You Gotta’ Agree with Me

This past week’s workshop was also very enlightening! A big thanks goes out to Dr. Kitty Burroughs for leading our discussion about argumentation. At first, she discussed a handout that she provided: Strategies_for_Argumentation. She explained that in an argument, identifying the audience becomes important (a skill we learned in the workshop on September 17th!) In small groups, we discussed the claim, and learned how to develop arguments and reasons according to the audience. After we learned how to develop these arguments and focus them to the right audience, Dr. Burroughs helped us understand concession and refuting. This is where the idea of a counter argument comes in. What would your opposition say? Would you concede and explain that their argument holds some merit? Or would you just refute and argue back? These are  important elements to consider when drafting your counter argument. Overall, Dr. Burroughs argued that ALL writing is argumentative, no matter the context. In all cases, the writer is still try to make a point and argue it, whether it is a position paper, a research paper, a MSE or even a dissertation. At this point in the workshop, we took some time to really analyze what kinds of pieces are argumentative, and what makes them so effective. Once again, we really want to thank Dr. Burroughs for helping us understand arguments and how to build them effectively!

Don’t forget about our workshop this week: “Revising: The Most Important Part of the Writing Process.” At this workshop, we will help you improve your revising skills by offering practical strategies to revise your work. This is a great opportunity to learn the basics of revising and break down the complicated process into some helpful tips. So check it out on Thursday, October 1st, from 2:30 to 3:30 in Moseley Hall Room 400. 

Remember to stay tuned for other October workshops- updates will be posted shortly!

You Talking to Me?

We hope you all made it to our last workshop, but in case you didn’t (or would like a refresher), here’s what you missed:

A big thanks goes out to Donna Nelson-Beene for joining us. Donna Nelson-Beene was our insightful speaker for this specific workshop and led our discussion. To begin with, she introduced the notion of audience. Take some time to think about it- Who is your audience? How does it affect the way you write your text?

Next, she used her expertise to discuss a short article. She introduced the idea of formal, informal & semiformal audiences, and how word choice changes depending on what kind of audience you are directing your argument towards.

Donna Nelson-Beene was a great help in teaching us how to identify our audience effectively and learn how to target our audience. She listened to the attendees’ essay concerns and general comments about how they are writing their drafts. With this in mind, she was able to give personalized information to students to help them focus their argument better. Overall, Donna Nelson-Beene really helped us understand the importance of audience, and we thank her for all of her great information and useful tips!

Remember, we will be having another workshop this Thursday, September 24th- “You Gotta’ Agree with Me: Strategies for Argumentation.” This workshop will help writers learn how and why arguments are structured as they are. If you are struggling with developing arguments or would just like to know more about them, check it out. We hope to see you there on Thursday, from 2:30-3:30 in Moseley Hall 400.

Workshop Tomorrow!

Don’t forget to check out tomorrow’s workshop! The “You Talking to Me? How Audience Influences Writing”  will help writers identify their audience and learn how to organize their ideas to effectively reach their attended audience.

Remember, it’s tomorrow, Thursday, September 17th from 2:30-3:30 in Moseley Hall, Room 400.

We hope to see you there!

Fall 2009 Workshops

Hello BGSU members!

Welcome back for the Fall 2009 semester! Here at the Writing Center, we have some promising workshops coming to you this fall. First off, I hope everyone remembers that all workshops are on Thursdays, 2:30-3:30 P.M. in Moseley Hall Room 400. In September alone, we are offering two great options:

The first workshop is coming very soon! On September 17, we will be hosting “You Talking to Me? How Audience Influences Writing”. This workshop will help writers to identify their audience and help them focus their text to better reach their readers. This workshop can be really helpful for most writers struggling to pinpoint their best audience.

The second workshop this month will be on September 24: “You Gotta’ Agree With Me: Strategies for Argumentation”. During this workshop, you will learn “how and why arguments are organized as they are”. Considering that argumentation is a big element of academic writing, writers could use tools they learn in this workshop to strengthen their texts.

We are really looking forward to seeing you at the Writing Center Workshops this semester. Stay tuned for our October selections!