Guidelines for Workshopping


For workshoppers:
1) You can introduce the paper, talking about particular difficulties or areas that you'd especially like feedback on.

2) Read your paper LOUDLY and SLOWLY.

For commenters:
1) Everyone prepares a comment or question, in case I call on you.

2) Begin your comment/questions with a specific, real compliment.

3) You can ask a question of me about practices that pertain to everyone, e. g. how to punctuate around quotations, etc.

Kinds of comments to offer:
To Do Well:
     Ask questions about form (grammar, punctuation), expression;
     Identify places where a point is unclear;
     Ask questions about organization.

To Do Better:
     Suggest an additional way of fondling the evidence, of getting more out of it;
     Suggest alternative pieces of evidence;
     Offer help with the conclusion or introduction.
  
To Do Best:
     Suggest a refinement or development of the paper's thesis;
     Make a comment that urges the writer toward a more compelling thesis, one that showcases original           thinking;
     Engage the author in discussion about the nature of the text she writes about.


Sample comments:
a. “Another good example would be…”

b. “You could also say that…”

c. “I’m not sure I got this point. Could you tell it to me?”

d. “There might be another way to read this passage…”

e. “You could support this point even more if you added a passage from…”

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