Basic Purpose How do groups function How does work get done in these groupsHow does that work contribute to the

Basic Purpose
How do groups function? How does work get done in these groups?
How does that work contribute to the definition and accomplishment of the group’s purposes?
How does writing affect the processes of work and interaction in these groups? These are a few of the major questions you might answer in the process of composing your final essay for this course. You third essay will be an
activity
analysis. What that means, basically, is that you will analyze an
activity
system*
(such as a club, a local sports team, a worship group, a local business,
etc.)
in order to make a major claim or provide a major insight about
some aspect of
your
chosen
activity
system, preferably
in relation to its textual tools.
One way to do this is to
focus on the use(s) or implications of
specific genres of
writing
or
other textual tools in the system
(basically, how writing is used in or affects the system).
It could also
mean that your essay will focus on a problem that exists between components of the system
and how the members of that system attempt to solve that problem.
Or it might mean that your essay will focus on how
values and authority are created, affirmed, or questioned
in the system, possibly including how the system’s use of writing demonstrates this process. In any case,
your finished essay should analyze and make a claim about your chosen
activity
system in some focused manner.
*In this unit, you will read Donna
Kain
and Elizabeth Wardle’s “Activity
Theory: An Introduction for the Writing Classroom,” which will define and discuss
activity
theory,
activity
systems, and more. This and other readings in the unit should help you to better understand the concepts that inform this project.
Process
In order to complete this project, you will need to first select an
activity
system to analyze. You should choose a system you are familiar with (preferably one you are or have been involved with). You should be able to communicate with members of your chosen system, and you should also be able to access some of their
written/recorded
texts. Finally, choose a system that interests you. You will be learning a lot about it (even if you are already a participant in the system), so choose something you would like to study in depth.
You will need to collect a lot of data. To begin with, you will need to outline the components of the system and their interactions with one another using the
activity
triangle found on page 400 of our textbook (in
Kain
and Wardle’s article). Please note: Your overview of the system as can be seen in your
outline/triangle is only the start of this project. Your final essay should not be an extended
description
of the components of the
activity
triangle. It should, instead, focus on
some significant insight about how the system’s components inform, interact with, or otherwise affect the system or
other components of the system.
Other research you will likely need to perform for this project includes
observing members of the system in action (such as shadowing or even participating),
conducting interviews with various members of the
activity
system,
and gathering a variety of actual texts produced, read, or otherwise used by members of
the system. Your interviews may include questions about the system’s goals, customs, texts, activities, etc.
Next, you will analyze your data. As Wardle and Downs suggest, you should “focus on what is interesting or complicated here. Do community members agree on the motives and purpose of their activities? Do the genres being used effectively facilitate the work of that community? What sorts of values do the genres suggest that the system has? Who has authority in this system? How is that authority affirmed (or questioned) in the
genres and activities?” (317).
These
questions, and others,
may help you
arrive at a primary claim about the
activity
performed in your chosen
activity
system.
Structure
The structure you choose for this project will likely be that of a standard academic paper. You will want to include an introduction that provides relevancy for your subject and leads to your primary claim, a body that explains and analyzes your evidence in order to support your primary claim, and a conclusion that provides closure for your exploration of the topic. You will
certainly need to cite
Kain
and Wardle and/or other authors from this unit in your essay.
Project Milestones
You will submit a draft of your project in a minimum of five stages. (You may seek additional guidance from your instructor if you need to.) Those stages, and the corresponding word count expectations, are listed below.
1st Peer Review Draft (Partial Draft: 1,000 words or more)
1st Videoconference Draft (Partial Draft: 1,000 words or more)
2nd Peer Review Draft (Complete Draft: 2,000-2,500 words)
2nd Videoconference Draft (Complete Draft: 2,000-2,500 words)
Final Draft (Complete Draft: 2,000-2,500 words)
Additional Details
This project is inspired by the assignment “Activity
Analysis” on pages 443-45 of
Writing
About
Writing. You may wish to review those pages for additional ideas and strategies for your
activity
analysis. Note: Wherever these project guidelines contradict what Wardle and Downs have written on those pages, this document takes precedence over the assignment as outlined in
Writing
About
Writing.