11

Reading and
Writing Skills

LEARNING ACTIVITY SHEETS

Republic of the Philippines

Department of Education
REGION II – CAGAYAN VALLEY
 READING AND WRITING

LEARNING ACTIVITY SHEET

CRITICAL READING AS A FORM OF REASONING

Background Information for Learners

Reading is a part of a student’s life. One of the kinds of reading that students
perform is critical reading. In critical reading, the readers are trained to believe in
their capacity to think beyond what a reading material offers and later cultivate this
value as it engenders critical thinking. If this skill is well-developed, nurtured and
enhanced, the readers are obviously challenged to reason out, justify their thoughts,
ideas and decisions.

Notes to remember:
Critical reading refers to a careful, active, reflective and analytic reading. Reading
critically requires critical thinking that makes someone who reads reflect on the
validity of what he has read in the light of his/her prior experiences and
understanding.
Critical thinking includes a combination of skills which include reasoning,
selfawareness and open-mindedness. It involves a deeper examination of the claims
put forth as well as the supporting points and possible counter arguments.

Reasoning is the process of expressing ideas and opinions as well as justifying

one’s stand based on prior and existing knowledge and experiences needed to arrive
at a decision.

Learning Competency with Code:

MELC: Explain critical reading as a form of reasoning. (S2 Q4)

CG: Explain critical reading as a form of reasoning. (EN11/12RWS-IVac-8)

Reading Text :
The Burden of the
Poor by: Asif Ahmad
A distinguished visitor from the United Kingdom asked why so many people
carry guns. I replied: The rich fear the poor. As the prosperity gap becomes wider,
those who have prized possessions feel the need to protect themselves from the
prying eyes of those who have less. We need not be antirich, but the rich need to be
poor.
 My own life went from riches to rags and then back to one of very real privilege.
Up to my midteens, I lacked nothing. I lived among the elite, went to top private
schools and traveled the world. Then, overnight, a civil war and the loss of my
father’s income for three years forced me to return to the land of my birth, the United
Kingdom, as a refugee. I overheard my mother saying she was down to one week’s
worth of spending money. I got a job the next day and never again relied on parental
financial support. I went to university on a full state grant reserved for the poor. My
work as a student, in factories, hotels, restaurants and as a door-to door salesman,
brought me into direct contact with the desperately rich and poor.

My salvation was education. My final year at university was focused not just on
studies. I had to find work for survival. After 30 interviews and five job offers, I
chose a career in banking, and the rest is history. But my real education came through
other life experiences. When I was a child, my mother told me to never force a person
to bend to serve unnecessarily but if they had to, then I had to appreciate the dignity
of labor. So, no unmade beds or clothes strewn across the floor. Instead, my parents
funded the education of the children of our household staff. Under my grandfather’s
tutelage, I learned how to resolve disputes and offer fairness among the farmers who
tended to the family land. To this day, I am at ease with rural people and I can eat
with my hands even though the silver spoon that was taken away from me as a
teenager has now been restored.

The poor do not need sympathy, patronage, or the largesse of politicians who
distribute taxpayer money as though it were their own. Well-meaning charity, except
for emergencies, needs to focus on livelihoods, not short-term gestures. Elimination
of absolute poverty can only happen if the government and the well-off make it their
priority. People thrive on opportunity. Education and health enable the poor to climb
out of adversity. Schools, teachers and books are vital, but the lack of shoes, clothes
or food can stop children from learning. Government programs and spending can
succeed if there is real accountability for outcomes where success is rewarded and
failure does not go unpunished.

Urban development that does not cater to accessible and affordable social
housing means that the poor will be unable to service the needs of the rich in their
gated communities and condos. Developers should not be allowed to build unless
they are also prepared to provide sustaining infrastructure close to the community and
not in some far-flung place. Instead of focusing on eyesore vistas of squatters and the
inconvenience of tricycles and PUVs that get in the way of dark-tinted SUVs, the aim
should be to invest in employment in the source communities of migrants and in
public transport that reduces the commute to work for all. The poor cannot be made
invisible. People live in squalor in cities, not by choice but because they are not
valued as a community asset. Slum dwellers are frightening, but their impoverished
relatives in the provinces are romanticized as indigenous people.

Not everyone who has made their fortune is lost in a dizzy pursuit of consumption and
affected by gaiety. First-generation wealth generators, in particular, have better grounding
and understanding of turning adversity into opportunity. They tend to have a closer bond
with the people who help make their enterprise a success. Instead of using corporate social
responsibility as an adjunct of the PR department, their values and actions in sustaining
communities are an integral part of the business model.

Pay living wages, not the minimum. Create opportunity through social enterprise.
Take the lack of toilets and bathing facilities, for example. Small amounts of capital,
low-cost design and municipal support can not only entice people into starting such
 businesses but also solve a dire community need. Microfinance, especially in the
hands of women, can turn a squatter into an entrepreneur.

Agriculture can move from being a backbreaking source of bare subsistence to a

mode where more of the value added is at source and the stranglehold of middlemen
and lack of paths to markets are overcome. What is lacking is not the will of the poor
to work, it is the absence of modern farming methods, poor knowledge of higher-
yield crops, and ineffective husbandry of natural resources. As consumers, we have to
learn to value, afford dignity and provide deserving returns to those who bend their
backs so that we can stand straight.

I have learned a few salutary lessons from the poor. In an impending natural
disaster, I saw well-to-do people clear the supermarkets of goods as soon as the
shelves were stocked. In wet markets in the same city, the poor bought only what
they needed. They never ran out of stock. In another scene, we carefully distributed
aid based on our perception of who needed what. We returned only to find that the
recipients redistributed what we gave them. And then there was the case of a lady
squatter who lost everything in a typhoon. She used a third of our donation to house
her family; the rest went into a roadside stall. She now earns seven times what we
gave her per month!

Unleashing the potential of the poor is a far better safeguard than living with
armed security guards.

Source : http//opinion.inquirer.net/83968/the-burden-of-the-poor

Activity 1: LOAD
Ideas reloaded!

A. TRUE or FALSE: Write TRUE if the statement expresses correct information

from the text and FALSE if it is not. Place your answer on the space provided before
each number.

_________ 1. Many people carry guns to protect themselves and their property.

_________2. The poor fear the rich because they have nothing.
_________3. The persona in the essay belonged to a well-to-do family in his mid-teens.

_________4. The poor need opportunities for livelihood, education, and health.

_________5. Agriculture does not prosper because of the people’s unwillingness to accept change.

_________6. The poor are an important aspect of the social enterprise.

_________7. Urban development benefits the poor.

_________8. First generation wealth generators need the poor to keep their enterprise prosper.

_________9. The poor in the slums are valued community assets.

_________10. Opportunities for employment help ease the burden of the poor.

_________11. The text implies that those who bend their back to feed the community are
deprived of benefits and opportunities.
_________12. Helping people create businesses through microfinance solves problems in
unemployment.

_________13. The author affirms that real education comes from other life experiences.

_________14. Dignity of labor means doing thing in one’s own without relying on others to do it.

_________15. The lack of basic needs such as clothes, food or even shoes stops children from
schooling.

_________16. The author believes that investing in employment and in public transport is far more
important rather than focusing on eyesore squatter areas and the inconvenience of tricycles and PUVs.

_________ 17. The author appreciates the generosity of the poor who share what they
have received as aid.

_________18. The absence of modern farming methods, poor knowledge of higher-yield crops,
and ineffective husbandry of natural resources hinder farmers from yielding a good harvest and
benefit from their labor.

_________19. The text implies that providing equal access to opportunities among the
poor helps eradicate poverty.

_________20. The text suggests that poverty is a self-imposed experience among the
poor in the slums.
 READING AND WRITING SKILLS

LEARNING ACTIVITY SHEET

COUNTERCLAIMS IN RESPONSE TO CLAIMS

MADE IN A TEXT READ
Background Information for Learners

Evaluative Statement is a way of giving a better explanation to show the strengths and
weaknesses of something through writing. It also presents a value judgment based on a set of
criteria. It is used in explaining a sound judgment which can be backed up or supported with valid
proofs and reasons.

The formulation of an evaluative statement is done in the same way you do any other writing
except that the statement is about your judgment of the text’s content and property.

You can compose your evaluative statement by formulating a meaningful COUNTERCLAIM in

response to a claim made in the text read. COUNTERCLAIM is made to rebut a previous claim
which provides a contrasting perspective to the main argument. It is the opposition you make
about the claim of the writer.

In short, a claim is the main argument and a counterclaim is the opposite of the claim or
argument.

To be an effective critical thinker, it is not enough to just be able to identify claims and
assertions. The ability to analyze an argument is essential to understanding the text more deeply,
but understanding the claim is not the only facet of the argument, you must also learn how to
analyze the counterclaim and evidence provided by the text.

To better understand, study the following examples:

Examples:

Claim: Students should be allowed to use gadgets in school.

Counterclaim: While it is true that gadgets help students learn better, they also have negative
impacts. If not used well, gadgets become a disturbance during class hours. An example scenario
of this is when a student opts to play an online game or browse social media account while the
class is going on which might possibly affect his/her concentration on the lesson being discussed.

Claim: Classes for this school year should be postponed due to the pandemic being faced by the
world.

Counterclaim: Even though there is an increasing number of recorded cases of COVID-19 in the
country, education should not stop as there are a lot of Flexible Learning Options made available
by the Department of Education in lieu of the face-to-face interaction. Some of these would be
Online Learning, Modular Learning, Blended learning and the like. These learning modalities
would greatly ensure the utmost safety of both teachers and learners as there will be no
physical interaction to be taken place.

In making your counterclaim you must recognize the value of hedges. A hedge is a word or
phrase
that
minimizes the negative impact of a criticism. When you are presenting a counterclaim, you are
providing criticism since you are stating that the claim is not true. Considering that academic

or professional writing requires a courteous tone, hedges are used. Hedges could come in different
forms such as: (1) modals (e.g. may, could, would, etc.), (2) frequency adverbs (e.g. probably,
possibly, presumably); and so on. Notice the difference between the two sentences:

Obesity is caused by the bad food choices being offered by the food industry
Obesity is probably caused by the bad food choices being offered by the food industry.

The hedge probably in the second sentence somehow removed the accusing tone of the
first sentence.

Remember that counterclaims provide a contrasting perspective to the main argument.

The skill you have in enabling you to search and present counterclaims to an argument or a
certain claim is a manifestation of your deep competence and deep understanding of the writer’s
topic. It is therefore making you a critical thinker and a critical reader because you are not just
passive ly
accepting the writer’s claim. And also, it shows your willingness to engage in different viewpoints
from your own, thus remaining objective and helps you and other readers to clarify your personal
position on the topic and the reliability and accuracy o f the claims presented.

The following questions will help you formulate a counterclaim:

Learning Competency with Code:
MELC: Formulate evaluative statements about a text read: (S2 Q4) ●
Counterclaims in response to claims made in a text read.

CG: Formulates evaluative statements about a text read (EN11/12RWS-IVac-9)

● Formulates meaningful counterclaims in response to claims made in a text read
(EN11/12RWS-IVac-9.2)

Level 1: LOAD
Load up your thoughts critically with the fundamentals of claims and counterclaims!
You have already learned about claim and counterclaim. Fill-up the Venn Diagram by listing down the
similarities and differences of claim and counterclaim.
 CLAIM COUNTERCLAIM

Level 3: ADVANCE
Advance your arguments!

Every claim has a counterclaim. Create your counterclaim on the given claim. The first one is done
for you.
MY CLAIM MY COUNTERCLAIM

I believe that… I understand however…

This school year should be postponed due to
The Department of Education insisted that the
pandemic.
education should not be stopped. Hence,
different modalities of teaching and learning
are provided like blended learning (modular or
online).

Cell Phones are good for Senior High School

students.

Homework should be required for every student.

School days in an academic year should be longer.

Students should be able to drive at a younger age.

 Students should have access to the internet in
every barangay.

High school students should have a social media

account.

All students must experience a certain sport before

they graduate in high school.

Lowering the age of the criminal liability should

not be pushed through.

Wearing of school uniform should no longer be

required in public schools.
 READING AND WRITING SKILLS

LEARNING ACTIVITY SHEET

DETERMINING TEXTUAL EVIDENCE TO VALIDATE ASSERTIONS AND

COUNTERCLAIMS ABOUT A TEXT READ

Background Information for Learners

Textual evidence refers to the evidence gathered from the original source or other texts,
that supports an argument or thesis statement.

Using textual evidence, or specific quotations and examples from a text that directly relate
to your point, is essential for supporting your argument, particularly in academic writing.

To better evaluate the author’s argument, a reader should be able to determine the
evidence from the text. This allows him or her to validate the assertions of the author and his
or her own counterclaims as a response to reading. The evidence provided by the writer
substantiates the text. It reveals and builds on the position of the writer and makes the
reading more interesting. Evidence is crucial for the author to sway the reader to his or her
side. A jury or judge, for example, relies on the evidence presented by a lawyer before he/she
makes a decision regarding a case.

The following are the characteristics of a good evidence:

1. unified;
2. relevant to the central point;
3. specific and concrete;
4. accurate; and
5. representative or typical

Four Types of Textual Evidence

1. Statistical Evidence
The strongest type of evidence in formal writing is statistical evidence. This ranges from
true, hard data presented as a percentage or number, to survey-type data. For example,
statistical evidence could be:
● 3 out of 5 doctors claim that...
● 90% of women in the Philippines...
● 8 members of the committee were present during...
Statistical evidence can be proven as fact. You can actually go out and find hard information to
prove your particular claim.

2. Testimonial Evidence
The use of celebrities as credible evidence can be considered testimonial in nature. Many
people look up to celebrities as role models in their lives. Good or bad, when a person chooses
a lifepath that takes him/her into public light, there will be many others out there who want to
emulate the celebrity. These celebrity endorsements provide the second-strongest type of
evidence found in formal arguments.
Testimonial evidence can also be collected from experts and authorities in a given field.
Doctors, dentists, lawyers often provide expert testimonials. Their authority is not often
questioned for they are expected to "know their stuff."

3. Anecdotal Evidence
When storytelling is involved as evidence, anecdotal evidence is being used. Due to its less
objective nature, anecdotal evidence is not extremely strong. When coupled with statistical or
testimonial evidence, anecdotal evidence can be highly effective in determining credibility or
proof.
Storytelling, although based on fact, can include quite a bit of opinion, thus making it less
objective. Usually, eyewitnesses are used as providers of anecdotal evidence. They saw or
experienced the phenomenon at hand, telling their version or side of the story.

4. Analogical Evidence
When information is scarce about something and little is known, analogical evidence is often
used in a formal argument to increase credibility of the proof. If the phenomenon in question
is new and little is known about it, analogical evidence that pulls in known factors about a
similar phenomenon to show parallels can be an effective way to provide proof.
Due to limited knowledge about the phenomenon, in this situation, analogical evidence can be
regarded as the weakest type of evidence used in formal arguments. One can only imagine and
hope that the comparison-phenomenon is close enough that the results can be applied to the
new phenomenon.
Assertions are statements that claim that something is true about something else.
Counterclaims are claims that made to rebut a previous claim.

Learning Competency with Code

MELC: The learner determines textual evidence to validate assertions and counterclaims made about a
text read. (S2Q4-EN11/12RWS-IVac-10)
CG: The learner determines textual evidence to validate assertions and counterclaims made about a
text read. (EN11/12RWS-IVac-10)
LEVEL 5: NURTURE
Nurture your learnings of making counterclaims to given assertions.
 Dear warrior, you are at the last lap of your journey. The fifth key determines your success.
Complete the table below by drawing possible counterclaims to the following statements. Cite
evidence to prove your claims.

COMPLETE ME

CLAIMS COUNTERCLAIMS EVIDENCES

1. SARS-Cov-2 is not
laboratory construct.

2. Coronaviruses all have

their ecological origin in bat
populations.
 READING AND WRITING SKILLS
LEARNING ACTIVITY SHEET

BOOK REVIEW/ARTICLE CRITIQUE

Background Information

A book review and an article critique are probably the best proof of how well you read and write,
considering that you will have to be able to read critically for understanding before you can evaluate a
text fairly through writing.

In writing either a book review or article critique, you will have to demonstrate your
understanding of the text by first summarizing the content of the article or the book. Then you will
need to interpret the ideas which you will have to argue about by making assertions and supporting
your assertions. Sometimes, you will also need to state the relevance of the book to its subject area
and include endorsement.

Your main purpose in writing a book review or article critique is to argue for or against the
ideas presented by the author.

Unique Features of a Book Review/Article Critique

A review or a critique intends to provide critical evaluation of a piece of writing. The writer
of a book review or an article critique writes a summary of the content of a book, including pertinent
details about the book/article such as the title and author. You, as the writer, should also state your
general evaluation of the book/article which will be the main idea of your review/critique. The main
idea or the general evaluation must support specific points that you want to make about the writing
which you could further support by including sample lines from the book/article.

Purpose and Audience

The main purpose of a book review or an article critique is to persuade book readers of a particular
genre or researchers in a specific field to either read or not read the book or article. To a certain
extent, the review/critique tells how useful and credible a piece of writing is.

Pattern of Development

Having said that the purpose of a review/critique is to persuade, the pattern of development to use in
writing it is the persuasion pattern. You have already learned that when using this pattern, you are to
first state a general argument as your main idea. Then you must support that main idea with specific
points which need to be backed up by relevant details such as quotations from the book/article or
notes from other sources.

Features of a Book Review

1. Book review is a summary of the content of the book that includes relevant description of as
well as its overall perspective, and purpose.
2. Book review offers critical assessment of the content which includes your reactions to the work
under review.
3. Book review suggests whether or not the reader would appreciate it and if the book is worth
reading.
 Guidelines in Writing Book Review

There is no hard and fast rule in writing a book review. However, it helps if you divide the
writing process into phases.
A. Pre-writing phase
After reading the book, go over it once more and reflect on the following questions:
1. What is the main argument or thesis of the book?
2. What important idea/s would the author want you to get?
3. Is the author successful in conveying his/her ideas/arguments to the audience?
4. What is the author’s style of writing?
5. How are the characters developed?
6. What is the structure of the plot?
7. Would you recommend this book to be read?
B. Writing Phase
After taking note of your observations, you may organize your thoughts and
start writing. The review may start with the introduction, body of the review and
conclusion.

Introduction
Most of the book reviews are brief. Generally, an introduction involves the following:
1. The name of the author and the book title and the main theme
2. Relevant details about who the author is and where he/she stands in the genre or field of
inquiry. You could also link the title to the subject to show how the title explains the
subject matter.
3. The context of the book and/or your review- Place your review in a framework that makes
sense to your audience.
4. The thesis of the book- If you are reviewing fiction, this may be difficult since novels,
plays, and short stories rarely have explicit arguments. But identifying its particular
novelty, angle, or originality allows you to show what specific contribution the piece is
trying to make.

Development
Develop your thesis using supporting arguments. Use description, evaluation, and if possible,
explanation of why the author wrote as he/she did.

Conclusion.
If your thesis has been well argued, the conclusion should follow naturally. It can include a
final assessment or simply restate your thesis. Do not introduce new material at this point.

Leaning Competency with Code:

MELC: Identify the unique features of and requirements in composing texts that are useful across
disciplines: Book Review or Article Critique (S2 Q4)

CG: Identify the unique features of and requirements in composing texts that are useful across
disciplines: Book Review or Article Critique (EN11/12RWS-IVdg-12)

Level 1: LOAD
Load up and activate your word power!
Above each statement are jumbled letters, your first task is to arrange the letters and form a word that
conforms to the given statement in each item. Complete each statement by writing your answer on
the space provided and earn your first set of clues.

MAMIEZRUS
1. To show full understanding of the text, either writing a book review or an article critique, one must
_______________ its content including other relevant descriptions about the text.

ESRUSAPVEI
2. The pattern of development in book review or article critique is ________________ where main
arguments and supporting details are presented to persuade the readers to read or not a book or
article.

NITOLEVAUA
3. Book review requires in-depth analysis and _______________ on a particular text by providing
detailed evidences to support the result of your analysis and evaluation.

OSPPRSUE
4. One important consideration when writing a book review or an article critique is to look into how
the book achieved its _______________ and described it on its pages.

NGEUAALG
5. Well-written book review or article critique points out the strengths and weaknesses within a text
explained using appropriate __________________.

TMNESSASS
6. One of the common features of book review offers critical ________________ of the content
that covers the author’s style of writing, flow of the text and use of words.

DAUIEECN
7. When writing a review, add details containing analysis whether the book is suited to its intended
_________________ and if it is interesting.

ZRGAOIDEN
8. In the development of a review, one must explore the way the material was
____________________and if the author’s way of writing was focused.

CICMDEAA
9. The review or critique should convey to readers what is happening in the
___________________area of the book and explain why the author wrote as he or she did.

CUDNOITRNITO
10. Review usually starts with an ____________________, body of the review, and ends with a
conclusion.

Level 5: NURTURE

Nurture your writing prowess!

You are now at the last level of your magical yet mysterious journey. This time let the magic happen
using your pen and solve the mystery by getting your last few clues to reveal the mystery quotation.

Using your learned skills from the previous levels, your task is to review or critique academic
materials in your field of specialization. Provided below is the performance rubric for evaluation.
Use a separate sheet for your answer.

Technological-Vocational/ Livelihood Track Performance Task:

As part of your role as a manager in a restaurant, you are asked to write a

critique of a famous food magazine which is relevant to your restaurant. Your
critique should have excellent content, language and format.

Sports Track Performance Task:

As a fitness trainer, you want to motivate and inspire your trainees to work hard
for their fitness. Thus, you want to recommend fitness book for them. You are to write
a book review to justify your book recommendation.

Academic Track Performance Task:

You are a medicine student and you would like to critique a medicine book
that will be posted in your school official website. Your book critique will be graded
according to its content, language and format.
 READING AND WRITING SKILLS
LEARNING ACTIVITY SHEET LITERATURE REVIEW

Background Information
A literature review is the process of gathering a comprehensive body of knowledge
that
has bearing on the research study. Related literature review assists the writer in searching for
a research topic, guides the researcher in the formulation of the conceptual framework and
the preparation of the methodology, and provides information that may support and
strengthen the findings of study on hand (Minerva,2007).

A literature review is an evaluative report of previous studies related to the subject

matter of an academic paper. It describes, summarizes, and evaluates such studies in
connection with the topic of the paper. It also gives a theoretical basis for the research and
helps the author determine the nature, scope and limitation of his or her own study.

Unique Features of a Literature Review

The content of a literature review is information taken from different published papers about
a particular subject. Its organization may depend on the type of information to be presented.
The information may be arranged either thematically or chronologically. Thematically
arranging the information means organizing the information according to points made or by
topic. On the other hand, chronological arrangement means sequencing the pieces of
information based on the date they were published.

Purpose and Audience

In writing a literature review, the intended audience are primarily readers (or researchers)
who want to find out more information about the subject of the study. In addition, a literature
review may be written for professionals who would like to become updated with the latest
trends in the field. Considering the audience, the purpose must then be to inform.

Pattern of Development

Different patterns of development may be used in writing literature reviews. For instance,
you may use the exemplification /classification pattern of development in writing since you
will have to organize the information you have obtained in a general to specific manner—that
is, beginning with a general point or classification and supporting it with specific examples.
You may use description or definition, when necessary, and even comparison-andcontrast and
cause-and-effect in some cases.

Learning Competency with Code

MELC: Identify the unique features of and requirements in composing texts that are useful across
disciplines: Book Review or Article Critique, Literature Review, Research
Report, Project Proposal and Position Paper (S2 4th Quarter)
LC: Identifies the unique features of and requirements in composing texts that are useful across
disciplines: Literature Review (EN11/12RWS-IVdg-12.2)
Level 1: LOAD

Load up your knowledge in identifying features of a literature review!

For your first task, read and analyze each statement. Write S if the statement is true and K if it is
false. Write your answer on the space before the number.

______1. A literature review is an evaluative report of previous studies related to the subject matter of
an academic paper.
______2. A writer or a researcher may only use the description pattern of development in writing
literature review.
______3. The content of a literature review is information taken from different published papers about a
particular subject.
______4. Fictitious data are not allowed in writing literature review.
______5. In writing a literature review, the intended audience are primarily readers (or researchers) who
want to find out more information about the subject of the study.
______6. Chronologically arranging the information means organizing the information according to
points made or by topic.
______7. Thematic arrangement means sequencing the pieces of information based on the date they
were published.
______8. A literature review may be written for professionals who would like to become updated with
the latest trends in the field.
______9. A literature review does not give a theoretical basis for the research and helps the author
determine the nature, scope and limitation of his or her own study.
______10. A literature review is the process of gathering a comprehensive body of knowledge that has
bearing on the research study.

LEVEL 5: NURTURE

Performance Task:

You are a research assistant in your barangay. You are to write a research paper on a topic
about the common behavior of the youth in your community. Write a literature review
summarizing and synthesizing whatever notes you have gathered about your topic. Your writing
will be assessed based on its introduction, organization, content,

synthesis, clarity, and citations. Use separate sheet for your answer.