Writer’s Notebook 3.2

For this Writer’s Notebook, you will write two paragraphs, a counterargument and a refutation paragraph. You will use the essay “What’s a College Education Really Worth?” by Naomi Schaefer Riley as the counterargument. In other words, you will prove why she is wrong in your refutation paragraph. You will defend the thesis statement “The benefits of graduating from a four-year university outweigh the negatives.” 

Read and take notes over the article “What’s a College Education Really Worth? Not Enough” by Naomi Schaefer Riley (link above).
Read and take notes over the handout “Writing a Counterargument and Refutation Paragraph” that is attached.
Complete the counterargument and refutation activity for your next Writer’s Notebook activity below.

You are required to have a counterargument in your final argumentative research essay. Your next Writer’s Notebook activity will help you practice writing counterarguments and refutation paragraphs. These are not easy paragraphs to write. Be sure to follow the templates provided to you in the PPT/handout.

In your counterargument paragraph, you will quote from the article “What’s a College Education Really Worth?” by Naomi Schaefer Riley.
In your refutation paragraph, you will come up with reasons why graduating from a four-year university has more benefits than negatives. 
Follow the ideas in the handout over counterarguments and refutations.

In the end you will have TWO paragraphs: a counterargument that uses Schaefer Riley’s ideas and quotes from that article and a refutation paragraph that has your own ideas about why graduating from college is beneficial. If you want, you may find an article that has a good quote about the benefits of graduating from college and use it in your refutation paragraph. But it is not required. You can simply use your own ideas.
Grading rubric:

Only the opposing view is in the counterargument     10
Only the author’s claim is in the refutation                  10
Counterargument paragraph

Opens with a transition                                    10
Opposing view topic sentence                         10
Evidence from Schaefer Riley (cited)              10
Explanation of evidence                                   5
Summary sentence                                          5

Refutation paragraph

Opens with an acknowledgment                     10 
Transitions to claim                                         10
Evidence                                                         10
Explanation                                                      5
Reference to thesis                                        5

Total                                                                          100