General Instructions for Document Discussions
Document Discussion Posts General Instructions:
You are required to submit an original post for part one, and then two responses to what other students posted for part two. Using the worksheets, How to Analyze (found under the How to Analyze tab for each section), you are to prepare a minimum of 300-310 (maximum) word post on one of the documents found under the documents for discussion tab for each course section. The worksheets should form the basis of your post, do not turn in your worksheet. The first post must be posted before you see the discussion stream and then you are responsible for responding to two other students' posts on two different documents that you did not use for your original post. Response posts should be 8-10 sentences.
Step 1: Select the document you want to write about from the tab, Documents for Discussion. Read the document.
Step 2: Find the appropriate How to Analyze worksheet. Use that worksheet data as the basis for your discussion post.
Step 3: Write your discussion post in paragraph form, making sure that you address the required elements from the How to Analyze worksheet. I suggest you write your discussion text in your word processor.
Step 4: Check your word count, make sure that your post is between 300-310 words. Make sure that you have followed all instructions regarding quotation and citation. Also, check your grammar and word usage. Edit accordingly.
Step 5: Upload your discussion to the discussion board, make sure that you include the salutation.
Step 6: Read and respond to two students who have written on two different documents and not what you wrote about in your original post. Count your sentences and make sure that your responses are 8-10 sentences (not lines), and follow the formatting instructions, and have a salutation.
Posts are due by the Saturday due date by 11:55 pm, except for the first discussion, which is due on Sunday due to July 4th holiday. Do not wait until the due date to complete the assignment. The assignment opens on Monday morning at 6 am and closes Saturday at 11:55 pm. Make sure that you give yourself enough time to complete both parts of the assignment. Do not wait until the due date and time to complete the assignment.
Format information:
All posts must contain a salutation or greeting that indicates to whom you are responding, such as Dear Dr. Beachley and classmates (original post)or Dear Jane (responses to other students).
All words are counted towards the post after the salutation, which includes any quotes used and citations.
Also, response posts should respond to the substance of what another has posted, and not include extraneous information (such as, Great post Ashley. I like what you say. It was very detailed. or You have an incomplete sentence and misspelled words in your post.). Pick at least two examples from the student's post to respond to. Salutations will not count in the word count or sentence count.
Do not include sentences like My name is Ashley and I am going to write about Thomas Jefferson's speech. Points will be deducted for doing so.
Watch grammar and spelling. The original post should be structured as a paragraph with a topic sentence and complete sentences. Each posting should provide an explanation and specific examples (with an indication from where in the source you have drawn the information). Do not use the background material for the substance of your post, except for a date or author information. No outside research (that even means lectures, textbooks).
How to provide proper citation: When you are writing your discussion post and using specific examples from the sources you must introduce and identify the source you are using, provide the paraphrased or quoted material and then provide the paragraph number (for written sources) from where that material is drawn at the end of the sentence in which it appears. It would look something like this: For instance, George Washington, concerned with maintaining the neutrality of the nation in 1793, "realized that the United States was in no condition to fight a war" (par. 4). Constructing your examples this way ensures that the reader knows that it is a specific example and exactly from where that material is drawn.
Limit use of quoted material in your discussion post. No long quotations, which are more than two lines of text. I am interested in what you are able to get out of the material and not that you can drop a quote into a paragraph. Use only one short quote per paragraph. Paragraphs that string together a series of quotes are not acceptable. If you are using multiple examples from different sources in your paragraph, you will need to choose your quote carefully and paraphrase other material (remembering to cite that material properly).
Any posting that does not meet the criteria will have points deducted. Points will be deducted for having a post that is longer than 310 words or shorter than 300 words.
Late discussion posts are not accepted.