2. AGENDA
GPU: Sentence Types
Discussion: “Grading
Professors” by Wendy Kim
The Basic Features
How is this essay like the one
you wrote in class?
Read Essay 2 Assignment
4. #1: SIMPLE SENTENCE
A simple sentence has one subject and one verb.
I like to study grammar.
A simple sentence is also called an independent clause.
An independent clause ends with a period or semicolon.
5. SIMPLE SENTENCES
Examples:
Carol’s sweater is red.
You and Alex need to be
quiet.
Ms. Bennett did a cartwheel
and a backflip.
Compound
Subject
Single subject and verb with
two direct objects
6. #2: COMPOUND SENTENCE
A compound sentence is made up of two or more simple sentences
joined by one of the following:
A comma and a coordinating conjunction
I like to study grammar, and I love this class.
A semicolon
I like to study grammar; I love this class.
A semicolon and an adverbial conjunction
I like to study grammar; therefore, I love this class.
8. Two independent clauses joined together by a
comma and a coordinating conjunction
I love you, and you love me.
Independent
clause (Simple
Sentence)
Independent clause
(Simple Sentence)
9. COMPOUND SENTENCES
USING SEMICOLONS
If the relation between the ideas expressed in the
main clauses is very close and obvious without a
conjunction, you can separate the independent
clauses with a semicolon
Kelsey has benefited from her writing exercises; she has
good grammar and punctuation.
Tiffany works in San Francisco; she runs The Duck.
Elaine pays attention in class; she takes copious notes
11. COMPOUND SENTENCE:
ADVERBIAL CONJUNCTIONS
Thomas is cool; moreover, he is fashionable
.
Luke’s grandmother buys him sweaters;
however, he does not wear them.
Clause 1 Clause 2
Independent Independent
12. ESSAY #2 JUSTIFYING
AN EVALUATION
Who can summarize Wendy Kim’s essay in two or
three sentences?
13. GET INTO YOUR HOUSES TO DISCUSS THE
ANSWERS TO THESE QUESTIONS
1. Is the opening effective? Why or why not? How does this information help readers?
2. What is Kim’s overall judgement; that is, what is her thesis and where did you find it? How well does Kim forecast her
reasons here?
3. What are the standards of judgement that Kim uses to measure her subject? Are they appropriate? Helpful?
4. Does she have topic sentences that connect directly back to her thesis? What are they? List at least one criterion and the
topic sentence that supports it.
5. How does Kim use comparison to help make her points?
6. What is the counterargument? How does Kim address it? How effectively does Kim use sources to support her
counterargument here?
7. How does Kim wrap up her essay? Is the conclusion effective?
8. What makes for credible sources?
9. Do Kim’s sources seem credible and appropriate for the kind of argument she’s making and the situation in which she
is writing?
“Grading Professors” by Wendy Kim
14. IS THE OPENING EFFECTIVE? WHY OR WHY NOT? HOW DOES
THIS INFORMATION HELP READERS?
“Where the Students Do the Grading” is the tagline for the Web site www.RateMyProfessors.com
(RMP). Users just choose their state and find their school among the more than 6,000 campuses listed,
and they’re ready to start grading their professors. The home page proudly displays the numbers: last I
looked, there were more than6,200,000 ratings, covering more than 770,000 professors in the United
States and Canada. In fact, RMP has been so successful that it has expanded to Australia, Ireland, and
the United Kingdom, and its sister-site for high school students, RateMyTeachers.com, already has a
user base of 3 million students (RateMyProfessors). While not everyone agrees that these ratings
provide an entirely accurate assessment, many students, like me, routinely consult RMP at the beginning
of every term to decide which classes to take.
15. WHAT IS KIM’S OVERALL JUDGEMENT; THAT IS,
WHAT IS HER THESIS AND WHERE DID YOU FIND IT?
HOW WELL DOES KIM FORECAST HER REASONS
HERE? WHAT ARE THE STANDARDS OF JUDGEMENT
THAT KIM USES TO MEASURE HER SUBJECT? ARE
THEY APPROPRIATE? HELPFUL?
Overall, the Web site is well designed,
extremely helpful, and amusing.
16. DOES SHE HAVE TOPIC SENTENCES THAT CONNECT DIRECTLY BACK
TO HER THESIS? WHAT ARE THEY? LIST AT LEAST ONE CRITERION
AND THE TOPIC SENTENCE THAT SUPPORTS IT.
Well Designed:
1. The design of
RateMyProfessors.com makes
the site attractive and easy to
browse.
2. The viewer’s eye is drawn to
the center box, which is twice
as wide as the boxes on the
sides and includes the all-
important search function (set
off against a distinctive yellow
background).
3. The navigation system is
smooth and fast.
Extremely Helpful:
1. Most important,
RateMyProfessors.com is full of
useful information that can help
students make informed decisions
when it comes to choosing teachers
and preparing for a class they are
about to take.
2. Professors are rated in several
categories on a scale of 1 (worst)
to 5 (best).
3. The faces and numbers are
informative, but I think the
comments help the most because
they are so detailed.
Amusing:
1. And as this last
comment suggests, we
can’t forget the last
rating category: Is
your professor hot or
not? The answer to
this question makes
the Web site amusing.
17. HOW DOES KIM USE COMPARISON TO HELP
MAKE HER POINTS?
There are other Internet professor evaluation sites, but none is as widely used or as
easy to use as RateMyProfessors.com. I compared RMP with three competitors:
Professor Performance, Reviewum.com, and RatingsOnline. The user base of the first
two sites looks too small to provide reliable information. Professor Performance has
73,040 evaluations at 1,742 colleges and universities, and Reviewum.com claims to
have 20,098 records for 137 campuses. In addition, for the limited number of
professors who are listed, there are only a small number of evaluations, not enough to
enable students to make informed judgments
18. WHAT IS THE COUNTERARGUMENT? HOW DOES KIM ADDRESS IT? HOW EFFECTIVELY
DOES KIM USE SOURCES TO SUPPORT HER COUNTERARGUMENT?
This question about the possible effect of the teacher’s appearance on student response and learning leads to
a more basic question about the credibility of the evaluations on RateMyProfessors.com: Are the ratings
statistically valid? The simple answer, the Web site itself admits, is “Not really. They are a listing of opinions
and should be judged as such” (RateMyProfessors). The results are statistically invalid, as one psychology
professor explained, because the users are self-selected and not selected randomly (Harmon). And the fewer
student ratings an instructor has been given, the less reliable the overall evaluation. Nevertheless, RMP
claims “we often receive emails stating that the ratings are uncannily accurate, especially for schools with
over 1000 ratings” (RateMyProfessors). RMP also refers readers to an article reporting a study at the
University of Waterloo, Canada (UW), that found fifteen of the sixteen Distinguished Teacher Award
winners at UW also had yellow smiley faces on RateMyProfessors.com (TRACE). While this correlation is
reassuring, students should not approach the ratings uncritically. And evidence suggests most don’t. As one
college newspaper reporter put it, “students claim they do not blindly follow the comments” (Espach). A
recent study of RMP published in the Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication found that students
“are aware that ratings and comments on the site could reflect students exacting revenge or venting”
(Kindred and Mohammed). As one student explained: “If half the ratings are bad, I will ask around about the
professor. If every rating is poor I won’t take the teacher” (Espach). There are other Internet professor
evaluation sites, but none is as widely used
19. HOW DOES KIM WRAP UP HER ESSAY? IS THE CONCLUSION
EFFECTIVE?
When you have the option of choosing a teacher,
wouldn’t you really like some information?
RateMyProfessors.com allows you to see what other
students have to say about professors and courses you
may be considering as well as to voice your opinion.
As a Web site, it is not only helpful and easy to use, but
it is also amusing to read.
21. DO KIM’S SOURCES SEEM CREDIBLE AND APPROPRIATE FOR
THE KIND OF ARGUMENT SHE’S MAKING AND THE SITUATION
IN WHICH SHE IS WRITING?
22. THE BASIC FEATURES OF A “JUSTIFYING
AN EVALUATION ESSAY”
A Well–Presented Subject
Read first to see how the writer presents the subject.
A Well-Supported Judgment
Look for the overall judgment and the argument supporting it.
An Effective Counterargument
Read also to see how the writer responds to possible objections to the argument or alternative
judgments with an effective counterargument.
A Readable Plan
Finally, examine the essay to see how the writer provides a readable plan.
Does Kim include all of the basic features of a “Justifying an Evaluation” essay?
23. HOW IS KIM’S ESSAY LIKE THE ONE
YOU WROTE IN CLASS?
A Well–Presented Subject
Read first to see how the writer presents the subject.
A Well-Supported Judgment
Look for the overall judgment and the argument supporting it.
An Effective Counterargument
Read also to see how the writer responds to possible objections to the argument or alternative judgments with an
effective counterargument.
A Readable Plan
Finally, examine the essay to see how the writer provides a readable plan.
Have you included all of the basic features of a
“Justifying an Evaluation” essay?
24. LECTURE: INTRODUCE ESSAY #2
JUSTIFYING AN EVALUATION
The Writing Assignment:
Using both your in-class essay and the basic features of a “justifying an evaluation” essay
write a new essay evaluating the film Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. Examine
your subject closely, and make a judgment about it in a clear and concise thesis statement.
Give reasons for your judgment that are based on at least four widely recognized criteria
or standards for evaluating a film like this one. Support your reasons with examples and
other details from your subject. Your final essay should be between three and five
pages. (This means you should have at least one line on page four to ensure you have
filled three complete pages). Do not rely on your in-class essay to substitute for this new
essay. As you will see, this essay assignment requires both more complex thinking and
writing.
Outside sources: this essay requires at least two direct quotations in addition to other
examples.
25. HOMEWORK
Read HP COS Chapter 9
Read Star Trek movie review “Star Trek or Star Wreck?” in
preparation for essay 2
HW Discussion 7: Answer these questions:
What is the thesis statement for “Star Trek or Star Wreck?
Which body paragraph is the strongest? Why?
Is there a counterargument? Where?
How might you improve either the introduction or the
conclusion?
