ASSIGNMENT: For this essay, you will select one of the sources you have found through your preliminary research about your research topic. Which source you choose is up to you; however, it should be substantial enough that you will be able to talk about it at length, and intricate enough that it will keep you (and your reader) interested.In order to foster learning and growth, all essays you submit must be newly written specifically for this course. Any recycled work will be sent back with a 0, and you will be given one attempt to redo the Touchstone.The introduction of this paper will involve introducing the source: Provide the author, the title, and the context (where you found the source, where it was originally published, who sponsored it, etc.)You will then go on to evaluate the source on two levels:Credibility: Using the information in this unit as a guide, evaluate the source’s authenticity and reliability. Look at all the information that you can find about the source to establish the author’s (or sponsor’s) trustworthiness.Usefulness: Using a combination of summary and analysis, examine the source on a critical level. Determine what the source’s purpose (thesis) is, and how it arrives at that goal. Examine its value to you and the project you are working on. How will it help you prove your own points? How might it come in handy to back up a claim (or address a counter-claim)?Finally, you will include a conclusion which shows your final assessments on both counts.Sample TouchstoneA. Assignment GuidelinesDIRECTIONS: Refer to the list below throughout the writing process. Do not submit your Touchstone until it meets these guidelines.1. Source IdentificationThe introduction of this paper will be introducing the source:❒ Have you provided the author's name?❒ Have you provided the source title?❒ Have you provided the context (where you found the source, where it was originally published, who sponsored it, etc.)?2. Source Evaluation❒ Have you provided a judgment on the source's credibility?❒ Have you used specific examples from the source to illustrate your judgment on credibility?❒ Have you provided a judgment on the source's usefulness?❒ Have you used specific examples from the source to illustrate your judgment on usefulness?3. Reflection❒ Have you answered all reflection questions thoughtfully and included insights, observations, and/or examples in all responses?❒ Are your answers included on a separate page below the main assignment?B. Reflection QuestionsDIRECTIONS: Below your assignment, include answers to all of the following reflection questions.What types of questions did you ask yourself when evaluating the credibility and usefulness of your source? (2-3 sentences)How do you feel this evaluation practice will help you as you continue to move through the research process? (2-3 sentences)C. Rubric Advanced (90-100%)Proficient (80-89%)Acceptable (70-79%)Needs Improvement (50-69%)Non-Performance (0-49%)Thesis StatementProvide a clear thesis statement with sufficient support.The thesis statement consists of an original observation that is clear, focused, and well-supported.The thesis statement consists of an original observation that is adequately supported.The thesis statement consists of an identifiable main idea that is generally supported.The thesis statement consists of an identifiable main idea, but it is not not well supported or does not match most of essay's content.The thesis statement is missing or completely unsupported.Evidence and AnalysisEvaluate a single source based on the characteristics of credibility and usefulness.The analysis includes specific examples from the text as support; claims for credibility and usefulness are fully developed.The analysis includes examples from the text as support; claims for credibility and usefulness are adequately developed.The analysis includes some examples from the text, though they potentially vague or abstract; claims for credibility and usefulness are established but need further development.The analysis includes one or two examples from the text, but they are of a vague, abstract nature; claims for either credibility or usefulness are missing.The analysis includes little to no examples for support; there are no established claims for either credibility or usefulness.OrganizationExhibit competent organizational writing techniques.Presents all of the required components of a source evaluation essay, including an engaging introduction with background information and a clear thesis, a body paragraph or paragraphs addressing the source's credibility, a body paragraph or paragraphs addressing the source's usefulness, and a conclusion with a concluding statement.Presents all of the required components of a source evaluation essay, including an introduction with background information and a clear thesis, a body paragraph or paragraphs addressing the source's credibility, a body paragraph or paragraphs addressing the source's usefulness, and a conclusion with a concluding statement.Presents nearly all of the required components of a source evaluation essay; however, one component is missing.Presents most of the required components of a source evaluation essay, but is lacking two components; sequences ideas and paragraphs such that the connections between ideas (within and between paragraphs) are sometimes unclear and the reader may have difficulty following the progression of the essay.Lacks several or all of the components of a source evaluation essay; sequences ideas and paragraphs such that the connections between ideas (within and between paragraphs) are often unclear and the reader has difficulty following the progression of the essay.StyleEstablish a consistent, informative tone and make thoughtful stylistic choices.Demonstrates thoughtful and effective word choices, avoids redundancy and imprecise language, and uses a wide variety of sentence structures.Demonstrates effective word choices, primarily avoids redundancy and imprecise language, and uses a variety of sentence structures.Demonstrates generally effective style choices, but may include occasional redundancies, imprecise language, poor word choice, and/or repetitive sentence structures.Frequently includes poor word choices, redundancies, imprecise language, and/or repetitive sentence structures.Consistently demonstrates poor word choices, redundancies, imprecise language, and/or repetitive sentence structures.ConventionsFollow conventions for standard written English.There are only a few, if any, negligible errors in grammar, punctuation, spelling, capitalization, formatting, and usage.There are occasional minor errors in grammar, punctuation, spelling, capitalization, formatting, and usage.There are some significant errors in grammar, punctuation, spelling, capitalization, formatting, and usage.There are frequent significant errors in grammar, punctuation, spelling, capitalization, formatting, and usage.There are consistent significant errors in grammar, punctuation, spelling, capitalization, formatting, and usage.ReflectionAnswer reflection questions thoroughly and thoughtfully.Demonstrates thoughtful reflection; consistently includes insights, observations, and/or examples in all responses, following or exceeding response length guidelines.Demonstrates thoughtful reflection; includes multiple insights, observations, and/or examples, following response length guidelines.Primarily demonstrates thoughtful reflection, but some responses are lacking in detail or insight; primarily follows response length guidelines.Shows limited reflection; the majority of responses are lacking in detail or insight, with some questions left unanswered or falling short of response length guidelines.No reflection responses are present.D. RequirementsThe following requirements must be met for your submission to be graded:Composition must be 2-3 pages (approximately 500-750 words).Double-space the composition and use one-inch margins.Use a readable 12-point font.All writing must be appropriate for an academic context.Composition must be original and written for this assignment.Plagiarism of any kind is strictly prohibited.Submission must include your name, the name of the course, the date, and the title of your composition.Include all of the assignment components in a single file.Acceptable file formats include .doc and .docx.E. Additional ResourcesThe following resources will be helpful to you as you work on this assignment:Purdue Online Writing Lab's APA Formatting and Style GuideThis site includes a comprehensive overview of APA style, as well as individual pages with guidelines for specific citation types.Frequently Asked Questions About APA StyleThis page on the official APA website addresses common questions related to APA formatting. The "References," "Punctuation," and "Grammar and Writing Style" sections will be the most useful to your work in this course.APA Style: Quick Answers—ReferencesThis page on the official APA Style website provides numerous examples of reference list formatting for various source types.

assignment- Why might Duckworth have chosen to narrate her family's long history with the US military? Does that information enhance her credibility (ethos)? Why or why not? Duckworth also asserts that she fell in love with the "camaraderie and sense of purpose" (886) that the military instilled in her. What is a personal experience that has given you a sense of camaraderie and purpose? Please briefly describe your experience. Please respond to these questions in a post of a minimum of 150 words.article-What I Learned at WarTAMMY DUCKWORTHTAMMY DUCKWORTH is a US senator from Illinois and a recipient of the Purple Heart award, given to US service members wounded or killed in war. In 2004, while piloting an army helicopter in Iraq, she suffered wounds that led to the amputation of both legs and the loss of some mobility in her right arm. She is the first double amputee to serve in the Senate, as well as the first senator to give birth while in office. This 2015 essay appeared in Politico, an online magazine.THE U.S. MILITARY HAS BEEN A PART OF ME since long before I signed up myself. I saw war up close early. I was born in Bangkok in 1968 and grew up in Southeast Asia with my Thai mother and my American father, who first came to the region to fight in Vietnam and stayed to work assisting refugees. I remember my mother taking me as a very little kid to the roof of our home in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, to look at the bombs exploding in the distance. She didn’t want us to be scared by the booms and the strange flashes of light. It was her way of helping us to understand what was happening.Southeast Asia was home for much of my childhood, but I moved to Hawaii when I was in high school. My first direct encounter with the military was when I joined ROTC as a graduate student, although my father, who served in the U.S. Marine Corps, can trace the military service in our family all the way back to the Revolutionary War. I was interested in becoming a Foreign Service officer; I figured I should know the difference between a battalion and a platoon if I were going to represent my country overseas someday. What I didn’t expect was to fall in love with the camaraderie and sense of purpose that the military instills in you and even with the misery of training. The thing is, when we were exhausted and miserable, my fellow cadets and I were exhausted and miserable together. When the instructor yelled, he wasn’t singling anyone out, but yelling at all of us, together. It took all of us working as a team to succeed.And thank God for that. I am alive today—a proud member of Congress and an even prouder wife and new mother—because my buddies learned the same lessons. I had been pursuing a Ph.D. in political science when my National Guard unit was sent to Iraq. Eight months into our deployment, in November 2004, a rocket-propelled grenade fired by Iraqi insurgents tore through the pilot’s side of the Blackhawk helicopter I was flying. My right leg was vaporized; my left leg was crushed and shredded against the instrument panel. My pilot in command miraculously brought down the helicopter safely. I went from being the most senior member on board to the weakest. I could easily have died that day, but my crew wouldn’t give up on me. They pulled me from the disabled aircraft and, when help arrived, insisted I be attended to first even though some of them were also seriously injured.That day, and so many others when I served, illustrated the two most important lessons the military taught me: Never leave anyone behind— not on the battlefield and not in our country. And never put a service member in harm’s way without understanding the cost—the very real and very human cost—of war. That’s why I committed my time at the Illinois Department of Veterans’ Affairs and at the federal VA, as well as my time in Congress, to making sure that veterans have the opportunity to achieve that American dream that they defended for the rest of us.That day, I lost both of my legs, but I was given a second chance at life. It’s a feeling that has helped to drive me in my second chance at service—no one should be left behind, and every American deserves another chance. These two lessons inform everything I do in Congress —every minute of every day, whether discussing how best to defeat the Islamic State or debating the merits of a trade deal or trying to figure out how to provide traveling moms with a clean, safe place at airports to breast-feed their babies.You don’t have to suffer war injuries to understand how tough life can be. The military has a great support network—hundreds of people helped save me, heal me and move me on with my life. Not everyone can count on help like that when tragedy strikes their families, their health or their careers; the recent recession has been devastating for many families. The least I can do as an elected official is to try to make sure working families are not left behind and to offer them help through benefits like education and a higher minimum wage.Duckworth attends a Veteran’s Day ceremony after being elected to Congress in 2016.As for war, families like mine, with fathers and brothers and sisters and mothers in the service, are always the first to bleed. We will serve and serve proudly. We will go wherever the country needs us. I am not a dove. I believe strongly that if the country’s national security interests dictate that we put boots on the ground, then let’s do it and be aware of the true costs, both economic and human. I’m also not a reckless hawk, with scant appreciation for what the men and women in uniform—and their families—sacrifice every single day to keep the rest of us safe.Tammy Duckworth’s essay is powerful all the way through, but wow, what an ending! Closing sentences are tremendously important. When it’s time to write one yourself, check out pp. 707–09 for some good tips.Our efforts in Iraq cost our economy more than a trillion dollars, and we will be caring for our Iraq and Afghanistan veterans for at least the next 50 years. The next time we go to war, we should truly understand the sacrifices that our service members and the American people will have to make. Which is why, when my colleagues start beating the drums of war, I want to be there, standing on my artificial legs under the great Capitol dome, to remind them what the true costs of war are.