Reflection on Open Letter Draft

In this post I will discuss the peer drafts I reviewed and the comments I received on my draft.

Bert Kaufmann. "Misty Winter Afternoon" Dec 20 2010. Creative Commons Attribution.

Reflect on Peer Feedback

One thing both of my peer reviewers agreed on was that my thesis was a little unclear. I think in my revision I am going to make a bolder statement on what I am writing about. I liked the advice Morgan provided about contrasting this course with previous courses that I've been in to show just how challenging and different it has been for me. I think I'll add that into my final draft. I enjoyed the specific comments on what I did well such as my transitions to new topics and the organization of my draft. Some of my comments aren't applicable to my draft anymore because I wasn't finished with my draft when both of them started reviewing but I still use the comments as a guide to make sure I'm completing all the necessary criteria. 

What I've learned about my draft

I've learned that the evidence in my draft could be a bit more developed. I do include stories but the only solid evidence I provide are hyperlinks to previous blog posts. I might use quotes from a conversation I've had or specific quotes from my projects. I think I have a good amount of sensory details but I feel as it won't hurt to go through and add a bit more. I could also add more specific adjectives to make my stories more effective and descriptive. I do think I did a good job of keeping my draft structured and keeping my purpose in mind. The only challenges I really faced were trying not to repeat myself and coming up with a structure and tone that I liked.

Revision

• I think I did demonstrate an ability to think about my writing and myself as a writer because I actually formulated an outline with the project guide open in front of me and that showed that I am a planner and sequential composer. 
• I did provide analysis of my experiences, I discussed how they changed me and compared them to my previous experiences. 
• I provided concrete examples of my own writing my hyperlinking blog posts. I think I'm going to provide more for my final draft but the descriptions I have provided already are adequate. 
• I don't think I explained the choices I made enough because I felt as though they were obvious. I think I might add a bit more to this section.
• I did use specific terms and concepts. Things like rhetorical situation, audience, purpose, etc. 

Also, I peer reviewed Kelly's and Kyle's open letter drafts.

Draft of Open Letter

In this post I will discuss the draft I've composed for my open letter.

Centpacrr. "Air Mail Service" 20 July 2008. Public Domain.

The draft of my open letter can be found HERE.

I am still unsure of how I want my letter to be structured. This is a pretty rough draft, but I still put a lot of thought into it. When revising my draft, please pay attention to the tone as I really am struggling to find the balance between casual and formal. Also, please give me your full feedback on whether or not you think I followed the project guide correctly and answered the initial questions. Thank you!!

I peer reviewed Kyle's draft and Kelly's draft.

Reflecting More on My Writing Experiences

In this post I will answer questions about my writing experiences this semester.

Cacophony. "Landscape Arch" June 12 2009. CC. 

1.What were the biggest challenges you faced this semester, overall?

Overall my biggest challenges were completing all the coursework on time and making sure my final drafts were how I wanted them to be. Also I really struggled with getting the aesthetics right on my final projects (Project 1 & 3).

2. What did you learn this semester about your own time managment, writing and editorial skills?

I learned that I actually have really good time management skills. In the beginning I struggled because I wasn't used to the workload but throughout the semester I really improved. As for writing and editorial skills, I think I have strong skills in both. I consider myself a good writer but when it comes to editing I have trouble editing my own work, but can edit others just fine. I could still improve in my personal editorial skills.

3. What do you know about the concept of 'genre'? Explain how understanding this concept is central to being a more effective writer.

I know so much more about the concept of genre than I did at the beginning of the semester. I've learned how important understanding the genre you're writing in is because it really determines the effectiveness of the piece you're writing. If you don't completely understand the genre you're writing in before you write then your work will turn out very poor no matter how good the content of it is.

4. What skills from this course might you use and/or develop further in the next few years of college coursework?

I think this course has helped me become a lot more technologically savvy and I've learned how to research different topics in certain genres depending on the type of content I'm looking for. I've also learned how to effectively use my time and plan out projects through the course of multiple weeks. These new skills will be extremely helpful for the next few years of college.

5. What was your most effective moment from this semester in 109H? 

My most effective moment was the weeks when we were completing project 2 because I knew the genre very well so creating the project wasn't as difficult or time consuming and by that time I was already used to the amount of work we were expected so it wasn't difficult at all to complete all the tasks I needed to.

6. What was your least effective moment from this semester in 109H? 

My least effective moment was the weeks we were creating project 1. College was very new to me and I had never even heard of a QRG before and I just felt very lost and stressed about english and everything else in my life. The coursework was a lot for me in the beginning and I felt like I didn't know what I was doing.

Revisiting My Writing Process

In this post I will reflect on how my writing process has changed throughout this course.

Rossana Ferreira. "Revisit" 2 Feb 2014. Creative Commons Attribution.  

Throughout this course my writing style has become more organized and structured. I've figured out how to effectively use my time and plan out when and how I will complete everything I need to. I still consider myself to be a sequential composer because I never procrastinated or too heavily planned and I think this will continue to be successful for me especially since it's stayed the same throughout this course. The use of outlines in this course has really made my final drafts of projects go much smoother and quicker. I think I'm a bit more of a revisor now also. I never stayed true to the calendar I made but because I knew what was expected of me I was able to plan and finish my work accordingly. The overall structure of this course has really made me a more efficient writer.

Because of these things I see myself being successful in the rest of my writing career if I continue to stay organized like this and plan out when I am going to complete things.

Reflection on Project 3

Below I will reflect my thoughts on my experience with Project 3.

Liz West. "Lythrum Salicaria" July 26 08. Creative Commons Attribution.

1. What specifically revised from one draft to another?

From my original draft I added in more sources and other stories that involved experiences in physical therapy. I also added more factual information.

2. How did you reconsider your thesis or organization?

I really just ended up changing the genre before I began my draft. I switched from more of a scientific journal to an article on a common website.

3. What led you to these changes? A reconsideration of audience? A change in purpose?

My strongest argument lies within my personal experience with the topic and I think an article was a much better route to go than a scientific journal. I realized this would pertain to my audience much more and make my argument much for effective and the new genre would fit much better.

4. How do these changes affect your credibility as an author?

I don't know if it affects my actual credibility as much as it just fits my credibility more. I think I have more credibility writing in my article genre over the scientific journal.

5. How will these changes better address the author or venue?

It will address me as an author much better because a large part of the article is about my personal story. If I were to do a journal my opinion really wouldn't be part of my project at all.

6. How did you reconsider sentence structure and style? 

I tried to keep it pretty formal without being too serious. The language I use is easy to understand because my audience is very broad so it fits the general public but also isn't very informal.

7. How will these changes assist your audience in understanding your purpose?

I think this change will drastically assist my audience in understanding my topic because some people will actually be able to relate and also see other instances where the therapy has worked. I think this makes my audience much larger and pertains more to my focus.

8. Did you have to reconsider the conventions of the particular genre in which you are writing?

I did a bit. I know articles usually have many visual aspects and my article is mostly content focused and doesn't necessarily need that convention of the genre but I think for my audience having that visual element is really helpful.

9. How does the process of reflection help you reconsider your identity as a writer?

I think it strengthens my identity as a writer because it makes me really look back at my work and really realize what my process was throughout creating my project and seeing how far I've come from the beginning.

Publishing Public Argument

In this post I will be posting my final draft for Project 3.

ForestWander. "Purple Pansy Spring Flower" 23 Apr 2009. Creative Commons Attribution. 

HERE is my final draft.

1. Mark with an "x" where you feel your target audience currently stands on the issue (before reading/watcing/hearing your argument) below:

←----------------------------------------------------|--x------------------------------------------------------->

Strongly                                            Totally neutral                                                    Strongly 

agree                                                                                                                          disagree

2. Now mark with an "x" where you feel your target audience should be (after they've read/watched/heard your argument) below:

←--x--------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------------->

Strongly                                            Totally neutral                                                    Strongly

agree                                                                                                                          disagree

3. Check one (and only one) of the argument types below for your public argument:

         _______ My public argument etablishes an original pro position on an issue of debate.

         _______ My public argument establishes an original con position on an issue of debate.

         _______ My public argument clarifies the causes for a problem that is being debated.

         _______ My public argument prooposes a solution for a problem that is being debated.

         ____x___ My public argument positively evaluate a specific solution or policy under debate (and clearly identifies the idea I'm supporting).

         _______ My public argument openly refutes a specific solution or policy under debate (and clearly identifies the idea I'm refuting).

4. Briefly explain how your public argument doesn’t simply restate information from other sources, but provides original context and insight into the situation: My project has a main focus on my personal experience with my topic. Because of this in no way does it simply restate info from other sources. My personal opinion on the topic is a large part of my argument.

5. Identify the specific rhetorical appeals you believe you've employed in your public argument below: I'm using logic and emotional appeals to convince my readers that electrical stimulation is an effective treatment. 

Ethical or credibility-establishing appeals

                    ___x__ Telling personal stories that establish a credible point-of-view

                    ___x__ Referring to credible sources (established journalism, credentialed experts, etc.)

                    _____ Employing carefully chosen key words or phrases that demonstrate you are credible (proper terminology, strong but clear vocabulary, etc.)

                    ___x__ Adopting a tone that is inviting and trustworthy rather than distancing or alienating

                    _____ Arranging visual elements properly (not employing watermarked images, cropping images carefully, avoiding sloppy presentation)

                    _____ Establishing your own public image in an inviting way (using an appropriate images of yourself, if you appear on camera dressing in a warm or friendly or professional manner, appearing against a background that’s welcoming or credibility-establishing)

                    _____ Sharing any personal expertise you may possess about the subject (your identity as a student in your discipline affords you some authority here)

                    _____ Openly acknowledging counterarguments and refuting them intelligently

                    _____ Appealing openly to the values and beliefs shared by the audience (remember that the website/platform/YouTube channel your argument is designed for helps determine the kind of audience who will encounter your piece)

                    _____ Other: 

Emotional appeals

                    ___x__ Telling personal stories that create an appropriate emotional impact for the debate

                    _____ Telling emotionally compelling narratives drawn from history and/or the current culture 

                    ___x__ Employing the repetition of key words or phrases that create an appropriate emotional impact 

                    ___x__ Employing an appropriate level of formality for the subject matter (through appearance, formatting, style of language, etc.)

                    _____ Appropriate use of humor for subject matter, platform/website, audience

                    _____ Use of “shocking” statistics in order to underline a specific point

                    _____ Use of imagery to create an appropriate emotional impact for the debate

                    _____ Employing an attractive color palette that sets an appropriate emotional tone (no clashing or ‘ugly’ colors, no overuse of too many variant colors, etc.)

                    _____ Use of music to create an appropriate emotional impact for the debate

                    _____ Use of sound effects to create an appropriate emotional impact for the debate

                    ____ Employing an engaging and appropriate tone of voice for the debate

                    _____ Other: 

Logical or rational appeals

                    ___x__ Using historical records from credible sources in order to establish precedents, trends, or patterns

                    _____ Using statistics from credible sources in order to establish precedents, trends, or patterns

                    _____ Using interviews from stakeholders that help affirm your stance or position

                    _____ Using expert opinions that help affirm your stance or position

                    ___x__ Effective organization of elements, images, text, etc. 

                    ___x__ Clear transitions between different sections of the argument (by using title cards, interstitial music, voiceover, etc.)

                    ___x__ Crafted sequencing of images/text/content in order to make linear arguments

                    _____ Intentional emphasis on specific images/text/content in order to strengthen argument

                    _____ Careful design of size/color relationships between objects to effectively direct the viewer’s attention/gaze (for visual arguments)

                    _____ Other:


Examples of My Genre
Example 1
Example 2
Example 3

Reflection on Project 3 Draft

In this post I will discuss my thoughts on my Project 3 draft and the peer reviews I conducted.

 Polimerik. "Reviewer at American National Institutes of Health."   Aug 22 2005. Public Domain.

I reviewed Jessica's draft and Dylan's draft. The hyperlinks are the peer review sheets I did for both of them. 

1. Who reviewed your project 3 draft?

Kelly and Kyle reviewed my project.

2. What did you think about the feedback you received?

I think it was accurate and helpful. I liked Kyle's idea of adding in other personal experiences and Kelly helped me with choosing where to reword some things. Both of them were a bit unclear on my genre due to the fact that I changed it last minute. But overall the advice was helpful.

3. What aspects of project 3 need the most work going forward? How do you plan on addressing these areas?

I really just need to add more content containing information on the treatment itself and try and make my personal story more concise and purposeful in terms of my argument.

4. How are you feeling overall about the direction of your project after peer review and/or instructor conferences this week? 

I feel pretty good about everything right now. I know where I want my project to be when I'm done and I know pretty much how to get there. It's just a matter of fixing it and reviewing it and I think I'll be set.

Draft of Public Argument

In this post I will discuss my draft of project 3.

Reneman. "Draft" Feb 24 2013. Creative Commons Attribution.

HERE is a link to my draft of project 3. 

My draft still needs a lot of work before I finally turn it in. I really focused on my personal experience and still plan on adding more factual evidence. I'm also aware I still need to properly caption and cite my photo of the graph. When reading my draft, try to think of ways I could make my final draft more aesthetically pleasing and fit the convention of an article more. 

Considering Visual Elements

In this post I will discuss the types of visual elements I'll be using in my Project 3.

che. "Human Eye" Nov 30 2005. CC.

1. What color choices best reflect the visual-rhetorical tone of my project?

I should probably use lighter colors. I was thinking light blues and cool colors to make it less dark. I think this would best reflect the visual-rhetorical tone to encourage my readers not to be afraid of e-stim.

2. What color is the most appropriate or visually engaging for my project?

Most likely light blues.

3. How might I vary the fonts used in my project for emphasis, such as in the title and the body   of my project? 

I think making my title and subheadings bolder and bigger than my actual content will probably make my visual strategy most effective.

4. Do the headings used in my project stand out and break up text clearly? Should other fonts or colors be used?

Yes, because I'm going to be separating my text with different subtopics and therefore I'm going to need the headings to stand out. I'm still debating on using other fonts because I'm not sure my visual-rhetorical strategy will call for it.

5. Is the feeling or tone that the image invokes appropriate to the visual-rhetorical tone of my argument?

Yes, it will be. I'm going to use images of the therapy itself which will be appropriate for what I'm arguing.

6. Do your eyes move easily from section to section in the order that you intended?

Yes, I'm going to order my argument strategically and separate the content with subheadings in order to make it easily scannable and understandable.

7. From your outline, is the visual-rhetorical tone of your project consistent? 

Yes, I'm going to make sure that my visual-rhetorical tone is consistent throughout my whole project.

Project 3 Outline

In this post I will compose an outline of my argument for project 3.

Koperczak. "Roses Over Crossed Canes" Dec 31 1881. Public Domain.

Introduction

• Thinking about the situation 
• I'm going to force my readers to think a certain way about my argument after briefly introducing what my article is going to address. 
• Talk about how I'm going to discuss how and why electrical stimulation will be used.
• Define any terms that readers might be unaware of and should know before reading my article

Body

• Major Supporting Arguments
• Studies that have been done
• Show evidence from outside sources that show it works effectively
• Previous success stories with the use of the treatment
• Use article from Project 2 to show how Gad Alon uses it successfully
• My personal experience
• Talk about my arm and how I used it to break down bone and regain motion
• Supporting opinions of other medical professionals
• Source from project 2 that listed actual physical therapists opinions of the treatment
• Major Criticisms 
• The treatment doesn't work under certain conditions
• It is somewhat time sensitive
• Must be used correctly and at the right time for the situation it's being treated for
• There have been issues with insurance
• Patients might have to pay out of pocket (me)
• Talk about the reasons why it might not cover
• There is not a lot of information about the treatment so physical therapists are hesitant to use it 
• Key Support & Rebuttal Points
• Most Important and Relevant Points
• My personal experience will probably my strongest argument for this project
• Previous stories with the treatment will support this as well
• Solid evidence and facts
• Rebuttal Points
• Time sensitivity 
• talk about how that was an issue for me
• Insurance
• also address how this was an issue for me
• Topic Sentences
• Topics for Key Support
• "Due to the fact that I have been in the patient position of electrical stimulation, I can supply first hand information on the effectiveness of the treatment."
• Talk about what I needed it for and how it worked for me.
• "There have been many previous cases where electrical stimulation in physical therapy has been used successfully. "
• Provide examples of this in a paragraph focusing on success stories of it
• "Not only do other patients and physical therapists support the treatment, there are multiple sources of facts and evidence that support this claim as well."
• Paragraph about the studies that have been done that actually prove it's effective in certain cases.
• Topics for Rebuttal Points
• "The time sensitivity of the treatment is and has been an issue in need of discussion. The solution is simply that physical therapists qualified to use the treatment must know how to properly apply it in certain situations."
• Talk about how time sensitivity will always be a factor in the treatment but the therapists should have this knowledge and know when the timing is right to use the treatment. It will not always be right for every case, like any other type of treatment.
• "Although in the past the issue of insurance has caused some patients to opt out of electrical stimulation, some new policies have been changed in order to allow coverage for the treatment."
• Talk about how we had to pay out of pocket for a while
• Talk about what I read in "Stimulating Controversy"
• Gathering Evidence
• I will be using my personal experiences for a lot of the article
• I will be using sources that I have found in the process of completing Project 2
• Map of my Argument



Screenshot take 11-4-15

• 
  

Conclusion

• Future
• I can show that the use of electrical stimulation in the future will be successful in treating patients of their issues
• Create technology advances in the future, etc.

Reflection

I reviewed Morgan's post on her outline. She really seemed to know what the structure and content of her argument will look like and was able to display it well. Her argument is pretty different from mine in the sense that it appeals heavily to the emotion of her readers rather than factual information. Although mine does appeal to the emotion of my readers, it is not based off of that.

I also reviewed Alyssa's post on visual elements. Her genre is a video and therefore her visual-rhetorical tone is very important in the overall presentation of her project. She wasn't able to completely answer a lot of the questions because she hasn't made a lot of decisions for her project yet but she is definitely headed on the right track.

Reading my peers blog posts made me realize that we are all on very different tracks and working at different paces as well. There is so much variety and it's cool seeing all the different directions everyones taking.

Analyzing Genre

In this post I will analyze the genre I have chosen for Project 3. I have chosen to create an informative article discussing electrical therapy as a treatment in physical therapy.

Someone35. "Autumn in New Hampshire" 9 Oct 2009. CC 3.0

Examples of my Genre

Example 1

Example 2

Example 3

Example 4

Example 5

Social Context

Where is the genre typically set?

The genre is typically seen on websites that contain articles containing factual information, studies, and past experiences with the topic they discuss. They are set to websites that provide information to people. 

What is the subject of the genre?

The subject of the genre in my case is the use of electrical stimulation as a treatment in physical therapy.

Who uses the genre?

There is a wide variety of people that use the genre. People looking for information on certain specific topics typically use it. 

When and why is the genre used? What purposes does the genre serve for people?

Informative articles are used because people seek information about certain topics. They are created to inform people.

Rhetorical Patterns of the Genre

What type of content is usually included and excluded?

Factual information and results of studies and personal experiences is typically information that's included. Things that would be excluded include unproven facts and unrelated issues to the specific topic being discussed (or topics slightly related but irrelevant).

What rhetorical appeals are used most often? Logos, Pathos, Ethos?

Typically logos is the rhetorical device that the genre is based off of. In my case and many other cases ethos is also included to appeal to the culture in which the topic is discussed. Pathos usually isn't used as much because the genre is informative.

How are the texts organized? What common parts do the samples share?

Since it's an article, the text is broken up into smaller, scannable paragraphs to allow skimming and the separation of different subtopics. The articles will usually open with and introduction to the topic and a description of any subjects the readers may not know about prior to reading the article. They conclude with a very short sentence or two recapping the points that were made in the article.

Do sentences in the genre share a certain style?

Yes the sentences usually share the same style. Because it's informative there is a lack of exclamation marks/question marks throughout the text. There are a combination simple and complex sentences that contain both factual information and analysis of the information. They are typically more active sentences.

What type of word choice is used?

The overall tone is pretty formal throughout the article. There is no use of slang. 

What Patterns Reveal About Social Context of the Genre

Who does the genre include and who does the genre exclude?

The genre includes most people that are looking for information on a certain topic. In my case, this includes anyone looking for information on treatments in physical therapy, patients, actual physical therapists, etc. It excludes people that have no idea what physical therapy is because the article would expect the readers to have some knowledge on that topic already.

What roles for writers and readers does the genre encourage?

It encourages the writers of this genre to have a lot of credibility with the topic they are writing the article on. Either that or the writer has done a lot of research and includes the sources on which the information they discuss came from. As for the readers, it requires that they have a little bit of prior knowledge of the topics being discussed. This is because the topics of these article are pretty specific and therefore prior knowledge of the general subject is encouraged.

What values and beliefs are assumed about or encouraged from the users of the genre?

The values of the genre should be synonymous with the values of the culture that the genre is written in. 

What content does the genre treat as most valuable? Least valuable?

The genre treats factual information and the most valuable and opinions as the least valuable.

Reflection
I reviewed Kelly's post and Morgan's post. Kelly is working on a magazine article and Morgan is also working on an article. I think that both of the genres my peers chose fit perfectly for their topic, argument, and audience. From seeing what my other peers are working on for Project 3 I realized just how much the projects will very from student to student. I think there is going to be a lot more variety of genres than I thought and that independently researching new genres will help us learn a lot in the process.

Considering Types

In this post I will discuss the types of writing I will be using in my public argument for Project 3.

Jacqui Barker. "Sunset Reeds, North Shore Lincoln Port" 3/11/2013.  Creative Commons Attribution.

Position Argument

I think this type of argument would be effective for my project. I would begin by stating the pros of the treatment and end with discussing the cons and then refuting them. It would be effective because I would pose a stand on electrical stimulation as a controversial topic. 

Casual Argument

I don't think a casual argument would be appropriate for my topic. Because I'm trying to convince actual physical therapists to use this treatment, a casual argument wouldn't be very useful. This type of argument also wouldn't work very well because the readers will already have a good understanding of the treatment and therefore they wouldn't need much guidance.

Evaluative Argument

I think this argument could be very effective because I would be able to show an evaluation of the successfulness of electrical therapy. I could creative a well written sentence that argues for it and evaluate it from there showing the studies and my personal experience that I have gathered/will gather. 

Proposal Argument

I don't think this type of argument would be very useful for the point that I'm trying to get across. There really is nothing I would be able to propose about a solution to electrical stimulation because I'm trying to show that there isn't much of a problem with it in the first place.

Refutation Argument

I don't think this argument would be very useful because I'm trying to show that the treatment is effective and would not want refuting it to be the main focus of my argument. Refuting it will definitely be a brief portion of my project but this argument style as a whole is not what I'm looking for.

Reflection
I reviewed Morgan's plan post and considering type post. I also reviewed Savannah's plan post and considering type post. From these posts I realized that all of the projects are going to be very different compared to the diversity in the last project. Morgan's plan was very different from mine but we had pretty some types of arguments in common for our considering types post. From Savannah's posts I found that since both of our arguments are based off of science that we have a similar plan and chose the same types of arguments as being effective for our projects. This is because our arguments are fact based. 

My Rhetorical Action Plan

In this post I will discuss my rhetorical action plan for Project 3.

Zack Tartufo. "Logo of Simple Plan Foundation" Oct 14 2012.  Threshold of Originality.

Audience

In my argument I am going to try and persuade physical therapists and patients of physical therapy that electrical stimulation is an effective treatment. 

Knowledge: At the very least my audience has a general knowledge about different types of physical therapy treatments and how they are used. Obviously, the actual PTs that read my article will have much more knowledge on the topic than the patients that are looking to receive treatment. It is likely that the PTs will have heard about electrical therapy and how it works. The patients on the other hand will most likely have very minimal knowledge about it.

Values: The two audiences will most likely share the same values. These values include the health and safety of the patient receiving the treatment (that the treatment won't cause any weird side effects), that the treatment is actually going to work, and that it is efficient and has more benefits that it does costs.

Standards of Argument: Research on the success of the treatment and facts on how the treatment really works will be the most effective will be the most persuasive. Providing this type of information will make my argument hard to disagree with. I will most likely have to make the research simple in order to persuade the patients but the physical therapists will be able to understand any obscure terms.

Visual Elements: My audience will most likely respond to images of the treatment being done/what it looks like and graphs and charts showing statistics along with it. This represents real life examples and facts.

Purpose: My audience is reading my argument to expand their understanding of electrical stimulation. For physical therapists especially to make them more well rounded in their career and it will expand their options when treating theirs patients. My argument is likely to do this by providing facts and personal experience.

Genre

1. I've decided to write an informative article on a professional website pertaining to health and medicine. 

Example 1

Example 2

Function: I chose this genre because I feel it's the best option that pertains to both physical therapists and their patients. It is designed to formally inform both of my audiences properly. 

Setting: As I stated before, I see it being posted on a medical website that has more of a professional, official tone. 

Use of Rhetoric: I will mostly be focusing on logos as my argument is based heavily on facts. I will also incorporate pathos when regarding costs of the treatment, etc.

Visual Elements: I won't be using too many visual elements to keep my article a little more professional, but if I do use images it will be of the actual treatment in use.

Style: The style of my article will be formal.

2. I could write an in-depth QRG (this would pertain more to the patients)

Example 1

Example 2

Function: This genre would provide a shorter but very detailed explanation with scannable topics covering all aspects of the treatment. This option would pertain more to the patient side of my audience because most of the information here wouldn't be new to the physical therapists.

Setting: I can see this being posted to a website that discusses health as well as other topics. For example a major magazine website that also has a health/wellness page. I would expect the website it's posted on to be more focused on health topics but not exclusive to them.

Use of Rhetoric: Similar to my other genre, I will mostly stick to logos, but here I will appeal a little more to pathos than before due to the audience.

Visual Elements: I will most likely use some type of visual evidence. Definitely more than I would in my previous genre. I would use an opening picture of the treatment being done/the setting it would be done in. Something that's a little less formal and more persuasive. 

Style: For this genre I will still shoot to be formal but it would not be as formal as my previous genre.

Responses/Actions

After reading my argument I would like my audience to realize the benefits of using electrical stimulation as a treatment in physical therapy. 

Positive reactions:

1. The patients that read my argument want to participate in the treatment

2. PTs that read this use it to treat their patients

3. Technology for e-stim becomes more developed because of people using it more frequently.

Negative reactions: 

1. Audience sees insurance issues regarding the treatment as a deciding factor

2. Physical therapists think that other treatments would be more effective and decide to disregard my argument.

3. Physical therapists think that because the treatment is sort of time sensitive they do not want to take the time do learn the certain conditions that come with the treatment.

Analyzing Purpose

In this post I will discuss the purpose of my public argument through questions from Writing Public Lives.

Finetooth. "Amargosa Desert" Nov 5 2009. CC. 

1. Freewrite on the goal of my argument
The goal of my argument is to convince physical therapists and their patients that the use of electrical stimulation in physical therapy is an effective treatment. I want the readers to see through my experience and factual evidence that this technology could be very useful/is already very useful.

2. Plausible vs Nonplausible Actions/Reactions
Plausible reactions from my readers could be that they agree with my argument and believe all the evidence and facts that I provide. Nonplausible reactions could include the readers having personal experience with the treatment and experience it being ineffective.

3. Effects of Plausible Action
If my readers do find my argument to be true then it could lead to an increase in physical therapists treating patients with electrical stimulation and patients being healed faster and easier. It could even lead to development of the technology of electrical stimulation because the demand goes up and there would be more research on it.

4. Possible Audiences
My audiences will most likely include physical therapists, doctors, and patients. More specifically this could be newly certified physical therapists, doctors doing research on new treatments, patients seeking out a new type of treatment if their current one isn't working as well as they would like, etc.

Analyzing Context

In this post I will answer questions from Reading Public Lives.

Hanoitaxi. "Three Kekachi Mountains" Jan 28 2010. Public Domain.

1.  What are the key perspectives or schools of thought on the debate that you are studying?

The key perspectives involve the effects of the treatment itself on the body and the social and cultural factors of the treatment. More specifically, this would be the side effects of the treatment, the costs of the treatment, the uses of it, etc.

2.  What are the major points of contention or major disagreements among these perspectives?

The major problems that have come into question include the cost, as some insurance companies do not cover the treatment. There have also been problems with physical therapists being hesitant to use it due to the treatment being sort of time sensitive in order to work most effectively. 

3.   What are the major points of agreement, or the possible common ground between these 

perspectives?

When used correctly, the treatment is very effective in treating injuries. Many studies have proven it's effectiveness. The common ground between the two perspectives is the time sensitivity aspect of the treatment.

4.  What are the ideological differences, if any, between the perspectives?

The differences between the ideology of the two perspective is that one is factual and the other is more based on the cultural aspect of things (It's effective but insurance doesn't cover it).

5.  What specific actions do their perspectives or texts ask their audience to take? 

They ask the audience to consider all of the other factors of the treatment other than it's effectiveness. 

6.  What perspectives are useful in supporting your own argument about the issue? Why did you choose these?

Since I have personal experience with electrical therapy, I think that will create a strong argument because I can share my personal story with the success and truth that I have found through research of this story. I also think factual information will support my argument. 

7.  What perspectives do you think will be the greatest threat to your argument? Why so?

I think facts and solid evidence will be the greatest threat because there's no disagreeing with them.

Reflection
I reviewed Alyssa's post and Kelly's post. All of our arguments were pretty similar as they all pertain to somewhat medical topics. Because of this, we all decided that basing our arguments on facts was the most effective route to take. This way it is difficult to argue against it. Also, my topic and Alyssa's topic both have other cultural factors that play a large role in our subjects. This made me realize that these topics need to be discussed in our projects.

Audience and Genre

In this post I will discussing the specific audiences for my Project 3. 

Dr. John Kelly. "Lake Placid Winter Olympics Crowd" Feb 1980.  Public Domain.

Audience

1. Physical therapists

Physical therapists will be interested in this topic to try and find new treatments they can utilize and help treat their patients more effectively and efficiently depending on their needs. By viewing my project they can see the benefits of using electrical stimulation and practice it to broaden their options when treating patients.

2. Patients in need of physical therapy

Patients in need of physical therapy will make use of this argument when seeing how they can be treated using electrical stimulation. They will see how it works in their body and the typical injuries it is used for to find out if this kind of treatment is something they will benefit from. 

Genres for Physical Therapy

1. I could write an argumentative article and post it to a popular healthcare site that features physical therapy.

Example 1

Example 2

2. I could write an informative essay based on facts and evidence.

Example 1 

Example 2

Genres for Patients

1. I could create an informative article and post it in a popular health magazine

Example 1 

Example 2

2. I could create a pamphlet containing information about the types of treatment and how it's used

Example 1 

Example 2

Extended Annotated Bibliography

In this post I will provide new sources for my argument for Project 3 in an annotated bibliography.

Vishnu Nair. "Alapuzha Beach During Sunset" Mar 2 2011. CC 3.0.

HERE is the link to my extended annotated bibliography.

Narrowing My Focus

In this post I will focus on a few questions from the previous blog post and discuss why they're important.

Tony Atkin. "A Very Narrow Road" Aug 3 2006. Creative Commons Attribution.

What factors made the treatment questionable?

I think it's pretty crucial to know the answer to this question in order to create a public debate. Appealing to the reasons it's been questioned is a large part of what I'm going to be arguing about in terms of why electrotherapy should be used.

How does electrotherapy treat patients?

Knowing exactly how the treatment works will make my argument much more valid and help me provide solid information that could defend my argument.

Questions About Controversy

Below I will continue to discuss the use of electrical stimulation in physical therapy.

GCiriani. "EMS Squat" Aug 7 2014. CC.

Questions About Who Is Involved

1. What type of patients need electrical stimulation? Do they have an opinion?

2. What kind of medical professionals oppose the treatment?

3. Who are the leading researchers on this topic?

Questions About What Is Up For Debate

1. What factors made the treatment questionable?

2. What are the positive/negative effects of the treatment?

3. What results made this topic up for debate?

Questions About When The Controversy Started

1. When was this treatment invented?

2. How long ago did we discover possible issues with it?

3. When did the controversy begin?

Questions About Where The Controversy Started

1. In what areas is the treatment used?

2. Where did experiments with the treatment take place?

3. Did the area in which the controversy started have any affect on the topic itself?

Questions About How The Controversy Started

1. How does electrotherapy treat patients?

2. What problems made this topic controversial?

3. Was there a specific event that caused this topic to become controversial?

Reflection on Project 2

Below I will reflect on my final draft of Project 2.

Steffan Ritt. "Canada's Fireworks" 07-31-2013. GNU Free Documentation.

What was specifically revised from one draft to another?

In my revised draft I really made sure to focus more on the author's strategies instead of the treatment the author was talking about. I switched words like "it" to "he" to show how the author's actions were affective more just that the strategy was effective.

How did you reconsider your thesis for organization?

I made my thesis more specific. I made sure that it was geared towards what the rest of the paper was going to be about and kind of squished my whole topic and direction in one sentence.

What led you to these changes? 

I think it was overall more effective and made everything easier to identify. I also changed it because I think my introduction was getting too wordy and it was kind of difficult to see the direction my paper was taking on.

How do these changes affect your credibility of an author?

I think they increase my credibility because I identified the issues with my previous draft and revised them to improve my overall project.

How will these changes better address your audience or venue?

These changes will help my audience understand my project a lot better and make them feel more comfortable reading it all the way through.

How did you reconsider the conventions of the particular genre in which you are writing?

I reconsidered the language I was using. During the revision process I found myself changing words to make the language more formal because I remembered that this genre requires more formal writing.

How will these changes assist your audience in understanding your purpose?

This change helps my audience realize the genre they will be writing in and what's expected of them in the future.

Did you have to reconsider the conventions of the particular genre in which you are writing?

I didn't have to reconsider them too much because I am already very familiar with the conventions of this genre.

How does the process of reflection help you reconsider your identity as a writer?

It really just helped me put my writing in check and improve my argument as a whole because I catch myself in mistakes if I was going to fast or couldn't find the mistakes before. Every time I revise I find new things that I could improve on so it helps me grow my identity as a writer.

Reflection
I looked at Alyssa's and Savannah's blog posts. I noticed that all three of us mentioned that we made the most revisions on our introduction and conclusion due to the blog posts. Alyssa mentioned that one thing she learned from this project was that it's important to be very sure of the topic you're writing on before starting the project. I really agreed with this because I had to shift the topic of my draft a little bit to focus more on the rhetorical strategies than the subject the author wrote about.

Project 2 Final Draft

Below is my final draft for Project 2

Official Navy Page. "San Diego" Apr 1 2011. Public Domain.

HERE is my final draft!

Punctuation, Part 2

In this post I will discuss the topics I learned from Rules for Writers and apply them to my current Project 2 draft.

ForestWander. "Autumn Red Fall Tree Lake" Sept 11 09. Creative Commons Attribution. 

The Comma

I've learned a lot about commas in my lifetime and I feel as though the most helpful tip of this section was to use a comma after an introductory clause or phrase. The provided an example and I tried to read the sentence without the comma they added and it resulted in the sentence having a completely different meaning. It explains that without the comma providing that necessary pause it will most likely result in the reader completely misunderstanding the sentence.

End Punctuation

This section discussed periods, question marks, and exclamation marks. Honestly I didn't learn as much from this section as the other ones that I've read because I'm already very familiar with this type of punctuation. In the period section I did learn to omit the period between academic degrees and to add it in in between a.m. or p.m. if it's lowercase. All the information from the question mark and exclamation mark section was full of information I was already aware of.

Other Punctuation

This section discussed a large variety of different punctuation. I mostly focused on the types that would benefit my Project 2 specifically. This includes the ellipsis mark and brackets. The book described that ellipsis marks are used to show that the writer omitted words from a quote. The most helpful tip I got from this section was that if more than a full sentence was taken from a quote, to use a period instead of an ellipsis. From the brackets section, I learned that brackets enclose words that the author inserted to replace a word from a quote. I also learned the meaning of "sic". It means that the quote was translated and shows up differently than the original quote.

From my Project 2 Draft

After reading my draft with these three topics in mind I didn't find many errors to correct but I did find sentences I had already applied the rules to or that I could possibly change in the future if it flows  in my work.

End Punctuation

I correctly applied the rule about omitting the periods between PhD in this sentence: "Gad Alon has a PhD and is a certified physical therapist".

Other Punctuation

I added an ellipsis in the following quote to eliminate unneeded words from the quote I chose: "At the University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore...we strive to improve patient's' current capabilities by using ‘forced interventions,’". I skimmed all the quotes I used and I could add brackets or more ellipsis but it runs the risk of taking away from focusing on the author's words. Therefore I think I'll refrain from further use in this project.

Paragraph Analysis 2

In this post I will discuss the paragraph analysis I performed for my Project 2 draft.

Unknown. "Scientific Review" Aug 22 2005. Public Domain.

HERE is the copy of my draft.

By going through my paragraphs again, the biggest thing I noticed was that I should talk more about the strategy specifically rather than electrical therapy. I do this in most of my paragraphs already but I think I need to make it more clear that the strategy itself is what's being focused on. Other than that I think I include the major genres of the essay with proper evidence and analysis.

Revised Conclusion

In this post I will rewrite the conclusion of my Project 2 draft.

Mrs Rockefeller. "Conclusion Page" Mar 12 2008. Public Domain.

I feel as though my new conclusion is much stronger than before mostly because I never fully completed my conclusion in my draft. In my new conclusion, I chose to circle back and go over the content of my essay again. I think this was effective because it reiterates what was said and closes up my essay nicely.

Old Conclusion

Treatments in physical therapy are evolving at a fast pace. (I never fully finished it)

New Conclusion

Overall, the rhetorical strategies Alon uses in his argument create a strong argument for why electrical stimulation should be used in physical therapy. He strategically places them throughout his text in order to produce the most effective argument. The use of legitimate studies, personal experience, and his expertise as rhetorical strategies makes a persuasive argument defending electrotherapy. Thanks to these rhetorical strategies Gad Alon was able to successfully convince his readers that electrotherapy is a powerful tool in physical therapy.

Revised Introduction

In this post I will completely rewrite my introduction from my Project 2 draft.

Antonio Litterio. "Power of Words" May 26 2011. CC. 

Old Intro

When thinking of physical therapy treatments, the first thing that comes to mind is repeated, guided exercises and most likely some individual tasks as well. One treatment that’s a bit less common is called electrical stimulation. This treatment uses electric impulses to elicit muscle contraction to reduce pain, swelling, and increase range of motion in patients. Due to his expertise in the field, Gad Alon uses a number of rhetorical strategies to discuss the sucessful use of electrical stimulation in his article, Stimulating Controversy. Gad Alon has a PhD and is a certified physical therapist himself; he and is also is currently employed at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. He claims that electrical stimulation is an effective treatment in physical therapy when used properly and in the right context.

New Intro

Rhetorical strategies are a very crucial factor in the effectiveness of an argument. Without them it's almost certain that a text will have no persuasive effect on it's readers. Articles such as Stimulating Controversy by physical therapist and PhD Gad Alon make use of multiple rhetorical strategies in order to create an effective argument regarding electrical stimulation in physical therapy. Electrical stimulation uses electric impulses to elicit muscle contraction to reduce pain, swelling, and increase range of motion in patients. Making use of his expertise in the field, providing scenarios, and displaying studys on the treatment Alon creates a strong argument on why electrotherapy is successful.

I think the new version of this introduction is more effective because it's much more focused on the actual topic. Before, I discussed electrical therapy too much and neglected the topic of the actual use of rhetorical strategies. In the new intro, I made it very clear that the topic of my essay was to discuss how rhetorical strategies create an effective argument instead of the successful use of electrical therapy.