’t initially share the opinion that the author holds. Therefore, the author must consider the consequences of the given claim on their audience and address those consequences in order to provide the most convincing argument for their audience.

Annotated Bibliography

In preparation for completing their Issues Papers, students will be required to complete an annotated bibliography with at least five academic sources. They must provide the MLA citation of the source, a one- to two-sentence summary of the source (not just “this is an academic journal article”), and a more specific analysis or quotation about parts of the source and how the student anticipates using within their issues paper.

Issues Paper

The issues paper will be an opportunity for students to expound on their opinion editorials by constructing an 8-10 page paper that focuses on the same claim. Again, the writer needs to address a body of students who don’t initially share the opinion that the author holds. To fully address the concerns of this opposing audience, the author must consider the consequences of the given claim on their audience and address those consequences in order to provide the most convincing argument for their audience. Students are also encouraged to include some of the same rhetorical tools they included in their op-eds (stories, approachable tone, acknowledging audience values/fears, ethos/pathos/logos) while crafting their issues papers.

Multimodal Project

(It is unlikely that students will come to the RWC for help with this assignment, as it is primarily reflection-based and therefore not as demanding in terms of writing compared to the other assignments. In the case students do seek help, details on the project are found below.)

Project Structure: Students will work in groups of three to design a hash-tag-based public social initiative that attempts to solve or raise awareness of a pressing social issue (examples: the War on Terror, polarization in political parties, human trafficking, school bullying, world hunger, or funding liberal arts in public schools). Examples of such social initiatives include #LighttheWorld, #BecauseofHim, #BlackLivesMatter, or #MeToo. After creating a hash-tag that represents their selected social issue, students will create a multimodal project as a fuller campaign to accompany their hash-tag slogan. Some projects may take the form of a webpage, social media group page, blog, Vlog on YouTube or similar channel, Ted Talk presentation, sculptures, painting or series of paintings, comic strip, photo gallery, advertisement/commercial, music video (with original music, not a cover song), newspaper article, or magazine feature (for a specific publication).

Reflection Write-up: Each member of the group must submit a two-page write-up wherein students must: identify the problem and explain why it is kairotic; provide a clear, direct thesis statement for their project (describing the campaign and its intended outcome); explain why this project is relevant in our world today and why it should be implemented in our society; outline specific settings and audiences where the student would want to present this project (If you were to go public with your initiative, who are some key individuals, scholars, celebrities, or politicians that you would want to represent you and encourage your initiative? Why?); and explain how this initiative is going to change the world.

Additional Notes for RWC Consultants

This instructor does not discourage the use the personal pronoun “I” or plural pronouns such as “we” or “us,” so students are welcome to use those pronouns in these assignments.