English 101

---

Group Project Guidelines

|contract|update #1|group members and subjects|group update #2|group projects|group rhetorical essays|

There will be six groups, each based on a topic of broad interest which your individual topics fit in. Once you have a decided on one of the major topic groups, your group will decide on a particular issue to pursue. I have listed some suggestions with the major topics:

• Family and Community
  Domestic Violence, Divorce, Family Leave, Aid to Families with Dependent Children, Runaway Teens, Child Abuse
• Individual and Community
  Volunteerism, Service Groups, Career Choices, Peace Corps
• Education and Community
  Service Learning, Education Reform, School Voucher Proposals, Literacy
• Social and Economic Issues in Community
  Welfare, "Charity", Homelessness, Poverty, Racism
• Health in Community
  Community Clinics, Health Care Reform, Community Health Organizations, AIDS, "Beauty" and Health
• Nature and Community
  Agriculture and Environmental Issues, Government Regulation for Environment, Local Land Conservation, Recycling, Industry and Environment, Parks and the Community

The project

Each of you will become an "expert" on a specific part of your issue. One of you might be the background expert; one of you might interview families or people in the community; one of you might go to an organization which deals with your issue; one of you might go to government agencies. The more information you get, the better. (Remember, you will be writing a research paper on your own about this topic, so you are also researching for yourself!)

As you start bringing information back to the group, you will be discussing what type of project would be effective in addressing this issue. The project must have a specific purpose and must be something which works to impact the problem or issue you are studying. Here are some examples:

• A newsletter for an organization
• Proposal to create an organization
• Public service announcement
• Persuasive flyer
• Letter to the editor
• Article for local or school paper
• Web Page for an organization or the issue
• Proposal to a government official to address the issue (letter)

You are by no means limited to these ideas, but any of these would be appropriate.

The group will work together to write the letter or newsletter or flyer or whatever you have decided to create. You will incorporate some of your research directly into the "product" but, more importantly, you will be using your research to make decisions about what to do and who to address. For example, you will use your research to help you know what values and assumptions your audience has.

Once you have created the project, you will also need to write a group essay which explains why you chose this issue, and why you chose this project in order to address the issue. If you wrote a letter, for example, you will need to explain why you though the letter would be the most effective approach. You will also need to explain how you determined what your audience believed and how your group appealed to their values; you will explain how your research helped you to make the decisions you did, if your group changed perspectives after the research, and what your group learned. That essay will be 2-3 pages.

Your projects, as much as possible, will be put on this web site.

Practical Group Information

Group Collaboration

First things first! When you get into your groups, exchange phone numbers, e-mails, and schedules. You will want to get together often to exchange information and plan your final projects. Keep in mind, if you have difficulty working with the people in your group, work through it! You have to work with people for your whole life. Sometimes the best projects come from groups of people who have conflicting views!

Group Assignments

Your first group assignment will be a proposal contract....Due date to be announced.

Assignment #2: Group Update--Due date to be announced