Week 13: Drop-In Conferencing
Week of Mon, Nov 9 · week closes Fri, Nov 13
This week's items
Exact due times are in Canvas. Late out-of-class assignments accepted up to one week past the original due date. In-class process work and Discussion Board assignments cannot be made up.
Know these cold
- Drop-in conferences are available Tuesday and Thursday this week. Prof. Upchurch will provide individualized feedback on your research paper. Bring a printed or on-screen copy of your draft.
- Before conferencing, prepare specific questions: 'Is my thesis specific enough?' 'Does my counterargument paragraph feel complete?' 'Are my transitions between sections clear?' Vague questions receive vague answers.
- A conference is not a grading session. Prof. Upchurch will respond to your draft as a reader — flagging what is working, what is confusing, and what needs development.
- Higher-order conference topics: thesis clarity, argument structure, evidence quality, counterargument, paragraph development, conclusion effectiveness.
- After conferencing, return to your draft and address the feedback before drafting your reflection. The conference is most valuable if you revise while the feedback is fresh.
- Begin planning your reflection this week. The reflection asks you to look back across the semester: what did you learn about your own writing process? What changed in your understanding of how arguments are built?
- A strong reflection is not a list of what you did — it is an analysis of how you grew. Point to specific evidence from your own writing: 'My first draft had no counterargument; my final draft addresses the opposing view in paragraph four because...'
- Slide presentations begin in Week 15 (Tuesday) and conclude in Finals Week (Thursday, December 3). This week is the right time to look back at your research paper and identify the three or four most important points for an audience.
Discussion and forum — how to show up
Discussion post
- Write three specific questions you want to address in your conference with Prof. Upchurch. What aspect of your essay are you most uncertain about?
- Look back at your Summary/Response Essay from Week 3. What has changed in how you write — and what evidence in your recent drafts shows that change?
Netiquette from the syllabus: address ideas, not people. Complete sentences, correct spelling. Personal matters go to email, never the board.
Meerk's quiz — open the Week 13 gate
10 questions, no time limit. 85% on your first attempt in a 24-hour window opens the gate. Retakes inside the window are practice — they help you learn, they don't count. Work alone; the point is to know it, not to have seen it.
Dinner Table Question
Ask at home: If you could rewrite your research essay's introduction with everything you know now, what would you do differently — and why?
En español: Si pudieras reescribir la introducción de tu ensayo de investigación con todo lo que sabes ahora, ¿qué harías diferente y por qué?