Part II: Compare and Contrast Essay: Defending your Argument

Taken From:

NOTE / To access this lesson please go directly to the original website. It fulfills the exploratory inquiry goals of PULSE in its original form.

Author: Matthew Tidwelland Marti Lindsey

Editor: Stephanie Nardei

Time: / Several 50 minutes sessions depending if students write in class or for homework
Preparation Time: / 5 – 10 minutes
Materials: / Computer workstation with internet access
Reading: OP Pesticides in Children’s Bodies
The Effects of a Conventional versus Organic Diet

Abstract

Students read an article about a research study looking for metabolites of these pesticides in children. This lesson is designed to enhance the technical writing ability and critical thinking of students by reading and writing to compare and contrast the costs and benefits of organic food versus conventional food. They use this information to support their argument about whether or not organic food is worth the extra cost.

Objectives

Students will be able to:

  1. Compare the costs and benefits of organic food versus conventional food.
  2. The students will compose a comparison contrast essay costs and benefits of organic food versus conventional food

National Science Education Standards

Content Standard A – Science as Inquiry

  • Identify questions and concepts that guide scientific investigations
  • Formulate and revise scientific explanations and models using logic and evidence
  • Communicate and defend a scientific argument

Content Standard F- Science in Personal and Social Perspectives

Personal and community health

Arizona Science Education Standards

Strand 1 –Inquiry Process

Concept 3: Analysis, Conclusions, and Refinements

  • PO 2. Evaluate whether investigational data support or do not support the proposed hypothesis.

Concept 4: Communication

  • PO 2. Produce graphs that communicate data. (See MHS-S2C1-02)
  • PO 3. Communicate results clearly and logically.
  • PO 4. Support conclusions with logical scientific arguments.

Arizona Language Arts Educational Standards

Strand 3: Comprehending Informational Text (Grades 9-10)

Concept 1: Expository Text

Identify, analyze, and apply knowledge of the purpose, structures, and elements of expository text.

PO 1. Critique the consistency and clarity of the text’s purposes.

PO 2. Distinguish among different kinds of evidence used to support conclusions (e.g., logical, empirical, anecdotal).

PO 3. Make relevant inferences by synthesizing concepts and ideas from a single reading selection.

PO 4. Compare (and contrast) readings on the same topic, by explaining how authors reach the same or different conclusions based upon differences in evidence, reasoning, assumptions, purposes, beliefs, or biases.

Teacher Background

Related and Resource Websites

Compare & Contrast Writing

Using Compare and Contrast to Write in Science

Teaching the Compare/Contrast Essay

Teaching the Compare and Contrast Essay through modeling

Compare and Contrast Rubric

Organic Food Resources

PULSE Resource Page on GE Foods

Organic Food on Wikipedia

FAQ on Organic Food

Organic Foods in Relation to Nutrition and Health Key Facts

Activity

The students will need copies of The “OP Pesticides in Children’s Bodies The Effects of a Conventional versus Organic Diet article:

  1. Before the students actually begin writing the essay, they need to be taken through a prewriting exercise. In this exercise, the students will need to discover elements that can be compared and contrasted between organic food versus conventional food. Elements they may compare and contrast might befresh food verse processed foods. This includes fruits and vegetables for fresh foods and canned food and frozen vegetables for the processed foods. The best way to conduct this exercise is to use a Venn diagram. The Venn diagram might look something like this:

In cell A, the students would list the examples that are specific to costs and benefits of organic food. In cell B, the students would list the examples of . In cell C, the students would list the similarities between the two pieces of writings.

  1. After the prewriting exercise, the students would then write their first draft. However, the format for a comparison contrast essay must first be taught. The comparison contrast essay comes in many forms, but the format that works best for this assignments is as follows:
  1. Introductions
  2. Topic sentence
  3. Background information on topic
  4. Thesis—stating the three items that will be discussed
  5. Body Paragraph/Topic 1
  6. Similarities
  7. of organic food
  8. versus conventional food
  9. Differences
  10. of organic food
  11. versus conventional food
  12. Concluding thoughts/ clincher/analysis
  13. Body Paragraph/Topic 2
  14. Similarities
  15. of organic food
  16. versus conventional food
  17. Differences
  18. of organic food
  19. versus conventional food
  20. Concluding thoughts/clincher/analysis
  21. Body Paragraph/Topic 3
  22. Similarities
  23. of organic food
  24. versus conventional food
  25. Differences
  26. of organic food
  27. versus conventional food
  28. Concluding thoughts/clincher/analysis
  29. Conclusion
  30. Restate thesis
  31. Summarize main points
  32. Final thought
  1. Before the students write their first draft, it would helpful for them to outline their essay, detailing every element that they will cover. After they outline their essay, they can then draft their essay. This process should be easier now that the essay is completely outlined.
  2. The next process is an editing phase. The teacher may wish to edit the papers or to conduct a peer editing session. Whatever the process, the editing phase needs to highlight mechanical errors, as well as fluidity of thought.
  3. After the editing phase, the final drafts need to be composed. Generally, final drafts are typed, follow MLA format and are free of errors.

The students will turn in their essays. A rubric should be used to assess this essay. See handout 1.

Embedded Assessment

Students can be assessed using the following:

  • Venn Diagram
  • Draft
  • Essay

Homework

Students can read and write as class work or homework

Compare / Contrast Essay

Date:______Class___Writer: ______
Title: ______
Rating Scale: 1 to 5. 1=very weak, 2=weak, 3=okay, 4=very good, 5=super

. / Criteria / R / Comments
1 / Opening catches reader's interest.
2 / Thesis states topics and the main idea.
3 / Features or subjects are discussed in the same order.
4 / Order in which features are discussed is logical.
5 / Specific examples are used to support ideas.
6 / Wording and ideas are fresh and interesting.
7 / Compare/contrast clue words are used.
8 / Grammar
9 / Spelling
10 / Capitalization

Date______Class______Evaluator: ______

From __