Assignment: Asian American Women

Guidelines for the Blog Posts

In a reading response, you shall summarize an author's thesis/argument, cite specific examples or evidence they use to uphold their argument, identify their key terms and concepts, and inevitably assess how their thesis/argument and writing relates to other scholarship or connecting ideas. By writing a reading response, you actively engage with a writer's work and demonstrate your comprehension of the text.

For our course, your weekly reading response (300-350 words total) should complete the following four actions:

1. State the author's thesis and/or argument (in your own words, do NOT merely cite).

2. Define key terms and concepts the author either references or introduces.

3. Identify specific examples and forms of evidence they use to uphold their argument. (Indicate where you found this in the source text by including the page number.)

4. Relate how this author's idea(s) enhances dialogue with other scholarship or perspectives.

5. Optional: Formulate 1-2 questions that this essay raises for you.

Suggestions for how you enter and develop your own thinking in the Blog Post (adapted from Professor Nancy Abelmann, University of Illinois)

• Something (argumentative and/or empirical-argumentative is the more powerful) that surprised or deeply interested you (i.e., something that challenges a prior understanding you had, something that you would have previously found hard to believe etc.) (Your entry should also indicate why you are surprised). SURPRISE

• Something that confirms something you already knew (i.e., something that doesn't surprise you at all) (your entry should indicate why you are not surprised). CONFIRM

• Something you would like to know more about (you might in conjunction suggest one more cited sources (i.e., from the bibliographies) that intrigue you). CURIOUS

• A term/phrase/idea (perhaps a theoretical construct) that you find helpful/inspiring (Your entry should include your understanding of the selection). HELP

• Something that you don't understand: this could be a term, an idea, an argument, a passage (feel free to list page and paragraph #) etc. (If you do not have something for this entry that is fine -i.e., do not force yourself to be confused!) CONFUSE

• Something that you would personally like to research (or at least are curi ous about) that draws on one of the readings. RELATE

The post is different than a reading synopsis; after providing a brief summary of the author's key concepts or terms, take a specific idea from the work and open it up for dialogue.

Chapter 8: Reflections on Oral History: Research in Japanese American Community by Valerie Matsumoto