Assignment/Taskstream Instructions: 1. Choose any chapter of the course textbook. Read the chapter and in 2 pages: 2. At the top, write the chapter Title & chapter number, your name, ID number, Course Title, and number, and section number. Include the name of the instructor. Then: 3. Start your writing with a Chapter Summary: What is the most important idea(s) the writer wants to communicate? This is often stated early on in the introduction and often re-emphasized in the conclusion. Finding the main point(s) gives you a framework to organize the details presented in the reading and relate the reading to concepts you learned in class or through other reading assignments or classes. Conclude #1 with a statement: What do you think the author’s goal is in writing this chapter?4. After identifying the main points or ideas, find the supporting points: read for details, facts, and explanations that develop and clarify the main point or idea. You will find this under the headings and subheadings. Here the author identifies the core concepts (look for bold letters, concepts, and definitions). Also, look at the graphics (sidebars, diagrams, and charts, photos, etc.). These are used to help you understand complex information and distinguish among the ideas/points presented.5. As you read, what questions come to your mind, and do you find answers to your questions as you read? How do you do this? Easy: look at each heading and subheading. For example, if the heading is “Policing in America: Past and Present.” You might ask yourself: “What are the similarities and differences today? In this section, you are becoming a critical reader. What effect the text has had on you as the reader. For example, does the author want to persuade, inspire, or inform you as the audience?Critical reading can even help you hone your argumentation skills because it requires you to think carefully about which strategies effectively make arguments. In this age of social media and instant publication, thinking carefully about what we say is necessary.6. Does the author come across as authoritative and knowledgeable? Does the author present different points of view? Does the author present any counter-arguments and successfully rebuts them? What kind of credentials or experience does the author have?7. Does the writer try to engage or connect with the audience by making the subject matter relatable in some way? Are there any visual appeals, such as photographs or illustrations, graphs?8. Conclusion: Once you’ve finished, what will you tell a friend (or an adult) about what you read and what you learned from the text? Tell that person what you learned, what it made you think about, and did the chapter change your mind on the topic?
PAPER ON LAW & SOCIETY CHAPTER 7
