grade 8: unit 2 benchmark assessment: argumentative...

1

Grade 8: Unit 2 Benchmark Assessment: Argumentative Paper

The Supreme Court makes decisions based on the Constitution that affect the lives of all United States Citizens. When a case is

brought to the Supreme Court, the justices come to a decision in which they make a claim based on evidence from past court cases

(precedents), as well as the Constitution.

Choose and research the court case that interests you the most. Synthesize information from multiple sources to provide a brief

history of the case and explain which amendment the court used to make their decision. Determine whether this court case has had

a positive or negative impact on teens today. Use evidence from the sources to argue at least two ways this case has negatively/

positively impacted teens. Remember you will need to use at least (3) sources to earn a proficient score, one of which must be a

video source.

The court case I am researching is ___________________________ vs. _______________________________.

plaintiff defendant

This case deals with the conflict between _______________________and __________________________. plaintiff “value” defendant “value”

I am arguing that students are ____________________ affected today. “positively” or “negatively”

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Ideas & Content: Central Idea/ Argument (Argument Writing)

Advanced: 88-100%

4

Proficient: 73-87%

3

Partially Proficient: 60-73%

2

Below Proficiency: 0-59%

1

Offers precise and insightful

claims.

Provides thoroughly developed

analysis by backing all claims.

Develops effective, convincing

appeals to logos, ethos and

pathos.

Supports position with

compelling, relevant, accurate,

and credible evidence. (4

sources)

Refutes counterclaims when

appropriate.

Conveys an accurate and in-

depth understanding of the

topic, audience, and purpose for

the writing task.

Offers clear and explicit

claims.

Provides adequate analysis

by backing claims.

Develops and/or imitates

appeals to logos.

Attempts appeals to

ethos and/or pathos

Supports position with

relevant and credible

evidence. (3 sources – at

least 1 must be a video clip)

Identifies counterclaims.

Attempts to refute

counterclaim

Conveys an accurate and

complete understanding of

the topic, audience, and

purpose for the writing

task.

Offers claims which are

somewhat limited and/or

especially broad and

vague.

Provides minimal analysis

in terms of backing claims.

Attempts appeals to logos.

Attempts to support

position with evidence;

however, evidence may be

minimal, irrelevant, or

inadequate.

Conveys a partially

accurate and/or somewhat

basic understanding of the

topic, audience, and

purpose for the writing

task.

Claims are indistinct, too

limited, confusing, and/or

especially vague.

Little or no analysis in terms

of backing claims.

No appeals to logos.

Provides little or no

evidence; response consists

mainly of narration and/or

repetition of content.

Conveys a confused,

incoherent, or largely

inaccurate understanding of

the topic, audience, and

purpose for the writing task.

Voice (Argument Writing)

Established tone is consistently

authoritative and convincing.

Establishes and maintains a

formal style and objective

tone.

Establishes an inconsistent

formal style and objective

tone.

Establishes tone not suitable

for purpose.

3

Word Choice & Sentence Fluency (Argument Writing)

Advanced: 88-100%

4

Proficient: 73-87%

3


2


1

Language is fluent, original,

precise and engaging, with a

notable sense of voice and

awareness of audience and

purpose.

Employs figurative/rhetorical

language purposefully and

successfully (e.g. analogy or

metaphor for clarity, organization,

and style).

Example: Writer includes

multiple and appropriate types of

evidence and warranting that

strengthen and extend claim.

(FEEDS & GAS CAP)

Effectively incorporates a range of

varied sentence patterns, including

varied sentence beginnings.

Language is fluent and precise

with evident awareness of

audience and purpose.


language purposefully.


some appropriate evidence

and warranting to strengthen

and extend claim.

(FEEDS & GAS CAP)

Incorporates some varied

sentence patterns and beginning.

Language is appropriate but

basic with limited awareness of

audience and purpose.


language limitedly and with

limited success.


evidence and warranting, but

they do not always strengthen

and/or extend claim.

(FEEDS & GAS CAP)

Makes some attempt to include

different sentence patterns but

with awkward or uneven

success.

Relies on basic, imprecise, or

sometimes unsuitable vocabulary

for the audience or purpose.

Lacks figurative/rhetorical

language.

Example: (FEEDS & GAS

CAP missing.)

Reveals a confused understanding

of how to write in complete

sentences; shows little or no

ability to vary sentence patterns.

MLA Citations The document is expertly formatted in

accordance with MLA (includes page

layout, in-text citations, works cited

page) and free of plagiarism.

Student consistently uses

accurate and correctly formatted

in-text citations within the

research paper.

Student includes a Works Cited

page that demonstrates expert

understanding of the MLA

requirements for required source

information and formatting.

The research paper is presented

correctly according to MLA

requirements such as heading,

page numbers, margins, title,

font, and spacing.

The document is consistently

formatted in accordance with MLA

(includes page layout, in-text

citations, works cited page) and free

of plagiarism. Student mostly uses accurate and

correctly formatted in-text citations

within the research paper.

Student includes a Works Cited page

that demonstrates average




The research paper is mostly

presented correctly according to MLA

requirements such as heading, page

numbers, margins, title, font, and

spacing.

The document is inconsistently

formatted in accordance with MLA;

however, it is free of plagiarism.

Student uses in-text citations, but

they are done inconsistently or

are not formatted correctly.


page that demonstrates minimal




The research paper is somewhat

presented correctly according to

MLA requirements such as

heading, page numbers, margins,

title, font, and spacing.

The document is incorrectly

formatted according to MLA

specifications and may include

plagiarism because of incorrect

citations/MLA format.

Student does not use in-text

citations within the research paper.


page that demonstrates no




The research paper is presented

incorrectly according to MLA

requirements such as heading, page

numbers, margins, title, font, and

spacing.

4

Organization (Argument Writing)

Advanced: 88-100%

4

Proficient: 73-87%

3


2


1

Skillfully establishes and maintains

consistent focus on a clear and

compelling thesis.

Introduction has an engaging

hook, enough background

information for the reader to

understand the topic and a clear

thesis statement.

Exhibits logical and coherent

structure with claims, evidence and

backing that convincingly support

the thesis.

Body paragraphs follow the

thesis order. Topic sentences

state the claim. All evidence is

focused on the claims.

Progresses with purposeful pacing

and makes skillful use of

transitional words and phrases.

Author knows when to slow

down to elaborate, and when to

move on.

Weaves quotes and paraphrasing

into the text selectively to maintain

the flow of ideas in a logical order.

Context is used effectively to

introduce quotes.(Level 3!)

Concludes with purpose and gives

sense of finality that is memorable.

Establishes and maintains focus on a

clear thesis.

Introduction has a hook, some

background information and a

clear thesis statement.

Exhibits a logical sequence of claims

and evidence to support the thesis.

Paragraphs follow the thesis

order. Topic sentences state

the claim. All evidence is

focused on the claims.

Progresses with controlled pacing

and makes functional use of

transitional words and phrases

There are still places the

writer needs to highlight or

move through more quickly.

Integrates quotes and paraphrasing

in a logical order.

Signal phrases are used to

introduce quotes.(Level 2!)

Concludes with purpose.

Establishes but sometimes fails to

maintain focus on a thesis.

Thesis statement is present

but introduction is missing

hook or background

information.

Exhibits a sometimes logical

sequence of claims, evidence, and

backing; ideas within paragraphs

may be inconsistently organized.

Paragraphs have a

recognizable order, but some

paragraphs may not include

topic sentences. Evidence

sometimes supports claims.

Progresses at an awkward pace,

making an inconsistent attempt to

use basic transitional words and

phrases.

Inserts quotes and paraphrasing.

May use quote bombs/

floating quotes (Level 1)

Vague or unsatisfying conclusion.

Fails to include a thesis or thesis is

confused or irrelevant; fails to

maintain focus.

Introduction is missing the

hook and thesis statement.

Little attempt to organize ideas into a

beginning, middle, and end, creating a

complete lack of organization and

coherence.

Paragraphs have no

recognizable order. Topic

sentences are missing in all

paragraphs. Evidence does not

support claims.

Progress is halted; makes little or no

attempt to use transition words or

phrases.

Fails to use quotes and paraphrasing.

Limited or no conclusion.

Conventions (Grammar and Mechanics)

Demonstrates control of the

conventions with essentially

no errors, even with

sophisticated language.

Demonstrates control of the

conventions, exhibiting occasional

errors only when using sophisticated

language (e.g., punctuation of

complex sentences); errors do not

hinder comprehension.

Demonstrates partial control;

multiple errors sometimes hinder

comprehension (e.g., agreement of

pronouns and antecedents; spelling

of basic words).

Demonstrates lack of control,

exhibiting frequent errors that make

comprehension difficult (e.g., subject

verb agreement; use of slang).

5

Claims After having the chance to look at some sources and information in your packet, you need to identify whether you

are going to argue the case had a negative or a positive impact on teens today. You need to create two sub-claims to support whether or not the ruling impacts teens’ lives in a positive or negative way.

Thesis Sentence Stem Options: A. Due to the ruling of ________________________, young people’s lives today are positively/negatively impacted because…

B. The ruling of ______________________ negatively/positively impacts minor’s lives today because...

______________________________ Sub-claim #1: ________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Sub-claim #2: _________________________________________________________________________________________________________

WRITE YOUR OWN THESIS STATEMENT:

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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Research Paper Organization

Background information on your case.

Evidence

*Use research and DRAPES to support your claim*

Sub-Claim #1: One reason why this case impacts minors’ lives today.

Evidence

*Use FEEDS, include quotes from

your sources

Warrant

*Use GAS CAP, logos, pathos &

ethos to support your claim

Sub-Claim #2: Another reason why this case impacts minors’ lives in

today.

Evidence

*Use FEEDS, include quotes from

your sources

Warrant

*Use GAS CAP, logos, pathos &

ethos to support your claim

Intr

oduc

tion

P

arag

raph

Bod

y P

arag

raph

s

Con

clus

ion

Par

agra

ph

*Transition to closing. *Summarize your main

support. *End with a powerful closing.

*Get reader’s attention *Transition and provide background for topic

*Clearly state your thesis

7

MLA In-Text Citations

In-text citations are necessary for

an MLA style research paper. After

you have paraphrased or quoted

information from a source, you must

use a parenthetical citation at the

end of the sentence, right before the

period. If you provide the

information for an electronic source

within the sentence, you do not need

the parenthetical citation.

They look like this:

Antonio Banderas proved to be more

than just another good actor when he “was

awarded the European Contribution to

World Cinema by the European Film

Academy” (Allison 55).

The only woman who was officially a

veteran of the Union Army was Sara Emma

Edmonds. She had to disguise herself as a

man in order to enlist (Harness).

After serving her country in numerous

ways, “Emma wrote her memoirs titled

Nurse and Spy in the Union Army, which

became a very popular book selling

thousands of copies” (“Sara Emma

Edmonds (1841-1898)”).

IMPORTANT TO NOTE:

*If there is no author, use the title of

the article or the website (the very first

part of the citation on your works cited

page).

*If you mention the author’s name in your

sentence, you don’t have to put it in the

parentheses; use just the page number.

*You CANNOT have a citation in the middle

of a sentence.

*If you do not cite your information in the

text, you are PLAGARIZING.

*If you have a few sentences that all come

from the same source, it is okay to use one in-

text citation at the end (the last sentence).

*Do NOT end a paragraph with a citation.

Add a concluding/summary sentence.

Integrating information into your

paper

You may choose to reword the information

you find or you may take direct quotes from

your sources; either way, you must cite the

source where you found the information. If

you choose to use direct quotes, you must

“blend” the quotes into your writing. A quote

should not stand alone in your paper.

Standing Alone (wrong!)

Edgar Allan Poe changed the course of

literature. “He is widely acknowledged as the

inventor of the modern detective story”

(“Poe’s Life”).

Blended (much better!):

Edgar Allan Poe changed the course of

literature as he is “widely acknowledged as

the inventor of the modern detective story”

(“Poe’s Life”).

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Levels of Quote Usage (You want level 3!!)

Level #1: The amateur quote (The “quote bomb,” or the “floating quote”)

Examples:

The court said it was okay to try kids as adults. “Juveniles suspected of serious

crimes” (Kent vs. United States 543).

The court ruled that the Juvenile Court could give the case to district court. “That

Court had before it sufficient evidence to make an informed judgment” (Kent vs.

United States 543).

Level #2: Okay sometimes, but not great (The Git-r-done quote)

Examples:

The court said it was okay to try kids as adults. We can see this when Justice Fortas

writes that "juveniles suspected of serious offenses" can be moved from Juvenile

Court (Kent vs. United States 543).

Justice Fortas also writes that the Juvenile Court was okay giving the case to the

District Court. He expresses this when he writes, “that Court had before it sufficient

evidence to make an informed judgment” (Kent vs. United States 543).

Level #3: The expert (Smooth quote)

Examples:

Justice Fortas determined that a “juvenile suspected of serious offenses” could be

tried as an adult under certain circumstances (Kent vs. United States 543).

Later in his opinion, Justice Fortas expressed that the Juvenile Court originally had

“sufficient evidence to make an informed judgment,” so it was okay that they had

sealed Kent’s juvenile record (560).

The relationship between the sentences isn't clear,

and we're forcing the reader to assume too much.

Huh? What’s the

connection??

This gets the job done and might be okay sometimes,

but not very often. It's like waving a big sign around

to the reader or listening audience that says, "Hey,

there's going to be a quote right here!"

Duh!

This expert-level quote presents us with evidence and

context without making the reader work too hard.

Test: Cover up the quotation marks with your

fingers. If the sentence reads like a regular

sentence, no flags or markers setting it off, then it

worked.

Smooth…

9

Verbs Used in MLA Style Signal Phrases

(adapted from Diana Hacker’s Rules for Writers 5th ed., p. 408)

MLA style signal phrases consist of the name and qualification of your source followed by a verb

which reflects his or her tone, attitude and position:

Shawn Bascom, International Student Coordinator, claims that “....”;

Dr. Hatzenbuehler, history professor at ISU, points out that “....” ;

As President Arthor Vailas notes, “...”;

Governor Schwartzenegger fears that “....

Signal phrases introduce paraphrases, summaries and direct quotations; here are some examples of

verbs you can use in your signal phrases:

acknowledges

adds

admits

affirms

agrees

answers

argues

asks

asserts

attacks

believes

calls

claims

comments

compares

concedes

confirms

contends

counters

counterattacks

declares

defines

denies

disputes

echoes

emphasizes

endorses

estimates

finds

grants

illustrates

implies

insinuates

insists

labels

mentions

notes

observes

points out

predicts

proposes

reasons

recognizes

recommends

refutes

rejects

reports

responds

retorts

reveals

says

speculates

states

suggests

surmises

tells

thinks

warns

writes

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Works Cited Page We will be working together in class to create a works cited page using the details you have obtained from each

source (e.g. author name, publication date, etc.) in the charts you’ve been keeping track of. Here are some

helpful websites to visit in regards to your MLA works cited page:

www.citationmachine.net

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/

Example Works Cited Page:

Page numbers continue

Centered, no special font or extra spaces

Do

ub

le s

pac

ed a

nd

alp

hab

etiz

ed

wit

h h

angi

ng

ind

ent

(1/2

”)

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Evaluation Do I have a rubric? _____ By knowing myself as a writer and looking at the rubric, the one thing I know that I’ll need to pay close attention to is _____________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________.

MLA Presentation Checklist

My font is size 12 point in Times New Roman, Georgia, or Arial. ____

My paragraphs are double-spaced, with no extra spaces between them. ____

My heading is at the top, left and includes my name, teacher, class, and date ____

My last name and page number are in the right side of the header. ____

My title is original and is centered at the top of the page with no extra spaces. ____

My title is not underlined, italicized, or in quotation marks. ____

My margins are set to 1inch. ____

Works Cited Checklist

Are my name and page number in the header’s top, right corner? ______

Are the words “Works Cited” centered at the top of with no extra space? ____

formatted the same as the rest of the page? ____

Are my entries complete?____

Are my entries double spaced? ____

Are my entries alphabetized correctly by title / source? ___

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Introductory Paragraph

Hook—Which hook will you use to get reader’s attention?

Provide a brief background of court case (remember you will go into detail

later). What is the history of your court case? How did it come about?

The Supreme Court decided________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________.

Thesis statement:

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First Body Paragraph

Topic Sentence (Introduce Historical Case)

Summarize Main Ideas Background on case: Who was involved? When and where did it happen? What was being argued? Which Right was involved in the argument? What were some dissenting views? What was the decision?

How has this ruling impacted teens today (transition)?

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Second Body Paragraph

Sub-Claim #1—This is your topic sentence. Make a claim as to whether the case impacts teens in a negative or

positive way and one reason why you think this way.

Evidence: What are your 3 best pieces to prove

your claim? Warrants: How will you explain your evidence to

convince your reader? How will you tie this evidence back to your claim?

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Second Body Paragraph

Counterclaim for sub-claim #1: How

might someone argue against your

claim?

Refute this counterclaim with one

more solid argument

16

Third Body Paragraph

Sub-Claim #2—This is your topic sentence. Make another claim as to whether the case impacts teens in a

negative or positive way and another reason why you think this way.

Evidence: What are your 3 best pieces to prove

your claim? Warrants: How will you explain your evidence to

convince your reader? How will you tie this evidence back to your claim?

17

Third Body Paragraph

Counterclaim: How might someone argue

against your claim?

Refute this counterclaim. What is another

solid argument that knocks down their position?

18

Conclusion Paragraph

Restate your thesis in a new way.

Summarize your 2-3 most important points.

What are your BEST arguments that prove your thesis?

Conclusion—Close your paper with impact and style. Try one of these:

Convince your reader you are right! Give a call to action! Remind the reader of

the importance of this issue!

19

Claim Checklist

o Is the claim debatable?

o Do key words from the prompt appear in the claim?

o Is your claim appropriate for the audience?

o Is your claim appropriate for the purpose?

o Is your claim a complete thought?

o Is your claim specific? (Does it outline your main points?)

o Have you made your claim debatable by excluding statements like I think and I

believe?

o Do you have evidence to support your claim?

Evidence Checklist

o Do you have sufficient evidence that supports the claim?

o 2 or 3 pieces of evidence (depending on purpose)

o Do you have relevant and reliable evidence that supports the claim? (May use one

or more)

o Statistics or accurate facts?

o Reliable sources?

o Expert Opinion?

o Anecdotes or examples?

o Is your evidence from a variety of expert sources when research based?

o Is your evidence taken from throughout the text when it is a literary analysis?

o Is your evidence cited correctly (in-text citations)?

o Are your key terms defined for your audience?

o Are your direct quotations introduced correctly? (May use one or more)

o Do you use a variety of signal phrases?

o Do you lead into your direct quote?

o Are transitions used?

o Is the name of the expert introduced?

o Is the credibility of your expert established?

Warrant Checklist

o Do I use warrants?

o Does my warrant strengthen, rather than simply summarize or restate, my claim(s)

and evidence?

o Does my warrant prove my claim?

o Does my warrant establish the validity and strength of my evidence?

o Does my warrant strengthen my argument overall?

20

Evidence Types: FEEDS Guided Notes

Types of evidence to help you back your claim.

Literacy 8

MLA Argument Paper

F

________________________

*this is something that a person can verify as ________.

*often, these can be found easily from many ________.

*these don’t include __________.

*it is usually okay to _____________ common facts.

E

________________________

*describe an event in your ________ that proves the point

*something you or someone who know has had experience with

E

________________________

*provide an example

*“for instance…”; “one way to…”; “for example…”

*notice that I use examples CONSTANTLY in class to get an idea, skill, or point across to

you students. You want to provide the same for your reader.

D

________________________

*using someone else’s words

*something an _______ might say

*use quotation marks (be sure to _____ your source)

S

________________________

*a fact or piece of ________

*usually a _______________ or number

21

FEEDS Scavenger Hunt Article Title:

Type of elaboration # One example

F

Fact

E

Experience

E

Example

D

Direct Quote

S

Statistic

22

GAS CAP: Warranting & Adding Interest

G____________ What it means:

Good Example (logical):

Bad Example (fallacy):

A___________ What it means:



S_________ What it means:



23

C___________ What it means:



A________ What it means:



P________ What it means:



o

24

Blank

25

GAS CAP Scavenger Hunt Article Title:

Type of elaboration # One example

G

Generalization

A

Analogy

S

Sign

C

Causality

A

Authority

P

Principle

26

Your Paper: Do you have sufficient/ample evidence?

Paragraph Record the FEEDS and GAS CAP elements you have already used, or can use, for your paper. ∆

Introduction Circle the

DRAPES you have already used in this paragraph.

FEEDS

Body Paragraph #1

Circle the FEEDS you

have already used in this paragraph.

F

E

E

D

S

27

Your Paper: Do you have sufficient/ample evidence? (Continued) Body

Paragraph #2 Circle the FEEDS you


F

E

E

D

S

Body

Paragraph #3 Circle the FEEDS you


F

E

E

D

S

Copyright © 2014 National Math + Science Initiative, Dallas, Texas. All rights reserved. Visit us online at www.nms.org.

Using the Persuasive Appeals Student Resource Purpose and Audience When crafting an argument, you must first consider your purpose and your audience. In other words, you must answer these questions: ● What group of people are you specifically addressing? ● What effect do you want to have on the audience? Based on the answers to these two questions, you will then prepare your argument in a way that best appeals to your target audience and convinces them to take whatever action you deem appropriate. Effective speakers and writers make use of three types of rhetorical appeals, or persuasive strategies, to support their claims and to respond to opposing arguments. These appeals, identified by the Greek philosopher Aristotle, are often referred to by the Greek words associated with them.

Logical appeals (logos): The speaker or writer appeals to the audience’s logic by constructing a well-reasoned argument. Some methods of creating a logical appeal include

● facts ● statistics ● research ● references to experts ● cause and effect

Emotional appeals (pathos): The speaker or writer appeals to the audience’s emotions. An emotional appeal evokes anger, laughter, sadness, fear, joy, pride, etc. in the reader or listener. Some methods of creating emotional appeals include

● connotative diction ● carefully-crafted syntax ● personal anecdotes

Ethical appeals (ethos): The speaker or writer appeals to the audience’s trust by establishing his credibility or trustworthiness as a writer or speaker. Some methods of creating an ethical appeal include ● stating qualifications for expertise

● using first person pronouns ● citing relevant authorities and allusions

1 English—Using the Persuasive Appeals Creating Appeals While we often speak of the three types of appeals—logos, pathos, and ethos—as if they are separate and distinct from one another, it is actually very difficult to separate one from the others. An appeal is not a concrete device—one that you can point to in the text. Instead, writers and speakers use various techniques, devices, or strategies to create appeals, and even those techniques, devices, and strategies do not fit neatly into categories. For example, a writer or speaker might use a particular word to indicate his specialized knowledge of a subject and thereby create an ethical appeal, but he might use another highly-connotative word to create emotional appeal. Consider the following diagram, which shows some of the ways writers and speakers appeal to their readers and audiences:

Copyright © 2014 National Math + Science Initiative, Dallas, Texas. All rights reserved. Visit us online at www.nms.org.

Logical Appeals

facts

common sense

cause/effect

comparison/contrast

statistics

precedent

research

stating qualifications or personal

experience

using first person pronouns

using specialized language

imagery

sound devices

figurative language

connotative diction

allusions

humor

celebrity

endorsements

diction

personal

anecdote

syntax

details

references to

experts

citing authority

Emotional

Appeals

Ethical

Appeals

grade 8: unit 2 benchmark assessment: argumentative...

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