If I were to guest lecture in the next section of this 181 course, I would select the skill of they say, I say statements to teach to incoming freshmen.  This is due to the fact that I feel I have gained prolific knowledge in this area, and feel most confident explaining this concept.  I would go about this by first explaining that they say, I say statements are an important part of academic writing and they can be utilized in many different formats, settings, and genres.  Describing they say, I say statements as “entering into conversation” by using a summary of others’ arguments as a way of tying in one’s own argument, would allow incoming students to understand the purpose (Graff xvi).  Breaking down the statements into the different parts would be necessary, so I would begin by giving examples of ways to state others’ arguments in the context of different situations paired with examples of the three ways to respond to an argument.  I would provide a hand out with many of the different templates for they say, I say statements so that they could visualize these examples in context.  Naysayers and “So What?” statements along with transitions should also be briefly mentioned since they are important for the continuation in the writing process following the they say, I say statement.  One activity I would implement would be to practice they say, I say statements in the context of each students personal life.  This would be a good introduction because it is known information and allows one to interact and learn new and interesting things about individuals which keeps people engaged.  The other activity would be to use they say, I say statements in discussion about the reading.  This would be more difficult, but would show one of the many practical applications.

Good morning!

My name is Karol Oviedo, and I will be your guest lecturer for this section of this 181 course, Writing about Science Fiction Literature and Film. Your Professor is in Spain as we speak.

Today, we will be talking about the theme “Entering Class Discussions.” An overview of today’s class will be: an icebreaker, perceptions of entering class discussions in high school, and how different it is entering a class discussion in college. Since most, if not all of you, are First-Year Students, you might remember how high school discussions went. The teacher would pose a question, a student would answer, one would agree or disagree and the conversation continued. In college, this might differ a bit. But I am getting ahead of myself. I would love to meet your first. Let us do an icebreaker. Everybody, get on your feet and lets stand in a circle. You will say your name and a movement. For example, I will say Karol while making a piece sign with my fingers.

In this Eng 181 course, entering the discussion involves a small convention that one should follow. This convention includes: stating the name of the last person who spoke (this will help you remember their name), summarize what they have mentioned briefly (this will allow you to make clear any misunderstandings), and extend or refute on what the previous person has argued (if possible, include references to the text being discussed or any other source that contributes to the discussion). Any questions? No? All right.
To be able to put all of this information into practice, let us set the chairs in a circle. Let us read this article by Clay Shirky, a professor of media studies at NYU.
Here is the link: https://medium.com/@cshirky/why-i-just-asked-my-students-to-put-their-laptops-away-7f5f7c50f368
After reading this article, the topic question for today is; should laptops, tablets, phones, and other technological devices be allowed during lecturers? Please, when you answer, cite the article accordingly…

If I were asked to guest lecture in the next section of this course, I would cover constructing a thesis using a They Say/ I Say Structure. I would teach this because I think it is vital for all writing. The biggest concept I learned in this class is that writing should be a conversation. One enters a conversation through their writing. In this way one can engage the audience, capturing their attention as if you were talking to them. A thesis constructed using a They say/ I say structure not only talks about common opinions on the subject matter, but it also responds to it, explaining why it is important that the reader read your paper.

To begin teaching this skill I would begin by explain the “they say” aspect in a thesis. I would explain that you must start with stating what others are saying, or summarizing. I would teach that the art of summarizing is stating the other person main points to either agree with them or rebuttal them. Here, I would teach that you can even include a quote of what “they say” and then further comment on it. I would further explain the second part of the thesis, the “I say” part. There are 3 ways you can respond: yes, no, or okay, but. From this one must include a “so what” factor, distinguishing what you are saying from what they are saying.  With these two aspects to a thesis one can engage the audience through writing as if they were entering a conversation.