Social Media Project

In the preface of her 2015 book Mind Change, Susan Greenfield states that the purpose of her book is “to explore the different ways in which digital technologies could be affecting not just thinking patterns and other cognitive skills but also lifestyle, culture and personal aspirations” (xvi). In this project, you will consider the impact of social media on people’s sense of self OR connection to others. You may focus your main argument on the implications of constructing a social media “self” (or selves) OR on the connections between social media use and feelings of connection (or lack of) to others.

You will develop your main argument by including claims of your own and claims from class sources. Your evidence will support the claims. You will be integrating your ideas (and possibly your experience) with others’ when you make multiple references to two sources from class. You are required to use either boyd or Greenfield as one main source; your second source should be one that offers an alternative view to the first source (naysayer) or that complicates the interpretation to allow new connections.

Main Sources

• “Identity: Why Do Teens Seem Strange Online?” (chap. 1) by danah boyd
• “The Something About Social Networking” (chap. 9) by Susan Greenfield
• “Social Networking and Identity” (chap. 10) by Susan Greenfield

Other Sources

• “What makes a good life? Lessons from the Longest Study on Happiness” TED Talk by Robert Waldinger
• “Connected, but Alone” TED Talk by Sherry Turkle

Resources

• Little Seagull for guidance on MLA format and other style issues

Due Dates and Expectations

• First draft with integration of two sources (about 3 pages + 1 page works cited) due Thursday, October 26 (via Google Docs and two paper copies) [Revised 10/18]
• Self-directed revision activity and peer reviews completed by Thursday, October 26
• Final draft due Tuesday, November 7 by 9:00 p.m. (via Google Docs) [Revised 10/31]
• Final draft should be in MLA format (see Little Seagull for sample) and should be 1000-1200 words (about 4-5 pages), including a works cited page.

Process

Step 1. Freewriting or Brainstorming (10-20 minutes)

These questions are meant to get you thinking about the topic that most interests you. You do not have to answer all of them in your essay, nor do you have to use all of them in your brainstorming.

Social Media and Identity:

• How do social media impact our sense of self importance? In what ways might this be positive changes? In what ways negative change?
• Should our social media personas reflect our “true” selves? How do our social media personas allow us to create a “possible” self? How might creating a “possible” self be beneficial to teens, in particular? How might it be detrimental?
• What are some pros of constructing multiple social media personas? What are some cons? Do the pros outweigh the cons?
• How does social media usage impact self-worth? Does it boost or lower self-esteem?

Social Media and Sense of Connection:

• Are social media changing the way we relate to each other or are these platforms just giving us online spaces to relate in the same way we always have? Is our social media usage changing our expectations of each other?
• What are benefits of using on social media to connect with others? What are the drawbacks? Do the benefits outweigh the drawbacks?
• How might social media make us more secure in our relationships? How might they make us more insecure or lonely?
• Do social media platforms encourage us to behave differently than we would in face-to-face interactions? Does revealing more about ourselves using social media create stronger or weaker inter-personal connections?

Step 2. Organized Pre-writing

• Colored sticky notes to organize your sources (balancing “they say” and “I say”): one color for claims about your experience, one color for claims from source #1, one color for claims from source #2. Arrange the sticky notes to consider possible connections (in other words, stick claims together that might get linked as similar or as a counter claim). Write a working thesis that states your a position at the top of a piece of paper and then arrange the sticky notes into an outline.
• Traditional outline: Write a working thesis that states your a position at the top of a page. Under it, make an informal outline (see Little Seagull p. 11) that includes at least three main ideas (one may be a claim that represents a naysayer) and possible source connections.

Step 3. Drafting

 

• Using your pre-writing activity, develop a first draft. Include a working thesis and incorporate information from at least two sources. You may choose to include quotes, summary, or paraphrasing from the sources, but be sure to cite the sources.

• Your draft should be about 3 pages PLUS your Works Cited page. Whenever you use sources, include a Works Cited in all drafts; otherwise, source information is plagiarized.

 

• Do not fall in love with your first draft! Expect to make significant changes.

Step 4. Peer Review

 

• Peer review categories will be discussed in class and will center on source integration and claim development.

• Ultimately, you are the author. You do not need to make all suggested changes, but seriously consider the suggestions. Start with an expectation to follow all suggestions and then eliminate those where you have a definite reason for NOT making the change.

 

Step 5. Global Revision

 

• Revision begins with global changes. Examples of global revision include revising the order of paragraphs or rewriting sections of the essay to clarify your meaning, including adding (or deleting) detail to better help your reader understand your purpose for writing. Adding a few sentences is not global; it is local change. Wording and punctuation changes are local.

 

Step 6. Polishing and Local Revision

 

• On final draft day, we will spend some time in class working on local issues. This will include some sentence structure work, wording revision, and apostrophe review. Polishing also includes proofreading. At this point in the writing process, you should be making local changes, such as wording or punctuation fixes.

 

Step 7. Final Draft Submission

 

• Final drafts will be officially submitted by 6 p.m. on the due date via Google Docs.

 

Grading Rubric

Essay Content and Structure	Essay includes a thoughtful main argument supported by claims and evidence that include exploration of two texts (including Greenfield or boyd at minimum). Essay includes a naysayer claim and counter-argument to naysayer. Essay structure moves beyond five-paragraph model to develop claims with evidence across paragraphs. Point Range: 1 -2 = Main argument (represented by thesis) may be weak. Essay may contain only one or two claims and minimal evidence for support. Naysayer argument may not be present or may be weak. Development may be limited by five-paragraph model. 3-4= Main argument is clear. Essay contains at least two main claims, a naysayer argument and counterargument, and adequate evidence to support claims.
Integration of Sources	Integration of ideas with those of others using summary, paraphrase, quotation, analysis, and synthesis of relevant sources. Point Range: 1 -2 = Only one source may be included or two sources may be minimally engaged. Integration of source information may be limited to one construction (ex. quotes without signaling or mostly summary). Source information may be compartmentalized (minimal or no text-to-text connection). Essay may be imbalanced by too much source summary (too much “they say”) or too much personal opinion (too much “I say” without adequate support).   3-4 =  Two sources are integrated into multiple paragraphs but may be minimally engaged. Integration of source information includes some variation in construction (ex. quotes with some signaling, summary, and paraphrasing sources). Essay may include limited text-to-text connection. Essay attempts a balance of source information and author claims and evidence. 5-6 =  Two sources are integrated into multiple paragraphs are strongly engaged. Integration of source information includes a balance of source constructions (ex. quotes with strong signaling, summary, and paraphrasing sources). Essay attempts a balance of source information and author claims and evidence.
Writing as a Recursive Process	Demonstrate the ability to approach writing as a recursive process that requires substantial revision of drafts for content, organization, and clarity (global revision), as well as editing and proofreading (local revision). Point Range: 1-2 = little change between first and final drafts OR incomplete first draft does not create opportunity for revision, only additions. 3-4 = some changes that improve and develop the draft; changes may be minor (local revision) or uneven; may not address major issues raised during peer review stage (or draft was not completed and did not get peer reviewed) 5-6 = significant changes between drafts exhibit student’s willingness to experiment and rethink on a global level, including adding and deleting to create clarity and development of ideas; significant wording and/or sentence and punctuation revision for clarity.
Critical Reading and Annotation	Employ techniques of active reading, critical reading, and informal reading response for inquiry, learning, and thinking. Point Range: 0 = Two or more reading assignments (summary, chunking annotation) incomplete in ePortfolio by 3/21 1 = Two or more reading assignments (summary, chunking annotation) assigned for readings incomplete on class due date but completed prior to 3/21 2 = Assigned reading materials are annotated but may not follow annotation assignment expectations. 3 = Assigned reading materials are annotated following guidelines of annotation assignments (boyd summary,  Greenfield chunking and highlighting), text-to-self connections, text-to-text connections, and questions.
Critique Own and Other’s Writing	Be able to critique their own and others’ work by emphasizing global revision early in the writing process and local revision later. Point Range: 0 = One or both peer reviews are incomplete within two days of class peer review OR Peer reviews include minimal commenting and/or majority of comments focus on local revision 1 = One or more peer review categories are not addressed in both peer reviews OR in-class revision highlighting activity is incomplete.   2 = Editing process begins with in-class revision highlighting activity. Two peer reviews include global feedback with comments categorized to follow peer review guidelines.
MLA Documentation	Document their work using appropriate conventions (MLA). Point Range: 0 = Work cited page is missing 1 = In-text citation may be inconsistent or include minor errors (including citing page numbers accurately); works cited page may include multiple formatting errors or listing errors. 2 = In-text citations, including citing page numbers accurately, and work cited page mostly follow MLA format. Essay formatting follows MLA style (page numbers, spacing, font, etc.).
Sentence-level Error	Control sentence-level error (grammar, punctuation, and spelling). Point Range: 0 = Sentence-level errors interfere with meaning in multiple instances. 1 = Some sentence-level error; may include one pattern of error (ex. fragments, run-on sentences, consistently incorrect usage) or multiple, varying errors. 2 = Sentence-level error does not include  pattern of error but may include some errors.