AP Seminar Performace Task 2: Integrating Evidence in to your Argument
Summary
TLDRIn this educational video, Mrs. Malloy discusses the crucial aspects of Performance Task Two, focusing on the integration of evidence within academic writing. She emphasizes the importance of not just selecting evidence but also integrating it with commentary to advance an argument effectively. The video illustrates the difference between an Integrated Writing Assignment (IWA) and an Integrated Reading Response (IRR), highlighting the need for a clear and logically organized argument that connects claims and evidence. Mrs. Malloy provides strategies for evaluating the integration of evidence, including color-coding sources and examining the balance between evidence and commentary. The takeaway is that evidence must be used purposefully with commentary to enrich and support the writer's argument.
Takeaways
- 📚 The focus of the lesson is on the integration of evidence in argumentative writing, emphasizing the balance between evidence and commentary.
- 🔗 Commentary acts as a bridge, connecting evidence to the writer's purpose and argument, which is crucial for a convincing argument.
- 📝 Evidence alone is not enough; it must be accompanied by commentary to advance the main claim or thesis effectively.
- 💡 The importance of having more commentary than evidence is stressed, as depth in argumentation is preferred over breadth.
- 📉 In the provided examples, the difference between an Integrated Response Rubric (IRR) and an Integrated Writing Assignment (IWA) is highlighted.
- 🟢 The IRR is more of a report, showing other people's arguments without making claims of the writer, whereas the IWA is an argument that uses evidence to support the writer's claims.
- 📑 The script uses color coding to visually distinguish between evidence (teal), commentary (green), and claims (not color-coded) in the examples.
- 🤔 The complexity and strength of an argument are evaluated based on how debatable the claim is and whether it invites counterarguments.
- 📈 Evaluating the integration of evidence involves checking the reference page for source diversity and sufficiency, and examining the body paragraphs for alignment and balance between evidence and commentary.
- 📝 The ratio of evidence to commentary should favor commentary to ensure that the evidence is being used to support the argument rather than overwhelming it.
- 🚫 The use of stimulus material is discussed, noting that while it is provided, it should not be the only academic source used to avoid penalization in grading.
Q & A
What is the main focus of Mrs. Malloy's presentation?
-The main focus of Mrs. Malloy's presentation is on the integration of evidence in academic writing, specifically how to use evidence and commentary to advance an argument.
Why is commentary important when using evidence in an argument?
-Commentary is important because it acts as a bridge that unites the evidence with the writer's purpose, transforming the evidence from isolated facts into a part of the argument that supports the writer's main claim.
What does Mrs. Malloy emphasize about the balance between evidence and commentary?
-Mrs. Malloy emphasizes that there should be more commentary than evidence. It's better to provide more explanation about fewer pieces of evidence rather than less explanation about more pieces of evidence for the sake of depth.
How does Mrs. Malloy differentiate between an IWW (Inadequate Writing with Evidence) and an IWA (Inadequate Writing without Argument)?
-In an IWW, the writer only summarizes sources without making their own claims, essentially reporting on what others argue. In contrast, an IWA includes the writer's own claims and uses evidence to support, complicate, extend, or confirm those claims, with commentary bridging the evidence to the argument.
What is the significance of the 'so what' question when evaluating evidence?
-The 'so what' question is significant because it helps determine how the evidence connects to the writer's claim and purpose. It ensures that the evidence is not just presented but is used meaningfully to advance the argument.
How does Mrs. Malloy suggest students evaluate their own integration of evidence?
-Mrs. Malloy suggests students evaluate their integration of evidence by color-coding their sources, highlighting main claims, topic sentences, evidence, and commentary in their papers to check for alignment and the balance between evidence and commentary.
What is the role of the stimulus material in the argument?
-The stimulus material is provided for the students to use in their arguments. However, it's important to note that the stimulus material is not considered one of the student's own sources for the purpose of the rubric evaluation.
Why might a simple claim not be effective in an argument?
-A simple claim might not be effective because it lacks complexity and debatability. If there is no real point of tension or disagreement, the argument may not be convincing or engaging for the reader.
What does Mrs. Malloy mean by 'making a clear and convincing argument'?
-Making a clear and convincing argument means not only presenting a logically organized and well-reasoned claim but also ensuring that the argument connects claims and evidence in a way that leads to a plausible and well-aligned conclusion.
How does Mrs. Malloy define the term 'evidence' in the context of academic writing?
-In the context of academic writing, 'evidence' refers to the sources and information used to support the writer's argument. It should be used in conjunction with commentary to advance the main claim effectively.
What advice does Mrs. Malloy give for the structure of an argument?
-Mrs. Malloy advises that while the claim doesn't always have to start a paragraph or argument, having it at the beginning can act as a roadmap for the reader, showing the direction of the argument and making the connection between evidence and claim clearer.
Outlines
📚 Focus on Integrating Evidence and Commentary
In this video, Mrs. Malloy addresses her AP Seminar students, emphasizing the importance of integrating evidence and commentary to advance an argument effectively. She reminds students that while evidence is crucial, it must be accompanied by commentary to create a convincing argument. The focus is on row four of the rubric, which assesses the clarity, logical organization, and reasoning of an argument, as well as its connection between claims and evidence. Mrs. Malloy uses visual examples to illustrate the difference between an I.R.R. (Insufficient, Relevant, or Redundant) and an I.W.A. (Integrates Well with Argument), highlighting the need for a balance between evidence and commentary to build a strong argument.
🔍 Evaluating the Integration of Evidence
Mrs. Malloy continues the lesson by guiding students on how to evaluate the integration of evidence within their arguments. She discusses the difference between an I.R.R., which lacks student claims and serves as a report, and an I.W.A., where the student's claim frames the paragraph and evidence is used to support it. The teacher points out that a strong argument requires a complex and debatable claim, and that evidence should be selected purposefully to support the argument. She provides a step-by-step method for students to self-evaluate their work, including checking the reference page for source diversity and sufficiency, ensuring alignment between main claims and topic sentences, and examining the ratio of evidence to commentary within body paragraphs.
🛠️ Strategies for Effective Evidence Integration
In this segment, Mrs. Malloy offers practical advice for students to improve their integration of evidence. She suggests color-coding sources on the reference page to quickly assess the variety and adequacy of sources used. Additionally, she advises students to highlight main claims in the introduction and topic sentences in body paragraphs to ensure consistency and clarity of purpose throughout the paper. Mrs. Malloy emphasizes the importance of the relationship between evidence and commentary, urging students to ensure that their commentary serves as a bridge connecting evidence to their argument's purpose. She also touches on the use of stimulus material, reminding students that while it is provided, it should be used authentically and not relied upon as the sole academic source.
🎯 The Importance of Commentary in Argument Construction
Concluding the video, Mrs. Malloy reiterates the critical role of commentary in making an argument. She stresses that evidence alone is not sufficient; it must be coupled with commentary to advance the argument, complicate, confirm, and extend the points being made. The teacher reminds students that their job is to use evidence to support their claims, not to simply present evidence and expect the grader or teacher to make the argument for them. She encourages students to focus on the purpose they set out to achieve and to use commentary as a tool to connect evidence to that purpose effectively.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Performance Task
💡Evidence
💡Commentary
💡Argument
💡Rubric
💡Claim
💡Integration
💡Irr (Ineffective Research Report)
💡Iwa (Ineffective Writing Assignment)
💡Stimulus Material
💡Academic Journals
💡Ratio
Highlights
The importance of integrating evidence and commentary to advance an argument in academic writing.
Commentary serves as a bridge connecting evidence to the writer's purpose, enhancing the argument's clarity and strength.
Evidence alone is not enough; it must be accompanied by commentary to effectively support the thesis.
The significance of not neglecting the commentary aspect when incorporating evidence into an argument.
The rubric focuses on row four, emphasizing clear and convincing arguments with logical organization and reasoning.
The necessity of connecting claims and evidence to lead to a plausible and well-aligned conclusion.
The visual difference between an Integrated Reading and Writing Analysis (IRWA) and an Integrated Reading and Writing Analysis (IWA).
In an IRWA, the source's arguments frame the paragraph, whereas in an IWA, the student's own claim frames the paragraph.
The role of commentary in extending and bringing together the argument, as illustrated by the green extension sentences.
The evaluation of evidence integration through the comparison of an IRWA and an IWA example.
The importance of making a complex and debatable claim to create a convincing argument.
How to use evidence and commentary to frame an argument and avoid simply summarizing sources.
Evaluating the integration of evidence by examining the ratio of evidence to commentary and their alignment with the main claim.
The method to assess the sufficiency of evidence and its role in supporting the argument without being overwhelming.
The process of evaluating one's own integration of evidence by color-coding sources and checking for alignment with the main claims.
The distinction between using stimulus material effectively and ensuring it is not the only source of academic evidence.
The final takeaway emphasizing the necessity of using both evidence and commentary to advance an argument effectively.
Transcripts
hey ap seminar students it is mrs malloy
and i am here today to talk to you about
performance task
two specifically we are going to
continue
our conversations about the use of
evidence
but more specifically what are we going
to learn for today well today we're
going to focus on the
integration of evidence last
video we talked about the selection and
use of now we're going to talk about how
you
actually integrate that evidence because
integrating evidence
means using evidence and commentary
to advance your argument and for a lot
of students
they know that they need to use evidence
but that commentary
piece is sometimes neglected or left out
so we're going to focus on both
evidence and commentary here for today
so as always let's remind ourselves of
the rubric and how we are going to be
assessed so as we've talked about in the
last few videos rows three four and five
today we're going to focus on row four
remember row four
is about providing a or making a clear
and convincing argument but it's also
making sure our argument is logically
organized
well reasoned and here's the kicker for
today that it connects
claims and evidence leading to a
plausible
well-aligned conclusion so that
connection of claims and evidence is
where we are going to focus our
attention on for
this video so just a reminder
um and we've talked about this
previously but commentary and you will
notice that it is a bigger box and it is
on top because
commentary is most important commentary
is a bridge it's going to unite the
evidence
that you have with your purpose it's
what's moving that evidence from
existing in isolation or just being in
existence to actually being a part of
your argument
and helping you make a convincing and
clear argument
you will notice that we can't have
commentary without
evidence however the evidence should not
be the bigger focus
the evidence is what we use to advance
our main claim
our thesis or our main idea but it's not
meant to
speak in place of you we need a good
relationship between commentary
and evidence so that we can build the
argument that we're trying to make
but always keep in mind that we want
more commentary
than we do evidence it is always better
to say more about less than to say
less things about more things we want
that depth
now keep in mind this does not mean that
we can just
have unsubstantiated opinions and just
go on a rant about things that we think
about we need the evidence that is a
crucial part of this
but that evidence only works to make our
argument if we have
the commentary okay so let's talk about
the
integration of evidence so
i wanted to show you an irr so that you
could see the difference visually
between
an irr and an iwa so in
the green what you're seeing is
extension
sentences so improvement of the
accessibility of education for cambodian
girls has a significant impact on and
on advancement in the workplace what you
will see
in that teal is all of the evidence that
this
student is using so what this ledger
would is arguing from
that particular source then we have the
inclusion of
another source and another source with
very few places where
we're not seeing any claims made by the
student we are only saying
here's what the sources are arguing with
a few green sentences which are meant to
be
extension okay the purpose of the irr is
not to make an argument it's to show us
it's a report
here's what other people are arguing and
then you're evaluating that putting that
in conversations
so we do not want to do this for our iwa
there are no claims to be made from
the actual writer of the paper this is a
report
when we look at an example of an iwa you
notice the difference right away we
didn't have any yellow on the last
screen
so this is the student's claim this is
what the student is seeking to argue
however despite the controversy
surrounding this idea genetic
alterations to reduce vulnerable
people's predispositions to mental
illness
have the potential to be very effective
if carried out responsibly
then the student uses a source which we
can see in teal
to help advance his or her point we then
have that green where it's meant to be
the commentary or the extension here
those this sentences are really easy
cues for
what this means as we start to move from
evidence back to inkling this means that
genetic modification could likely edit
those inherited genes to significantly
reduce the probability
that an individual will develop one of
the aforementioned diseases
then the student brings in another
source and then comes back to
that argument piece where they're trying
to extend it and bring it together
this also indicates that traits such as
neuroticism which influence mental
health can
potentially be successfully altered um
by genetic editing
this method would attack the source of
mental disorders before they could even
arise making it a valuable tool
tool to consider regardless of its
drawbacks and other disputes surrounding
it so what we see here
in those green the differences these
commentary pieces or these extensions
are being used to come back to that main
claim
about how genetic alterations could be
used to reduce the potential
predispositions that people have to
mental illness so the student's argument
is framing this whole paragraph where
in the last example that we looked at
with the irr the arguments of the
sources
are what's framing the paragraph okay so
that's the difference between the irr
and the iwa when it comes to the
integration of evidence
we are making our own claim we're using
that evidence to support
um complicate extend confirm the
arguments that we're making and we're
providing that commentary
to get there so let's evaluate the
integration of evidence in this
particular example
feel free to pause the video and read
this in more depth but again i want you
to see big pictures so i'm going to talk
you through the colors
and then you can dig into this further
but if we notice at the beginning
we don't really have a claim the claim
is coming at the end of the paragraph
these countries have even greater
responsibility to change their habits
with global wide participation reversing
climate change would be an easier task
so this student is saying that if
countries all globally if we had
participation from all countries we
could reverse climate change
easier okay now when you think about
complexity and argument
is there anybody that would argue
against you if you said that hey if
every country participated
we could reverse climate change faster
no educated person is going to be like
nope
you're wrong even if every country
participated we can't
we can't reverse it easier right that's
the claim the student's making
there's not an argument about being able
to reverse it or not reverse it they're
making the argument that it would be
easier if we had support
right if every member of our team played
as a team
and we all felt like teammates and we
were trying to accomplish a task
it would make it easier than if one
member of our team
was working against us well great okay
but that's concerning when we're
thinking about the convincing nature of
the argument because that's not really
a complex argument then if we look at
the colors we see that the teal
is all again going to be summary
or evidence from sources we have one
line that's meant to be extension or
commentary
while they are expensive to build they
are cheap to run building more of these
to keep up with the demands of energy
would be a good
step towards a healthier environment
again there's not a lot of depth to that
commentary
mainly because the claim itself is weak
and it's not driving the paragraph
we really have no idea um fully what the
student is arguing here so this
is not a great example of what we want
to do this is actually
the opposite of what we want to do
if we then look at this example on the
screen
we notice a difference already by the
colors and how it's set up now you don't
always have to have your claim to start
a paragraph or to start um your
argument however i personally prefer the
claim
because then it's like the road map of
what you're going to argue and then i
can see the connection i also think it's
a better clue
visually to you as you see the claim
then you know the rest of the paragraph
is going to frame it
but inductive versus deductive arguments
sometimes we have our claims at the
beginning and sometimes we have them at
the end i understand
but if we look at the yellow that's on
the screen although extensive gerund
countries should invest more money and
nuclear power plants because they are
better for the climate and more reliable
sources of energy
some may disagree claiming that what
most countries are currently doing
investing in fossil fuels is the better
option so
right now this student if we just
compare claims has a much more complex
debatable claim
there are people that would disagree and
would argue against this so we're
showing that there is a real point of
tension or an argument to be made
we also see that although this isn't the
student's full paragraph because you can
see that the green's going to continue
there is a piece of evidence that is
used those pieces of evidence because
it's the same source but we have a
couple different lines
are then turned into working for the
argument by the use of the green or the
commentary given the amounts of
pollution and damage caused by the
world's reliance on fossil fuels it's
important to invest
in energy sources that are healthier
thus where nuclear energy emerges as a
better option
and then the students going to go into
that now is this sufficient if we think
back to the last video is there enough
evidence here no but right now we're
just looking at the integration because
it means both evidence
and commentary this is only a selection
of the student's paper
if this is all you turned in as a claim
this is not enough but this is setting
up
for a better richer conversation because
what we're seeing here is that this
student purposely
picked this evidence to then be able to
make the point or the claim that he or
she is trying to make
and then the commentary aligns with that
to bridge that gap
to bring us to an argument that actually
is um aligned but also complex and
working towards the point
so we have a thumbs up here because this
is a better
example now regardless of
how you decide to structure claims
earlier or later the important part here
is that we want to think about
not only what we're arguing and what
evidence we're going to use
right but we want to think about how we
can use that commentary
to make sure that we are bridging the
gap and we are consistently and
blatantly
working to prove our argument okay
so here's some things that you can do to
evaluate your own
integration of evidence so the first
thing that you can do which is the easy
thing to do right is to go to your
reference works cited bibliography page
highlight your sources use one color for
stimulus sources one color for academic
one color for academic journals another
one for popular or
open sources journalistic sources blogs
things like that
if you can color code that we want to
see the majority of those sources
be from those experts those academic
journals or those highly academic
sources okay
we also can look there to see if we have
a sufficient amount
but remember our reference page works
cited bibliography it only takes us so
far
it doesn't get us all the way we need to
actually look into our paper to see
how we are using that evidence so the
next thing we would do is go to our
introduction
we would highlight our main claims basis
or argument and then we would go to each
of our body paragraphs and highlight
topic sentences
because we want to see alignment if you
do not have one
clear specific purpose throughout your
whole paper
then your evidence is not working to
make your argument
um you know more convincing so we want
to make sure that it's there but we also
want to make sure you know what your
purpose is because if you're going
through the whole paper and you're
arguing one thing at one time and
something else at a different time
your argument is not going to be as
strong as it actually can be
and then we're going to go into our body
paragraphs we're going to highlight our
evidence
in one color and our commentary in
another and i want you to look at the
ratio to see are you more
focused on evidence or commentary and
what's that relationship
look like again come back to those
questions we talked about in the last
video do you have sufficient amount of
evidence
to make your argument without having too
much there is a point where sufficient
evidence
becomes overwhelming or distracting if
you go from that term
deficient to excessive so we really want
to be careful of how much do we need to
convince without
just being all evidence because the
evidence is not speaking for us
we are using the evidence to help
complicate
and enrich and confirm the points that
we're trying to make what's the function
of our commentary is it acting as a
bridge does it unite our evidence to our
purpose
is the evidence being used to advance
complicate confirm
extend your argument and then are you
clear about the so what of the evidence
meaning do you tell us
how that evidence connects to your claim
and connects to your purpose
one thing i want to emphasize while
we're looking at this page is just to
bring your attention back to the
stimulus material
because although i said it on the
reference page in the body paragraphs we
also want to think about where we're
using the stimulus material and how
we're using it in an authentic way
now stimulus material is provided for
you
so when you're being evaluated you are
being evaluated
on the sources that you are bringing to
the table
for um row five those are the sources
that you
found on your own so although you are
using the stimulus if you use one of the
stimulus sources from an academic
journal
and that's the only academic journal
source you have that is not going to
give you credit
for having an academic journal because
college board or ap
seminar gave you that specific academic
source
so we want to think about evaluating our
sources but we also want to make sure
we're using this stimulus
but know that the stimulus is not one of
the sources that you are bringing to the
table so
um it's really going to be assessed as
it comes to you being graded
and in row one on the rubric okay
so what's our takeaway for today well
our takeaway is that
integrating evidence means that we're
using evidence
and commentary to advance your argument
evidence cannot just be thrown in there
on its own with nothing
if you just overwhelm us with a bunch of
evidence here's what all these people
say
it is not our job to make the argument
for you as a grader i'm not going to do
that your teacher's not going to do that
either
your job is to make the argument use
that evidence to complicate confirm
to extend to help you make the points
you are trying to make the only way you
do that is through
the use of commentary those will help
you then
make and achieve the purpose that you
set out to
as always thank you for watching i hope
you find some joy in your day
and we look forward to seeing you next
time bye
関連動画をさらに表示
AP Seminar Performace Task 2: Selecting Effective Evidence
AP Seminar Performace Task 2: Transitioning to the Individual Multimedia Presentation (IMP)
AP Seminar: Incorporating Evidence
AP Seminar Performance Task 2: Building Your Argument, Part 2
AP Seminar Performance Task 2: Building Your Argument, Part 1
How to Write SYNTHESIS BODY PARAGRAPHS
5.0 / 5 (0 votes)