(0) ssignment Overview: For this assignment, you will deliver a presentation on a persuasive topic of your choice. The focus of this assignment is to make and evaluate persuasive arguments. A key in being persuasive is choosing the appropriate organizational pattern. Therefore, it is imperative that you choose the appropriate organizational pattern for the type of argument you are making (e.g. problem-solution, cause-effect, etc.). You will be expected to use examples, statistics, and expert testimony for supporting material. Furthermore, you need to weave those elements together in a way that provides complete and logical documentation and reasoning for the key ideas in your presentation. You will need to demonstrate effective reasoning skills by using arguments that are free from fallacies. Topic: Choosing a topic is a critical factor. You have a very short time frame to persuade your audience, so make sure to choose something that you can cover sufficiently in 5-7 minutes. I suggest that you avoid "hot-button" topics like abortion or gun control since it would be extremely difficult to convince your audience to change their position on these issues in such a short amount of time. Choose something that you are passionate about and that is relevant to your audience (your classmates). A final recommendation on topic selection: I urge you to avoid choosing topics that are overdone (joining Greek Life, legalizing marijuana). Because these topics are so common, it will be difficult for you to add any novel arguments to the conversation. Presentation Requirements 1. The presentation should be 5-7 minutes (with a 15 second buffer). If you are more than 2 minutes over time I will (politely) interrupt you and you will lose 10 points. You will also lose 10 points for being more than 2 minutes under time. 2. You must orally cite at least 3 sources. These do NOT need to be peer-reviewed articles, but must be credible and unbiased. 3. Present the information in a way that matches the audiences knowledge and experience. 4. Incorporate strong persuasive arguments and appeals into the presentation based on class information. 5. Demonstrate skillful use of organization and transitions