Objective:

• In a thesis-driven academic essay, argue why a source should be consumed by others.

Course Learning Outcome(s) Assessed:

• CLO 1 - Analyze a variety of texts that respond to various contexts.
• CLO 2 - Compose written texts that respond to various contexts.

Writing Situation:

Each semester, the Department of English and Communication (DEC) hosts a competition calledGBC Presents. Modeled after CBC Reads, GBC Presents is a debate over what source the entire GBC community should consumebecausethe writer's message and communication strategies are impactful. Whilemanysources are proposed for the GBC Presents competition, onlysixare shortlisted. This year, the shortlisted sources are:

• "Does Journaling Actually Improve Mental Health?"
• "All Booked Up: The Frustrations of Finding a Black Therapist"
• "Genetic Databases are Too White: Here's What it Will Take to Fix It."
• "Nurses are an essential resource: when they burn out, patients suffer."
• "Ibegan my ER nursing career inOntario. Burnout and low pay led me toleave for the U.S."
• "Race and RacismDiscourse in U.S. Nursing: Challenging the Silence."

Alexandra MacLennan, the Chair of the DEC, has invited all Communicating Across Contexts students to chooseoneof the shortlisted sources, andargue their opiniononwhythe source is worth being consumed by the GBC community. Alexandra MacLennan has asked studentsnotto compare their source against the other sources. She wants to know:

1. What was the main message of the text you have chosen?
2. Why is the main message significant and relevant?
3. Why would you recommend this source to someone else? To answer this question, select and discussoneof the following communication strategies used in the text:

• The incorporation of theirunique perspective, social location, or lived experience
• The development of asound argument
• Thelogical structure of ideas
• The use of a compelling story
• The incorporation ofdescriptive details
• The inclusion of logical comparisons/ connections
• The use ofinclusive andappropriate language
• The use ofspecific examples
• The development of anappropriate tone through word choice

Instructions:

write around 1000 -wordthesis-driven academic essay. Your essay should focus on answering the following question:Why should the GBC community read the shortlisted source you have chosen?

• In your introduction paragraph, answer question 1 and provide the context your audience needs (i.e., your introduction should include: attention grabber, background information, and thesis statement).
• In your first body paragraph, answer question 2.
• In your second body paragraph, answer question 3.
• In your conclusion paragraph, reiterate your opinion on why the source is worth being consumed by the GBC community.
• Apply what we learned in class about the conventions of an academic essay.