English 1A
Gavilan College

Seminar 3 - This I Believe (2/3 - 2/10)

Introduction
In preparation for the first essay, which is a statement of personal philosophy, you will explore the website of This I Believe, a series on National Public Radio. This I Believe accepts and broadcasts submissions from people around the world about the values and attitudes that shape their lives.

Here is a description from the This I Believe website:
"This I Believe is an international project engaging people in writing, sharing, and discussing the core values that guide their daily lives. These short statements of belief, written by people from all walks of life, are archived and featured on public radio in the United States and Canada, as well as in regular broadcasts on NPR. The project is based on the popular 1950s radio series of the same name hosted by Edward R. Murrow."

Note:  Your seminar grade will be determined by the quantity of your responses (how many questions you answer and how many other students you respond to) and the quality (how well you demonstrate an understanding of the ideas you're responding to, how detailed your responses are, how coherent and in-depth they are, etc.)

Directions:
1.  Link to the This I Believe website at http://www.thisibelieve.org/ and have a look around.
2. fLink to the sample essays on the left menu bar ("Essays on NPR" and "Browse Essays")
3. fChoose one essay to read and respond to, after browsing through them.
4. fRead the essay.
5. fAnswer the following questions with a few sentences each:

  • What was the title and who was the author of the essay you read?
  • Why did you choose this essay?
  • What was the author's main idea? How would you summarize his or her belief?
  • How effective do you think this author was at getting his or her point across? Why?
  • What is your response to this author's ideas? Do you agree or disagree, and why?

3.  Submit your response to the link that reads Seminar 3 - "This I Believe" (written)
4. Post your response these questions to the Forums chamber of the website by midnight on Monday, 2/3. 
5.  Read all the other students' posts.
6. fRespond to at least two other students' post (more is better).  You will have until midnight, Monday, 2/10 to read and respond to the other students' ideas.