Rhetoric
"What is an A Anyway? Does it mean that a 16-year old recognizes 96% of the allusions in The Bluest Eye?"
What is a rhetorical question.
The Title, "If Everyone Gets an A, No One Gets an A"
Inductive or deductive?
deductive
Who is the prime audeince and what 3 specific examples from the text prove he is speaking to this audience?
High school teachers
Note at bottom that Donahue is himself is a HS teacher.
Anecdote at bottom of page 1 about students and their high school schedules.
I will confess that my 30 years as a HS teacher...
Hook about the 16 year old at the start of the essay
The statistic on page 1 parag 2 on the most popular grade in the USA in HS is...
Write a simple sentence that rates Donahue's article.
IC.
Besides, I like my students. I see them coming into the building at 7:30, carrying three backpacks for a routine that may well go on until 7:30 that night, roughly the time it takes someone to complete a full Ironman triathalon."
What is anecdote, ethos, and analogy wrapped together."
We as teachers have to all collectively change our approach to rigor in grading immediately.
Thesis
Define and then describe the KAIROS of this article and use 2 pieces of evidence from the text to support your answer.
Kairos means the "opportune moment" why the writer is talking about this NOW.
Date is Oct 2023- early into the new school year.
Data from 2016 reveals this is an ongoing and growing issuePage 2- data on grade inflation from 1960s on reveals this problem is growing
College landscape today reveals grades are uber important/ signaling exceptional students for applications matters.
Complex ideas matter/ grades reveal a student's ability to think complexly
Write a compound sentence that summarizes Donahue's main claim.
IC , fanboys IC.
IC; IC.
"I'll confess that in my nearly 30 years as a high school teacher, my conception of grading have either softened or evolved, depending on how you see it."
ethos based claim
Cite a supporting claim that Donahue directly states on page 1 that also uses a SIMILE and a MODAL VERB?
A grading drop-down menu ought not be so simple as a tool as one person's belt."
Describe accurately the purpose of the article.
To persuade colleagues across the nation to fight grade inflation in their own classrooms.
Write a complex sentence that states how YOU feel about grade inflation.
DC, IC.
IC DC.
If kids come to my writing classes and share their heart and soul on the page, I want to offer them a handhold on this stony path."
Ethos, metaphor X 2
Cite a supporting claim from page ONE of the Op Ed that is IMPLIED but NOT DIRECTLY STATED.
The rise in grades has made students have a false sense of their ability and this is a disservice (Parag 4 page 1).
What is Donahue's overall tone to his audience and what paragraph on page 2 really conveys his tone?
Congenial, but concerned and critical.
Modest proposal paragraph on page 2 sums up his tone effectively.
Write a compound-complex sentence that describes what YOU can do about grade inflation.
IC, fanboys IC DC.
DC, IC, fanboys IC.
"For now, a modest proposal: Consider the essay that comes in with a promising central idea but lacks support from a few critical moments of the text. It makes a smart but abrupt transition and closes with an interesting connection, a trifle under cooked"
Allusion to "A Modest Proposal" by Jonathan Swift; metaphor, diction
State the claim and what type it is (policy, fact, value, policy, definition, cause, or comparison) in the last FULL paragraph of page 2 that Donahue makes.
Grading with rigor means teaching important lessons in resilience, so a B grade can do that for students. his is a claim of policy- he asking to tecaher audeince that handing out B grades where desrved will help students have grit.
In your own words, summarize the overall message in at least 3 sentences of his Op Ed and state what he is overall advocating for teachers to do in your last senetnce.
In Donahue's article, he argues that wide-spread grade inflation undermines the value of high grades and weakens academic rigor. He argues that it harms student learning. It denies them crucial feedback and denies them grit and resilience. He advocates for teachers to adopt stricter, more meaningful feedback rather than just grade affirmation.
What type of sentence is this/ accurately ID each clause:
If kids come to my writing classes and share their heart and soul on the page, I want to offer them a handhold on this stony path.
complex DC, IC.