assignment instructions the goal of this paper is to design a program
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Assignment Instructions
The goal of this paper is to design a program that will help Merced College students to understand,
appreciate, and utilize concepts from The Last Lecture. You need to explain how your program will
make sure that students understand and appreciate these concepts.
The audience for this paper could include students, faculty, staff, and administration at Merced College.
It could also include individuals from outside of Merced and even outside of California who could
provide funding for your program. Therefore, don't assume your reader knows what Merced College is
or where Merced is in the state of California.
Essay Advice
Clearly, you will not be able to cover all of the concepts or lessons from The Last Lecture in your
essay. Having three concepts seems to work best. Therefore, almost immediately you will need to start
narrowing down which key concepts you will be covering.
You need to come up with your own terms or wording for the concepts in order to connect examples or
advice that are in different parts of the book.
Also: Names for concepts need to make sense to someone who didn't read the book. "Romancing the
Brick Wall" and "Training a Jedi" won't make sense to someone who didn't read the book, for instance.
The best approach students have had in the past...
First, set up Randy Pausch, his book, the key concepts, Merced College, and the basic information
about your program in your introduction.
Next, have a brief (maximum ½ page) utility paragraph with more necessary information on your
program that you couldn't fit in the introduction.
Then, use the regular body paragraphs to prove how your program will make sure that students learn
the concepts from The Last Lecture.
Your program needs to live up to the "head fake" principles of Pausch, so make sure it is fun, creative,
imaginative, and interesting.
You need to entice students to actually participate and to have a good time before they realize that they
learned something important.
As such, try to move beyond ideas I've heard in the past: “Students will sit quietly and take notes……” or
"Students will go online and read a PowerPoint…”
As you review The Last Lecture, be on the lookout for interesting, specific quotes from Pausch that
will support your points.
These quotes should be clear enough that even someone who has not read The Last Lecture would be
able to understand them.
The strongest papers will find ways to link together the concepts from throughout the book and show
how they build on each other in the program you have designed. This will help you write a one
coherent essay and program rather a paper that feels like three unconnected mini-essays.
Important: If you want, you can make your program totally online so that it can be used for distance
learning. However, last semester, my students had more fun when they imagined their programs
existing a post-Covid 19 scenario in which life is more or less back to normal in terms of health and
safety protocols.
Only one idea for a program is forbidden: A trip to Disneyland or a similar amusement park.
A program based on this idea will be used for several of the models that we will be examining prior to
submitting Essay 2, so therefore you can't use that idea for your actual paper. Rough Draft (5 full pages minimum, typed, Times New Roman, double-spaced, one-inch margins, in
MLA format).
Requirements
Write and properly format your document as per MLA requirements, which include:
Times New Roman font
One-inch margins
Double-spaced
MLA-style header in the upper-left corner of the first page
Centered Title
Indent new paragraphs one tab, but do not add extra lines between paragraphs.
The introduction (hook, background, and thesis) should match what is in the essay. Underline the
thesis.
Each body paragraph should start with a transition and a topic sentence. Transitions should link
together the different body paragraphs. Also, each body paragraph should only cover how your
program will teach one concept or lesson from Pausch.
Include at least one counter-argument and refutation in your essay.
The counter-argument and refutation do not need to be referenced in the thesis, though.
A model counter-argument and refutation are included in the Week 8 Module.
Each claim should be backed up with specific evidence, including two quotes from Pausch's book in
each body paragraph of your paper. All quotes should use signal phrases and appropriate citations.
No paragraph should be longer than ¾ (or 0.75) page. Notably, the introduction should stay on page
1.Titles of books, “articles,” and “chapters" should be punctuated correctly.
The conclusion should sum up your essay and reiterate the thesis; it should not bring up new ideas.
The paper should be relatively free of errors in spelling, grammar, and punctuation, especially those
concepts we have covered in class.
Avoid using the “I” form and the “you” form in your writing; in college, these forms are informal.
Your last page, which is NOT included towards the number of minimum pages for each draft, must
include a bibliography (works cited) indicating the source that you used in your paper (worth 5
points in the rough draft).
When you're done, go back and add a fitting two-part academic title that accurately previews your
essay (worth 5 points in the rough draft).