Response Papers for HIST 381

You are required to write response papers relating to lectures and texts. So just what is a “response paper”? Well, don’t make it too complicated. A response paper is just a short essay that responds to the content of the lecture or text. Here are the elements in such an essay, which commonly consists of three paragraphs.

Summary	Briefly, summarize the intent and major points of the text or lecture. Get to the heart of it! What is the author trying to accomplish here? What are you supposed to take away from it?
Points of Interest	Discuss what parts or aspects of the text or lecture were most intriguing to you. These may be of interest because they relate to something else you have learned, because they pertain to your personal or professional interests, or just because you find them appealing.
Points of Inquiry	This is where you raise questions that are left hanging by the text or lecture. What seems important, but remains obscure to you? What do you wish had been included? What would you like to talk about in relation to the text or lecture? (And indeed, this serves as an invitation to others to pick up on the questions you raise. If you provoke discussion, that’s a good thing.)

Strive to write your responses in an informal, but correct style. It is OK to use first person, but be careful not to become self-indulgent; remember the text or lecture is your subject, and when you express opinions, they should be directly pertinent. Here is a rubric for my evaluation of your response papers (10 points possible).

Rubric for Evaluating Responses to Lectures and Texts		Lectures	Texts
Summary	A good summary captures intent and major points of the author.	4	12
Points of Interest & Inquiry	These should provide evidence of engagement with the material and reflection on its meaning.	4	12
Appropriate Length	Target length: 250-300 words for lectures, 400-500 for texts	1	3
Matters of Style	Composition, grammar, and punctuation are important to communication.	1	3
Points Possible		10	30

Response papers are submitted via the weblog, the Backbencher. Put a title on the submission, beginning with the acronym “RP,” so that I will be sure to identify it as a response paper. For instance,

RP: Clark’s Short History of Australia

RP: Lecture 4

Deadlines for response papers on Clark and Sinclair: see dates posted in calendar.

Deadlines for response papers on lectures: one week after conclusion of lecture in class.

You will receive the evaluation of your response paper as an e-mail message.

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