Discussion entrees must be a minimum of 250 words. You will not be able to respond to your classmates’ responses until you enter your own 250-word response.

Tell me what you think the reading is about and what you find most interesting. Do not summarize the reading. 

To help you respond, consider:

What do you think is the point of the reading? In other words, what do you think the author is saying?

What ideas/themes seem important to the author? What ideas, themes, or images do you find important? (These two questions refer to two different things, so know the difference between your ideas and those of the author.)

Consider how the writer uses structure, form, language, voice, style, imagery to communicate his/her ideas.

Make sure to use quotes and examples from the readings to support your answers to the above questions.

Include passages from the reading that support your answer. Tell me why these quotes are important. Consider the language. How does the author use words? What images does the author use to communicate his or her main point? Feel free to bring in your own experience, but make sure they are relevant to the assigned reading. In other words, stay focused and don’t wander off topic. Don’t worry about getting it “right,” and feel free to discuss what you don’t understand or don’t like, but you must explain your feelings and ideas.

How I grade them:

I am looking for your thoughts and ideas about the readings; in other words, engage in critical thinking. Summary alone will lower your grade (see below). Including quotes from, and references to, the texts are expected. I’m not grading you on grammar or on whether the journals are “correct,” although excessive grammatical errors that impede understanding do hurt your grade; mostly, I am looking for an exploration of ideas.

Grade breakdown:

You responded with at least 250 words or more, not a summary, and include your ideas about and analysis of the readings. You include quotes and textual references and you responded to the required number of classmates with 100 words or more: Grade A (Full 5 points)

You have responded with 250 words but your comments tend more toward summary with some good discussion of your ideas about, and analysis of, the readings and/or you have not responded sufficiently, or at all, to your classmates with 100 words as required by that week’s Discussion Board requirement: Grade B (4 points)

Your comments are mostly summary, less than 250 words, with little to no discussion of your ideas about, or analysis of, the readings and you have not responded to a classmate with 100 words: Grade C (3 points)

Your comments are significantly shorter than 250 words, mostly summary with little to no discussion of your ideas about, or analysis of, the readings, and you have not responded to a classmate with 100 words.  Grade D (2 to 1 points)

You have not submitted any comments. Grade F (0 points)

FAILURE TO SUBMIT COMMENTS FOR MORE THAN TWO WEEKS RESULTS IN FAILING THE CLASS. (See syllabus for requirements regarding Discussion Board.)