Description
In this project, you will analyze three readings about the pros and cons of social media use. After reading, you will complete an organizer to discuss each reading’s use of facts and opinions, as well as evidence to support the author’s main points. You will then summarize your findings and make a recommendation about social media use for businesses in a written report. Determining an author’s main argument, telling the difference between fact and opinion, and using that information to come to your own conclusions are all valuable skills that you will use throughout life.
Competency
In this project, you will master the following competency:
Analyze texts to draw meaningful conclusions
Scenario
You work for Acme Widget Company, a business that sells products including toys, games, bicycles, sporting goods, and footwear. Acme Widget is based out of a small store in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Over the past 10 years, the company has expanded its business model to include online sales. In that time, the company’s sales more than doubled and its customer base went from local to international.
Because of the company’s online success, Acme’s founder, Winnie Widget, is considering using social media to grow Acme’s brand. At the same time, she has some concerns about social media.
For example, she knows that one of Acme Widget’s rival companies, Whacky Widgets, Inc., recently dealt with some public scrutiny. Its CEO had been using his social media accounts to broadcast his controversial opinions and share “fake news” from unreliable sources.
After witnessing the other company’s controversy, Winnie Widget has asked for your guidance. In the past, she avoided using social media for fear of embarrassing herself or the company publicly. But she has also heard that social media has benefits for businesses. With the recent growth in the company’s online business, she needs to decide whether social media would be helpful for Acme Widget.
She would like you to review some articles about the topic to learn more.
Directions
Part One: Read Actively
The founder of Acme, Winnie Widget, has asked you to review three texts that she has been too busy to read. These texts explain the risks and benefits related to social media. Winnie needs to decide whether she should embrace social media use for the company, or if she should avoid it altogether.
As you read the articles, she’s asked you to keep track of your thoughts by taking notes and using other active reading techniques. Read each of the three articles several times, and use the organizer from the “What to Submit” section to guide your thinking about each one.
Part Two: Report on Your Findings
Once you have completed the organizer, summarize your findings for Winnie Widget in a report (500–750 words). Be sure to cover the following topics:
Your reading process and opinion:
What was your opinion of this topic before you started reading? Has your opinion changed after reading these articles? Explain why or why not.
What new information have you learned about this topic?
After reading each text, did you find that you agreed with any of the authors more than the others? Why or why not?
Form and use of evidence in the articles:
How did the authors use evidence to support their positions? In your opinion, which author did this most effectively?
How did each author’s choice of form, including the medium and genre of each piece, affect your reading?
A final recommendation for Acme Widget:
Based on your analysis, do you think Acme Widget should use social media? Make a recommendation and support it with evidence from at least one of the articles you read.
Submit your organizer and report brief as your deliverables for this project.
What to Submit
Every project has a deliverable or deliverables, which are the files that must be submitted before your project can be assessed. For this project, you must submit the following:
Organizer
Answer the first two questions in this organizer before and after you have read each text. Then answer the other questions for each text. Submit your completed organizer as one of your deliverables for this project.
Report (500-750 words)
Summarize your findings for Winnie Widget in a written report.
Supporting Materials
The following resources will help support your work on the project:
Resource Instructions
Using techniques for active reading, read each of these texts several times. As you read, be sure to consider each author’s main ideas, their use of evidence to support their ideas, their choice of form, and the context for the text.
Reading: The Social Executive: How to Master Social Media and Why It’s Good for Business, Chapters 1 and 2
Reading: The Real Risks of Fake News
Reading: Misinformation on Social Media: Can Technology Save Us?
