A culminating project in Writing the Essay

As a longterm project in Writing the Essay, you are assinged to write a longer informative essay about a school-related topic of your choice. This writing project, which is expected to take until the end of the semester, will be completed in addition to the other essay assignments in the class. It will be due in January.


The purpose of your essay is to explore your selected topic in depth by looking at different facets or components of it and explaining how it is relevant for high school students today. In a sense, you are writing a magazine article geared towards a teenage audience.


The assignment will involve several steps. At its most simple level, we will follow the process outlined below:

• First, you will brainstorm different ideas and select a topic.


• Next, you will research several sources and take notes on relevant information.


• Then, you will decide on a focus and organization for your essay.


• Then, you will begin writing your essay, sharing parts of it with the rest of the class and me on a regular basis through your blog.


• Finally, you will write your completed essay.

On top of the writing aspect, this assignment will also provide us the opportunity to use 21st century research tools, online resources, and collaboration methods. This involves setting up a personal blog to act as a central clearinghouse for your work; using a social bookmarking tool to share your findings as you go along; searching through online resources more comprehensive and valuable than simple web searches; posting your work online to invite regular feedback on your efforts.


Your blog will serve as a major component of this project, both as a way to compile your research and to showcase your work.