Thank you all for a great semester!

Final grades have been submitted, which means the course is officially finished! Thank you all so much for your hard work this semester. I really enjoyed having each of you in my class and seeing your writing improve over the semester. I hope to see you in another class in the future. I will be emailing you with the grading rubrics for the blogs. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Have a great winter vacation!

Final Reflections

For your very last blog post of the semester, please share some of your thoughts about the course. You may write freely, but the following questions may be a helpful way to guide your writing. You do not need to answer each of these questions.

1. Do you feel like your writing has improved this semester? Why or why not? In what ways has it improved? In what ways do you want to continue improving your writing?
2. Do you feel like your reading comprehension skills have improved this semester? Why or why not? In what ways have they improved? In what ways do you want to continue improving your reading skills?
3. In what other areas do you think you have improved during the semester (grammar, speaking, vocabulary, confidence, etc.)? In what areas do you still need to continue improving? What will you do in order to improve in those areas?
4. Was this the first time you kept a blog? Did you enjoy blogging? Was blogging a helpful way to practice writing? Did you enjoy reading your classmates' blogs? Do you think you will continue blogging in the future?
5. What did you learn this semester? What do you want to learn in future semesters?
6. What were some of the best and/or worst aspects of this course? Would you recommend this course to others? Why or why not?
7. Please share any other thoughts about the semester.

Please post final reflections by 12/12. All previous blog posts must also be finalized by 12/12.

Final Exam Review

The final exam will be on 12/9. It will be structured similarly to the midterm and will cover Units 8-10. There will be four main sections: 1) vocabulary, 2) reading comprehension, 3) reading skills, and 4) language for writing. Please review the following pages:

Vocabulary:
Unit 8, Lesson A - p. 166
Unit 8, Lesson B - p. 174
Unit 9, Lesson A - p. 190
Unit 9, Lesson B - p. 198
Unit 10, Lesson A - p. 214
Unit 10, Lesson B - p. 222

Reading Comprehension:
Unit 8, Lesson A - "The Healer of Cordoba" pp. 167-169
Unit 8, Lesson B - "Pioneers of Medicine" pp. 175-178
Unit 9, Lesson A - "The Future of English" pp. 191-193
Unit 9, Lesson B - "Vanishing Voices" pp. 199-202
Unit 10, Lesson A - "The Fear Reaction" pp. 215-217
Unit 10, Lesson B - "Breath of Life" pp. 223-225

Reading Skills:
Unit 8 - Finding subjects in complex sentences - p. 172
Unit 9 - Understanding degrees of certainty - p. 196
Unit 10 - Identifying adverbial phrases - p. 220

Language for Writing:
Unit 8 - Referring to sources using quotes and paraphrases (p. 182 and p. 186)
Unit 9 - Using words and expressions for presenting counterarguments (p. 206 and p. 210)
Unit 10 - Using past form for narration (p. 228 and p. 234)

Blog Post #7 - Unit 9 (Languages)

For this blog post, you will write a persuasive essay about using languages. Revise the draft that you worked on in class on 11/18. You may want to refer to the example persuasive essay on p. 208. There are two options for this blog post:

1. Should there be one world language that everyone speaks?
2. Should Korea have more than one official language?

Posts should be made to your blogs before class on 11/25. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Essay #2 - due 11/20; Rewrite due 12/5

For the second formal essay, you will be writing about a debatable topic. You should write a persuasive essay convincing your readers to agree with your opinion on the topic. Essays should be properly formatted using Microsoft Word.  See the sample essay here to review the formatting and organization requirements.

Select one of the following topics. If you have other ideas for topics, please let me know.

1. Cyber bullying is an issue impacting elementary and secondary students in many countries around the world, including South Korea. What is the best way to prevent cyber bullying? Who should be responsible? The government? Schools? Parents? Write a persuasive essay convincing readers to follow your plan to address cyber bullying.
2. Many people volunteer their time to help others, either through non-profit organizations, churches, or other charitable venues. Think of an example of volunteer work you are familiar with and write a persuasive essay convincing readers to volunteer their time working with this organization.
3. The South Korean government has recently announced plans to issue new history textbooks in middle and high schools. Who should be responsible for writing history books, the government or private companies? Write a persuasive essay convincing readers to agree with you on whether the Korean government's plan is positive or negative. 
4. More universities are offering online courses, and it is even possible to earn a full degree without ever visiting the campus. Do you think students should be able to take all their classes online? Write a persuasive essay convincing readers why they should or should not take online classes.
5.  Proponents of all-girls schools believe that girls learn better when they aren't competing with or intimidated by boys, who statistically get more attention in the classroom. Do you think single-sex schools are a good idea? Why or why not? Write a persuasive essay convincing readers why they should or should not attend an all-girls school.
6. All Korean men must serve in the military for about two years. What do you think of this policy? Should military service be compulsory? Write a persuasive essay convincing readers why all men should or should not be required to serve in the military in South Korea.
7. According to some health organizations, many foods on our grocery store shelves are made with genetically modified ingredients. Many of these foods, however, do not have a GMO (genetically modified organism) label. Do you think there should be a law requiring manufacturers to label foods containing GMOs? Write a persuasive essay convincing readers whether or not foods with GMOs should be labeled.
8. Other ideas? If there is another debatable topic you would like to write about, please let me know.

Essays should be emailed to me at kbrebner@gmail.com by Friday, 11/20 at midnight. In the email, please include your essay as an attachment to the Microsoft Word file. In the email subject line, please write: IERW04 - Your Name - Essay #2.

Post the rewrite of your essay to your blog by 12/5.

As always, let me know if you have any questions.

Blog Post #6 - Unit 8 (Innovations)

For this blog post, you may choose to write about a new medical innovation or a new technological innovation. Do some basic research online and introduce a new and exciting advancement. This can be a new medical procedure, a  new type of technology, or a new invention. Explain the new innovation and why it is exciting, important, or significant. You can refer to the example on p. 184.

Revise the draft that you started in class on 11/4, and upload the final version to your blog before class on 11/11.

Let me know if you have any questions.

Formal Essay #1 - Rewrite (post by 11/11)

After looking over the comments and feedback I gave you on your first formal essay, please make some revisions. You should post the rewrite on your blog by copying and pasting it. You may also choose to create a Google Doc and share the link to the essay that way.

Your rewrites should be posted before class on 11/11. Additionally, please resubmit the paper that I wrote feedback on so that I can refer to the original when I look at your rewrite.

As always, please let me know if you have any questions.