PairOfDimes
Posts: 324
Joined: 7/20/2006 Status: offline
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Yes, I've done this. I ask for book/article summaries, reviews (argumentative reports, effectively) and synthetic short essays (i.e. read these five things and explain what they have in common, or draw conclusions from them together). I'll do this as a Written Assignment if I think a person's analyses and writings need serious attention, or if the writer finds the idea attractive, but if the person habitually reads and can communicate and critique fairly well already, I'm quite happy to simply have interesting conversations (written or oral--oral presentation is important too!) about recent reading to give analytical and communication skills a workout. Resources? I think White's Elements of Style is very useful in improving writing, and you can never go wrong with Oxford language publications. I cull articles from the Guardian, the NY Times, Slate, and Salon, mostly.
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