Write an analysis of a journal article, magazine article, editorial,

• Format: Typed, double-spaced, submitted as a word-processing document.
  12 point, text-weight font, 1-inch margins.
• Length: 1500-2000 words (approx. 6-8 pages)
• Value: This project will be graded out of 100 possible points, and will be worth 30% of the grade for the course.
• Overview: in Unit 4: Writing Analysis, students will develop an analytical argument that shows original thinking and offers insight into their topic. They will offer conclusions that address the implications of how their perspective might influence the way the topic is perceived or practiced.

Assignment

Write an analysis of a journal article, magazine article, editorial, speech, book, or website.

Analysis is a common form of academic writing that asks us to think critically as readers and make connections between arguments and their larger contexts. For this project, you will identify an issue relevant to the community you investigated in the previous unit. Then, you will explore the written arguments surrounding that issue, eventually narrowing your focus to a single journal article, magazine article, editorial, speech, book, or website. After you choose this text, you will analyze the context, subtext and appeals of a particular text, focusing on both textual analysis (close reading of the text itself) and contextual analysis (analyzing the text within its larger context). Your final analysis should offer a better or richer understanding of how the text represents a topic (concept, issue, or other idea) that has significance for a specific community or communities (168).

Objectives

These questions help to guide discussion and inquiry for this unit. The goal is not necessarily to answer these questions, but to explore them through the work of class discussions, writing, and reflection.

• What is analysis? What is the purpose and value of analysis in classroom settings and outside of school? 
• What potential does writing have to make change in the world? What are the implications of written arguments? What impacts can arguments have on communities? 
• How can I use writing to explain and break down complex ideas into parts that audiences can understand? How can writing allow me to share my insight with others? 
• How can I use writing to advance larger points or ideas that I want to communicate? How can I advocate through writing? 

Assignment Components

 In order to finish this project, we will work on the following parts over the course of this unit:

• Invention/Prewriting: Submit a collection of the invention work, pre-reflection, prewriting, in-class drafting, and other work that shows evidence of the writer’s process in creating the final submission for the research essay. 
• Analysis proposal: Develop a proposal outlining the issue the writer will address in their analysis, the audience affected, the context and scope of the issue, the specific perspectives the writer will consider. It should also name/link the specific text that is being analyzed. From this proposal, a reader should be able to understand that the writer is engaging in ethical decision-making skills.
• Analysis Essay Draft: Include at least one pre-revised draft of your essay. The draft needs to meet the word count of 1500 words and must also apply formatting requirements for the project—in other words it must be complete. Make sure that your draft is clearly marked “draft.”
• Peer Review: We will complete a guided peer-review process via Canvas. You will need to provide thoughtful and targeted feedback to your peers to earn the peer review points for this unit.
• Peer Review Report: At the end of the peer review process, you will reflect on the feedback you gave and received and make a plan for revision based on that feedback. 
• Analysis Essay Final: For your final submission, you will need to have revised your draft(s) to incorporate the changes recommended by your peers and feedback from your instructor. This final should meet all of the assignment criteria, and will be evaluated with the Writing Analysis rubric.
• Reflective Self-Analysis: In addition to your written analysis, you will also complete a reflective essay analyzing the effectiveness of the the essay you created for this unit. In the self-analysis, the you will use passages from your own writing and prewriting as evidence for the claims you make about your own writing process and writing strategies.