Unit Three / Assignment Sheet / English102

1. Unit Three:
Opinion Article on an Issue of Place
“Writing means sharing. It's part of the human condition to
want to share things— thoughts, ideas, opinions.”
– Paulo Coelho
In this unit, you will continue working with the problem of place/space you had
researched in Unit Two, but now you will take a side. In this opinion piece, you will
argue your own side of this issue, and convince your readers why they should believe
you. You will still need to outline the context of the issue and why it is important to think
about in this current moment, as well as address counterarguments. But additionally, you
will need to clarify your purpose: what do you want readers to leave this op-ed knowing
about the subject? What should they think or feel about it?
Using the sources from your Annotated Bibliography and Exploratory Essay, you
will introduce your issue of place to a new audience and take a stance on it.
This essay should be 3-5 pages in length and will need to follow MLA formatting and
citation guidelines.
Requirements:
• Include the context of the issue as well as relevant information about place,
people, or history.
• Choose a side and clearly argue it in your thesis.
• Use evidence to support each of your points – ideally pulled from the
research you have already preformed for your Annotated Bibliography and
Exploratory Research Essay
Audience:
• Write to an audience of a newspaper or magazine – you might even choose a
publication and look at how the other writers there might put together an
op-ed
Format:
• 3-5 pages / Standard Edited English / MLA 8 formatting and conventions.

2. Grading:
• I have provided my audience with context: where the issue is taking place, how
this specific issue began, who is involved, and what is at stake.
• I have provided my solution to this issue with a clear and persuasive thesis.
• I have supported my thesis with specific claims and evidence to support those
claims.
• I have provided a conclusion that shows the way forward on this issue.
• I have correctly applied MLA guidelines for formatting, style and citations.
• I have correctly followed the conventions of English appropriate for the assigned
audience, situation, and genre.