- Peter Bregman, “The Problem with Solutions” (in Ideas, Arguments and Analysis)
- Casey Gerald, “Another Way” (in Ideas, Arguments and Analysis)
- Shawn Achor, “The Third Path” (in Ideas, Arguments and Analysis)
Write a two- or three-paragraph reflection about each of the three assigned articles. Summarize each writer’s topic and point of view (or thesis, if there is one), and assess the content, support, tone, and other aspects of each writer’s approach. In each case, what kinds of material could a person gather in order to research the topic more fully? Analyze a specific section in each reading and expand on it.
In the end, write a paragraph to discuss your questions and observations related to the three assigned texts.
Finally, based on your reading and thinking, choose one of the three texts to be the focus of an essay in which you discuss real-world implications and/or applications of its ideas. In addition to the usual emphasis on clear context and organization and on detailed development, you now need to find at least two additional texts related to the topic that you can use as sources and integrate into your discussion. (These do not need to be “scholarly” in the sense of publication in academic journals, but they should definitely be more substantive and content-rich than a typical blog post.) Make useful connections among your three texts, erring on the side of over-explanation if necessary, but see that your own “take” on the topic is the dominant, controlling voice in the discussion. As always, be sure to provide your uninformed readers (who may be completely unfamiliar with the texts and topic) with relevant context, information, examples, explanation, connection, and quoted textual material at all times.