Melvin E. Beavers
Volume 5
Assignment Description
The purpose of this assignment is to use rhetoric to think and write critically about technology and the users’ experiences with it. To do so, students will work collaboratively to determine what makes a smartphone app successful. Once they agree, each student is bound by the criteria they have created together. They will collect apps; compile them in a portfolio, and evaluate the app’s appeal, in part, based upon the criteria they create. Part of their evaluation should center on the three rhetorical appeals of ethos, pathos, and logos. Students will use Google Sites or another web-based platform to curate their app collection. They will build their own App Casebook. It will include the app’s name, summaries for each, and any visuals the student deems essential to help further analyze each app’s utility. Next, they will analyze the rhetorical effectiveness of the apps, given their target audience(s) and purpose(s). This approach to rhetorical analysis encourages students to a) survey, b) collect, and c) then analyze. The App Casebook assignment teaches students the importance of consensus and agreement about the nature of an artifact; they have to define the terms and use the criteria as a basis or form of analysis.