global energy

global energy
Guidelines for Article Presentations and Review
Goals:
• The Article Presentation allows student to practice their verbal presentation skills, and for the
class to benefit from exposure to a wide range of topics and readings without placing a high
reading burden on every student.
• The Article Review allows student to practice their scholarly writing and critical thinking skills to
prepare an analytic essay on the topic. As the assigned articles vary in their viewpoints and
contributions to the broader topic, the main pedagogical objective is to give students an
opportunity to write an essay that connects/aggregates information and arguments from the
scholarly and policy literatures.
In-Class Presentations (5%): Students are to prepare one in-class presentation on readings.
There are multiple readings for each topic, and students are to be guided by the following principles
• Presentations on each article/chapter should be about 15 minutes long (there may be 2 or more
presentations on each day). No Powerpoint is required for the presentation: it will be useful for
you to prepare notes or an outline of the article, so that you cover all the key points from the
article
• Provide a clear and accurate presentation of the content/main argument of the article or
chapter. Focus on factual information or core arguments that are provided. Remember, your
presentation should be designed to inform your classmates about the main arguments and
conclusions made by the author.
• There may be more than one student assigned to each article. If you are doing a joint
presentation, I will provide a list of names and contact information so that you can collaborate in
preparing for the presentation. Divide the work of presentation: do not simply repeat the
same facts/information as your presentation partner. It is your responsibility to arrange
this part of the presentation.
Article Presentations will be evaluated on the following criteria
• Factual accuracy in describing the content of the articles
• Clarity and Conciseness of presentation
• Ability to respond to questions on the article
Written Article Review (10%): Each student must prepare a short review essay that discusses
the article/chapter that was presented in class. Provide a citation (author, date, title, publication, and
volume/page references) at the start of the written review.
 This short essay should be about 3-4 pages long, double-spaced, 1-inch margins, 12-point fonts.
 This is an argumentative essay based on the readings: take a position (for or against, or in
support of one side of a debate), and argue in support of that position. You may pose the
following questions, for example: What are the main contributions and significance of the topic
for IR? What is at stake in the article? How does the article address different dimensions of a
central problem? Are there any limitations or weaknesses, in your estimation?
 The Review Essay should give a brief summary of the main question or argument made by
the author
The Article Review will be evaluated on the following criteria:
• Factual accuracy in describing the arguments/claims of the articles
• Evidence of systematic use of the article/chapter as a source for evidence or arguments for the
essay
• Overall coherence of essay: the argument should connects the article to the overall topic for the
presentation
• Writing mechanics (free of writing and formatting errors)
NOTE: Reviews are due in the class session immediately after your presentation.