WCU - Spring 2006 Casebook Preparation Checklist

Casebook Preparation Checklist
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Title Page

___ Did you include the casebook title, date, and each group member’s full name?
___ Did you include any graphics (optional)?

Introduction (This provides an orientation to your casebook topic.)

___ Did you present the subject of your casebook?
___ Did you attempt to engage readers’ interest in the topic?
___ Did you explain the range of positions your casebook explores?
___ Did you place the articles you are featuring in the context of these positions?
___ Did you write the introduction in the first person plural point of view to reflect that it was written by a group author rather than an individual author?

Headnotes (4) (These appear before each featured article; serve as an introduction to each individual article.)

___ Did you place each headnote on a separate page before each featured article?
___ Did you make an attempt to establish the writer’s (or the publisher’s) credibility? Did you identify the author’s credentials, if these were available to you? If they were not available, did you try to search for them using Google.com (type in the person’s name)?
___ Did you include a brief summary of the article?
___ Did you end the headnote with a question that you think the article answers?
___ Did you write the endnote in the first person plural point of view to reflect that it was written by a group author rather than an individual author?
___ Did you include the printout of the whole article following the headnote?

Endnotes (4) (These appear following each featured article; serve as an evaluation of each individual article.)

___ If your source was persuasive, did you include an evaluation of its persuasive features using your knowledge of the four parts of an argument?
___ If your source was primarily informative, did you include an evaluation at its ability to present information objectively? Have you identified whether the source is factual or opinionated? If it’s factual, is the information credible? If it’s opinionated, are opinions adequately supported with effective evidence?
___ Did you identify any weaknesses in the article that would lead you to question its conclusions (invalid reasoning, logical fallacies, poor evidence)?
___ Did you write the endnote in the first person plural point of view to reflect that it was written by a group author rather than an individual author?
___ Did you place your endnote on a separate page following the article?

Argumentative Conclusion (This provides a persuasive argument for your group’s position on the issue you explored)

___ Did you write your argument in the form of an essay? Does it have an introduction, body, and conclusion?
___ Did you state your claim in a thesis sentence somewhere in the essay?
___ Did you include your reasons and evidence in support of your claim in a clear, coherent manner?
___ Did you acknowledge the opposing view(s) in a fair, accurate manner?
___ Did you negotiate or refute the opposing view(s)?