Rhetorical Analysis Using the Five Ws
Instructor Guide
Created in partnership between the University Writing Program, the University Libraries Digital Literacy Initiative, and TLOS, this module ("learning session") introduces the "Five Ws"—the who, what, when, where, and why investigation framework used in journalism—and guides students to apply it to the rhetorical analysis of artifacts. This session is designed to take about 50 minutes and includes 1 short video and 4 informal writing activities. The session concludes with a discussion post as the final deliverable.
Learning Outcomes
Upon completing this learning session, students should be able to do the following:
Identify rhetorical qualities (audience, purpose, context, and timing) in a variety of texts and situations
Apply journalistic question words to a rhetorical situation
Practice using language consciously in order to fit a given situation
How to Use This Learning Session
This learning session was designed with potential connections to the ENGL 1105 rhetorical analysis assignment in mind, but could be used throughout composition or other Discourse courses.
The design of this session allows for students to complete most learning activities asynchronously, including a pre-writing warm-up, 1 video, an analysis of an advertisement of students' choice, a final reflection, and a discussion board post.
The session is designed for students' informal writing responses to be private and ungraded; such opportunities are valuable for engaging students in earnest reflection and metacognition. Moreover, letting students choose the material conditions of their own writing space (e.g. handwriting in a personal notebook or typing in their preferred notes app or word processor) promotes agency in their literacy development.
Recommended Follow-Up Activity (15–20 minutes)
As an extension of this learning session, students could complete an activity that asks them to use the 5W's to analyze the title of an online article and then create a new title for a different audience and context.
How to Incorporate Learning Sessions into Your Canvas Course Site
To incorporate this material into your existing Canvas course site, complete the following steps:
Navigate to your course "Modules" section and locate the unpublished Pathways Learning Sessions module.
Learning sessions are formatted as Canvas "Discussions." Select the "more" icon (three vertical dots) next to the particular learning session you want to incorporate, then use the "Move to..." command to add it to one of your existing modules.
By default, these lesson plans are ungraded with open availability. Edit the discussion to assign due dates and grade values and to change other settings in accordance with your teaching practices. Consider adding a hyperlink to any instruction pages or rubrics for discussions in your course, placing it near the "Discussion Prompt" at the end of the learning session material.
Scholarly Context (Optional Further Reading for Instructors)
Foss, Sonja. Rhetorical Criticism: Exploration and Practice. 4th ed., Waveland Press Inc, 2009, pp. 3-8.
Carroll, Laura Bolin. “Backpacks vs. Briefcases: Steps toward Rhetorical Analysis.” Writing Spaces: Readings on Writing, vol. 1, edited by Charles Lowe and Pavel Zemliansky, Parlor Press, 2010. https://writingspaces.org/essays.
Losh et al. Understanding Rhetoric: A Graphic Guide to Reading, Bedford St. Martins, 2017, pp. 71 - 106.
Issue 2” looks at ‘strategic reading’ and covers the notion of analysis and reader positionality. This could also work well with activities 2 and 3 as prior reading.
Newkirk, Thomas. Minds Made for Stories: How We Really Read and Write Informational and Persuasive Texts. Heinemann, 2014, pp. 22-50.
Ratcliffe, Krista. Rhetorical Listening: Identification, Gender, Whiteness. Southern Illinois University Press, 2005, pp. 1-16.
Scholes, Robert. “On Reading a Video Text.” MediaLit.Org, Center for Media Literacy, 1989, www.medialit.org/reading- room/reading-video-text.
Sheffield, Jenna Pack. “Breaking Down an Image.” Writing Commons, Nov. 30, 2011, https://writingcommons.org/open-text/information- literacy/visual-literacy/breaking-down-an-image/399- breaking-down-an-image.