4/6/22, 5:33 PM English Composition II – TOUCHSTONE 3.1: Construct a Rogerian Argument
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Touchstone 3.1: Construct a Rogerian Argument
ASSIGNMENT: ASSIGNMENT: As you learned in this unit, a Rogerian argument is one that presents two
sides of a debate and argues for a solution that will satisfy both sides. Given two articles presenting opposing
sides of an issue (mandatory uniforms in schools), construct your own 2-3 page Rogerian argument essay in
which you attempt to arrive at a workable solution or “middle ground.”
Sample Touchstone
A. Assignment Guidelines
DIRECTIONS: Refer to the list below throughout the writing process. Do not submit your Touchstone until it
meets these guidelines.
- Summary of Positions
❒ Have you briefly introduced the author and publication context (year, journal, etc.) of Article 1?
❒ Have you included a summary of the stance presented in Article 1?
❒ Have you briefly introduced the author and publication context (year, journal, etc.) of Article 2?
❒ Have you included a summary of the stance presented Article 2? - Thesis/Claim
4/6/22, 5:33 PM English Composition II – TOUCHSTONE 3.1: Construct a Rogerian Argument
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❒ Does you claim address both sides of the issue, including specific points raised in the articles?
❒ Does your claim present a clear, workable solution that could be viewed as a “middle ground” between
the two sides? - Analysis
❒ Have you backed up your claim using facts from both sides of the argument?
❒ When using direct quotations, have you supplemented them with your own explanation of their
relevance? - Reflection
❒ Have you answered all reflection questions thoughtfully and included insights, observations, and/or
examples in all responses?
❒ Are your answers included on a separate page below the main assignment?
B. Reflection
DIRECTIONS: Below your assignment, include answers to all of the following reflection questions. - How does the Rogerian model of argument help you better understand the topic that’s being
discussed? Why is it a good practice to acknowledge both sides of the argument? (3-4 sentences) - Will you use the Rogerian Approach in your own argumentative essay? Why or why not? (2-3
sentences)
C. Rubric
Advanced
(100%)
Proficient
(85%)
Acceptable
(75%)
Needs Improvement
(50%)
Non-Performance
(0%)
Summary of
Positions
Introduce the
two sources and
summarize each
side of the
argument.
Effectively
introduces both
authors and
provides a
complete and
concise summary
of both positions
presented in the
articles.
Introduces both
authors and
provides a
concise
summary of
both positions
presented in the
articles.
Provides a
brief
overview of
the authors
and positions,
but key
details of the
positions may
be missing.
Introduces both
authors, but does not
provide a complete
summary of positions
presented in the
articles.
Does not introduce
both authors and/or
does not provide a
summary of each
position presented
in the articles.
Thesis/Claim
Present a thesis
that advocates
for a solution to
satisfy both
sides of the
argument.
Provides a thesis
that clearly and
effectively
advocates for a
solution to
satisfy both sides
of the argument.
Provides a thesis
that clearly
advocates for a
solution to
satisfy both
sides of the
argument.
Provides a
clear thesis;
however, it
does not
suggest a
solution to
satisfy both
sides of the
argument.
Provides a thesis, but it
is unclear and/or does
not advocate for a
solution to satisfy both
sides of the argument.
No clear thesis has
been presented.
4/6/22, 5:33 PM English Composition II – TOUCHSTONE 3.1: Construct a Rogerian Argument
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Advanced
(100%)
Proficient
(85%)
Acceptable
(75%)
Needs Improvement
(50%)
Non-Performance
(0%)
Organization
Exhibit
competent
organization and
writing
techniques.
Includes all of
the required
components of a
Rogerian
argument paper,
including an
engaging
introduction with
source
summaries and a
claim, body
paragraphs with
topic sentences,
and a conclusion
with a
concluding
statement.
Includes all of
the required
components of a
Rogerian
argument paper,
including an
introduction
with source
summaries and a
claim, body
paragraphs with
topic sentences,
and a conclusion
with a
concluding
statement.
Includes
nearly all of
the required
components
of a Rogerian
argument
paper;
however, one
component is
missing.
Includes most of the
required components
of a Rogerian
argument paper, but is
lacking two
components.
Sequences ideas and
paragraphs such that
the connections
between ideas (within
and between
paragraphs) are
sometimes unclear and
the reader may have
difficulty following the
progression of the
argument.
Lacks several or all
of the components
of a Rogerian
argument paper.
Sequences ideas
and paragraphs
such that the
connections
between ideas
(within and
between
paragraphs) are
often unclear and
the reader has
difficulty following
the progression of
the argument.
Style
Establish a
consistent,
informative tone
and make
thoughtful
stylistic choices.
Demonstrates
thoughtful and
effective word
choices, avoids
redundancy and
imprecise
language, and
uses a wide
variety of
sentence
structures.
Demonstrates
effective word
choices,
primarily avoids
redundancy and
imprecise
language, and
uses a variety of
sentence
structures.
Demonstrates
generally
effective style
choices, but
may include
occasional
redundancies,
imprecise
language,
poor word
choice, and/or
repetitive
sentence
structures.
Frequently includes
poor word choices,
redundancies,
imprecise language,
and/or repetitive
sentence structures.
Consistently
demonstrates poor
word choices,
redundancies,
imprecise language,
and/or repetitive
sentence structures.
Conventions
Follow
conventions for
standard
English.
There are only a
few, if any,
negligible errors
in grammar,
punctuation,
spelling,
capitalization,
formatting, and
usage.
There are
occasional
minor errors in
grammar,
punctuation,
spelling,
capitalization,
formatting, and
usage.
There are
some
significant
errors in
grammar,
punctuation,
spelling,
capitalization,
formatting,
and usage.
There are frequent
significant errors in
grammar, punctuation,
spelling, capitalization,
formatting, and usage.
There are consistent
significant errors in
grammar,
punctuation,
spelling,
capitalization,
formatting, and
usage.
4/6/22, 5:33 PM English Composition II – TOUCHSTONE 3.1: Construct a Rogerian Argument
4/5
Advanced
(100%)
Proficient
(85%)
Acceptable
(75%)
Needs Improvement
(50%)
Non-Performance
(0%)
Reflection
Reflect on
progression and
development
throughout the
course.
Demonstrates
thoughtful
reflection;
consistently
includes insights,
observations,
and/or examples
in all responses,
following or
exceeding
response length
guidelines.
Demonstrates
thoughtful
reflection;
includes
multiple
insights,
observations,
and/or
examples,
following
response length
guidelines.
Primarily
demonstrates
thoughtful
reflection, but
some
responses are
lacking in
detail or
insight;
primarily
follows
response
length
guidelines.
Shows limited
reflection; the majority
of responses are
lacking in detail or
insight, with some
questions left
unanswered or falling
short of response
length guidelines.
No reflection
responses are
present.
D. Requirements
The following requirements must be met for your submission to be graded:
Composition must be 2-3 pages (approximately 500-750 words).
Double-space the composition and use one-inch margins.
Use a readable 12-point font.
All writing must be appropriate for an academic context.
Composition must be original and written for this assignment.
Plagiarism of any kind is strictly prohibited.
Submission must include your name, the name of the course, the date, and the title of your composition.
Include all of the assignment components in a single file.
Acceptable file formats include .doc and .docx.
E. Additional Resources
The following resources will be helpful to you as you work on this assignment: - Purdue Online Writing Lab’s APA Formatting and Style Guide
- This site includes a comprehensive overview of APA style, as well as individual pages with
guidelines for specific citation types. - Frequently Asked Questions About APA Style
- This page on the official APA website addresses common questions related to APA formatting. The
“References,” “Punctuation,” and “Grammar and Writing Style” sections will be the most useful to
your work in this course. - APA Style: Quick Answers—References
- This page on the official APA Style website provides numerous examples of reference list formatting
for various source types.
Submit Touchstone
Note: Make sure you save and upload your file in one of these supported file formats: .doc, .docx, .xls, .xlsx,
.ppt, .pptx.
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