Critical Thinking & Information Literacy
Across the Curriculum
What do YOU think" The Op-Ed Page
Created by Susan Jamieson and Chris Hall
Notes to Instructor:
Most of the activities here center on editorial cartoons even though the subtitle of
this section is “The Op-Ed Page.” Clearly, letters to the editor, opinion articles
in magazines etc. are additional appropriate sources for class content. Combining TV
news coverage of the same topic depicted in an editorial cartoon, letter to the editor,
etc. is an another method to be considered.
A discussion of “controversy” and the creation of an environment where students will
feel comfortable in expressing their opinions on controversial issues is imperative.
Any type of controversial issue can be used for these activities though some are more
interesting cross-culturally than others. The students’ ages, backgrounds, language
abilities, etc. may limit the scope of topics which can be used.
The instructor may need to take a very active part in the selection of cartoons,
articles, topics, etc. which students select for these activities. It may be difficult
for some students to readily determine whether they have any knowledge about or interest
in a particular topic.
What do YOU Think?: Activity #1
Functions of this assignment:
Practice reading strategies
Understanding the nature of controversy
Practice debating current controversial issues
Practice listening to and responding to opposing ideas
Assessment:
Ability to determine the “sides” of an argument
Ability to work with other students in order to understand all sides of an issue
Ability to compare US attitudes on this issue to those in other countries
Assignment: Discuss Controversy
Find an article on a controversial topic and prepare a vocabulary list and a
question work sheet for the students. Have students read the article and answer
the questions.
Students should then write a short summary of the article. The summaries and
answers to the question work sheet can be shared in small groups.
As a whole class the issue in the article can be discussed and US attitudes
can be compared to attitudes in the students’ native countries.
What do YOU Think?: Activity #2
Functions of this assignment:
Practice refining a search topic
Practice generating a list of search terms
Become familiar with editorial cartoons and how they portray social and political
controversy or commentary
Assessment:
Ability to access information using the WWW
Ability to produce an accurate fact sheet
Assignment: Do some research on editorial cartoons.
Develop a list of key concepts and search terms you could use to find information
about editorial cartoons.
Put together a brief fact sheet containing the most important or interesting
information you found on editorial cartoons. You might consider:
When did they first appear?
In which country?
Who were the first important cartoonists in the USA?
What were their topics?
Where did their cartoons appear? Etc.
What do YOU Think?: Activity #3
Functions of this assignment:
Understand the importance of current events.
Become familiar with the use of editorial cartoons to express opinions.
Explore the visual representations commonly used in editorial cartoons
Assessment Criteria:
Ability to pick out common objects in a variety of cartoons
Ability to use library resources to complete assignment
Assignment: Become familiar with editorial cartoons.
Make a list of the major news events of the day/week/month
With your classmates, choose one of these events and discuss what you know about it.
Try to understand the different points of view that people have about the event.
Select a particular point of view and brainstorm how you would draw this event and
point of view in a cartoon.
Make a class list of the kinds of objects etc. you would use in the cartoon.
Now that you have done some thinking, compare your ideas with those of professional
editorial cartoonists.
Look at the cartoons supplied by your teacher. Notice which objects appear frequently
and make a list.
Using the handout from your instructor which lists objects common to editorial
cartooning, go to the library and look at at least 50 editorial cartoons. You may
use newspapers, "Newsweek," or the WWW.
Search for each item on the list. When you find each one, cite the cartoonist and
the event and list the source.
What do YOU Think?: Activity #4
Functions of this assignment:
Practice generating a list of search terms
Practice in refining a search topic
Introduction to library resources
Introduction to copyright laws and have a concept of plagiarism
Introduction to basic documentation
Practice synthesizing and organizing information
Assessment:
Ability to summarize without plagiarizing and use correct documentation
Ability to compose a clear, persuasive letter of personal opinion
Assignment:
Find an editorial cartoon on a topic of interest to you. Use a source you did not use
in Activity #2. You might even want to use the BCC "Jibsheet."
What opinion does the cartoonist support? How do you know? What do you see in the
cartoon that helps you understand his/her opinion?
Research several local newspapers and read the letters to the editor expressing readers'
reactions to this issue. You may have to read several papers to find what you need.
In a short paragraph, summarize the readers' arguments in favor of your topic. In a
second short paragraph, summarize the readers' arguments in opposition of your topic.
Write your own letter to the editor stating and supporting your opinion on this
issue. You may need to do some additional research to get sufficient information to
support your views. If you do, keep a list of your sources with the correct citations.
(The letters you have read may not contain enough facts that are accurate and relevant.)
What do YOU Think?: Final Project
Functions of this assignment:
Practice making inferences
Practice in detecting errors in logic or reasoning
Practice in discovering bias, assumptions, and values
Introduction to documentation
Practice synthesizing and organizing information
Assessment Criteria:
Ability to work as a group
Accuracy of lists of relevant, logical support
Assignment: Identifying Issues and Points of View.
Find the op-ed page in last Sunday's Seattle Times and the op-ed page from a large
newspaper in another large US city (Chicago, NY, Los Angeles, etc.) You must choose
a city different from all others in your small group. Use EBSCOhost to find these.
Make a list for each paper of all of the issues (topics) mentioned in the main editorial
and any opinion essays written by professional columnists on the op-ed page. (Do not
use letters to the editor or editorial cartoons.)
In a second column, briefly state the point of view that the article supports.
Next, compare the two lists.
Are the topics the same or different in the two papers? Why or why not?
For the topics that are the same, are the opinions the same or different?
In your small group, report your findings. As a group, choose one topic that
interests all of you and for which you have two articles of opposing viewpoints.
Research your topic further using the LMC to gather information. Your group must
cite 3 different sources of information.
Together, make a list of the support that each journalist uses to promote his/her
opinion.
Discuss these supports.
Is the information accurate? Where could you check if you don't know?
Is the information relevant? Does it just sound good or does it really support
the writer's argument?
Is the information presented in a logical way? Can you easily follow the
writer's argument?
What biases do you think the journalist has? How do you know?
What are the strengths and weaknesses of the argument?
After your discussion, each of you should decide which journalist did the best job
and write a one-page paper explaining why. (Everyone in the group need not choose
the same journalist.)
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