Midterm Essays: Frequently Asked Questions]
(1) What is the midterm essay?
The midterm essay is the major assignment for the first half of
the course. It is worth 25% of your final grade. The goal of
assigning a midterm essay (instead of a boring old regular exam)
is to give you a chance to show your knowledge of the material
we’ve read about and discussed so far in a way that is creative
and self-directive (i.e. unlike an exam, it is up to you to decide
how you construct your essay and what course material you
choose to discuss. My education psych friends tell me this is a
cognitively better/more fun way to do things btw).
Please note: if you don’t submit a midterm essay, you will
receive a 0 for the assignment. Unlike the section papers, the
essay is mandatory.
(2) What do you want us to do in the midterm essay?
I want you to answer one of the three midterm essay questions
posted to Latte. It is your choice which question you answer. Try
to answer the question with a paper that is somewhere between
5-10 pages double-spaced. Draw on the readings, in-class
discussions, optional articles, articles suggested by the class,
videos, and notes to construct your argument. Please do not do
outside research (not necessary!).
(3) When is the essay due?
The essays are due one week from the time the questions are
posted to Latte (Oct 26 at midnight). Please submit your answers
to the assignment submission box on Latte (just like section
papers).
(4) How can I do well on the midterm essay?
Good question! Here are some tips:
Show Off
This is your chance to show us that you’ve followed along so far
this semester, that you’ve read the readings (or at least most of
them), paid attention during our in-class discussions, been an allaround
engaged member of the class so far. Don’t be bashful!
Feel free to draw from whatever you think is relevant (of what
we’ve read/discussed so far) to construct your essay answers.
Make an Argument
Just like in the section papers, your essay answers should make
an argument in order to answer one of the questions (again, your
choice) posted to Latte. As I have mentioned ad nauseam this
semester, the easiest way to make sure that do this (i.e. make an
argument) is to include a sentence that starts with “In this essay,
I will argue that …” in your introduction paragraph and a
sentence that starts with “In this essay, I have argued that …” in
your conclusion paragraph. No biggie!
Be Creative/Critical
Echoing the section papers (again), this is the true gold standard
for the midterm essay as well. Use the course material for your
purposes in constructing your answers. Don’t simply regurgitate
(yuck) what we’ve read and discussed, try to use it creatively to
construct your answer to one of the questions. And feel free to
disagree with something we’ve read and discussed! This is all
part of “putting your stamp” on sociology, using it for your own
purposes, learning “how to think” with the help of sociology, etc,
etc, as we talked about earlier this semester. Creative/critical
thinking (as “This is Water” suggests, right?) is hard to do,
admittedly, but exam answers that at least try to do this will be
rewarded (guaranteed!).
(5) Further questions?
Send me (mstrand@brandeis.edu) or Jake (jpullis@brandeis.edu)
an email at anytime, or feel free to drop by during office hours,
or schedule an appointment, or peek your head in if you see my
office door open.
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