Thesis and Claims

Overview and Reading

Please carefully read Thesis and Claims before beginning.

This might be the most important reading of the semester, as a thesis is the foundation of an essay, which is the foundation of our course. You will want to come back to this reading often.

A reading on thesis statements and claims is connected to our student learning outcomes as follows:

It helps you identify, analyze, and evaluate rhetorical strategies by showing how a strong thesis can guide the development of an argument and the selection of supporting evidence, which is a critical rhetorical strategy.
It enables you to construct persuasive arguments by teaching you how to develop a clear, concise, and arguable thesis, which is essential for articulating a persuasive stance on a topic.
It supports the ability to contextualize, integrate, and synthesize diverse perspectives as a well-crafted thesis often reflects a synthesis of different viewpoints and lays the groundwork for integrating research and evidence from various sources.

Understanding thesis statements and claims is foundational for achieving these outcomes in academic writing.

AI NOTE: Artificial intelligence is often unable to differentiate between an arguable thesis and a fact or common knowledge. A persuasive, claim-based thesis (what we use in this class!) should spark debate, and AI struggles with that.

Description of Image Above

The image contains a checklist for writing effective thesis statements. It's presented as a way to summarize your writing in one sentence and make your point of view clear. Here's what the checklist includes:

Has some background knowledge
Strong (persuasive/emphatic)
Doesn't include "I think/believe"
Concise (short, sweet, to the point)
States one main idea
Answers your research question
Contains criteria that support your one main point
Not a question or a topic
Not "yes-" or "good-" type sentence
Is an actual sentence

This checklist is a useful guide for students to ensure that their thesis statements are clear, direct, and effectively communicate the central argument of their essay or research paper.

Instructions

After completing the reading, take this quiz to check your knowledge.

Please complete all quizzes for this class alone, without sharing answers. Feel free to review your notes/readings as you go!

If you are happy with your score after the first attempt, you are done. If you would like to re-take the quiz, you may. You will keep the higher score if you take it a second time.

Grading & Feedback

You will see your quiz score and any automated feedback immediately after completion. You will see if you missed any questions. The answers to any missed questions will be provided after the second quiz attempt.

Canvas Guides

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