Sophia Pathways for College Credit – English Composition II SAMPLE TOUCHSTONE AND SCORING Logan Stevens Sophia Pathways English Composition II December 20, 2019 Source Evaluation on “Salmon: Their Fight for Survival” by Anthony Netboy In my research paper I am arguing that there is a dire need for extra protection of wild salmon and steelhead on the west coast; particularly in Washington, Oregon, and northern California, where once very large wild fish stocks are dwindling near extinction. Hatcheries have helped slow the decline of these fisheries, but are not a substitute for truly wild fish. In my Comment [1]: This is a very interesting Thesis statement! It takes a clear stance on a debatable issue. Well done! research I came across a book entitled “Salmon: Their Fight for Survival” by Anthony Netboy. I found this book to be entertaining in many aspects, but not very helpful as a research source. Netboy’s book has several problems with it; the first of which being its broadness. I am looking for information about fisheries of the pacific coast. This book gives information on “[s]almon catches in Norway” (Netboy 152) and “[s]almon in Great Britain” (45) as well as some tidbits about pacific salmon catches, and some information about dams on the Columbia River, however it was mostly things that were not backed up by another source. Another problem I saw in this source is some of the way it was worded made it feel Comment [2]: See note below on organization. Sophia Pathways for College Credit – English Composition II SAMPLE TOUCHSTONE AND SCORING biased and opinionated rather than presenting straight hard facts. For example; in one section they are talking about the decline of the California salmon fisheries. The language the author uses seems biased in my eyes. I agree with his opinion, but I’m not looking for an opinion, I’m looking for facts. Comment [3]: Excellent point! The fate of California’s salmon mirrors the state’s use and misuse of many of its natural resources. In the last half of the century a serene land of infinitely varied landscapes… was invaded by hordes of people from the ends of America and abroad seeking riches...In the process rivers and watersheds were turned topsyturvy, farmlands were bulldozed and covered with towns, cities, and Cyclopean highways…Like other forms of aquatic life, many of the salmon became victims of this unparalleled destruction. (Netboy 235) The use of several words and phrases, such as “hordes” and “this unparalleled destruction” say to me that he is using his own opinion and not fact, thereby making the source somewhat biased, and not very useful. Also, in some of this work, there are tables, showing salmon catches in different regions. I noticed that the numbers are not matching up with some of my other research. I have records of fish counts from the Bonnevelle Dam on the Columbia River. According to the book there were 384,780 chinook salmon that passed through Bonnevelle Dam in 1970 (Netboy 548). However Comment [4]: This is a good point. In order to be truly helpful, a source should be comprised of facts trends. When there is bias, it can skew the information that is being presented. Comment [5]: The organization of your paper could have been enhanced if this paragraph was placed after your second paragraph. That one ended with the statement that not all of the facts in the book were backed up another source. Could have been a good lead-in! according to the records kept on the Columbia Basin Fisheires, only 314,032 chinook salmon were counted. This may seem a small difference to some but when one thinks of all the rivers and tributaries on the Columbia it adds up rather fast. 70,000 fish can be an entire river’s worth of fish for a season. This discrepancy only goes to show this as an unreliable source. Comment [6]: Good use of another source to check validity! Sophia Pathways for College Credit – English Composition II SAMPLE TOUCHSTONE AND SCORING The final problem with this source I found is the date of publication. It was originally published in 1974 by Houghton Mifflin. This source is over 30 years old. There are many more modern sources that have updated and more accurate information, along with research to back it up. For example the book “[t]he Behavior and Ecology of Pacific Salmon and Trout” by Thomas P. Quinn has many tables and years worth of research gathered by the author himself and compared with other research that has been conducted. It was published in 2005, giving it a bit more relevance due to modern scientific research. In conclusion, I have deemed this source as unhelpful and unreliable. An effective source should be relevant, recent, backed by research, and factual. This source has flaws with all four of those things, not to mention with the vast amount of information about specific parts of the globe that I am not arguing for in my argumentative essay. Although it contains some information that might help build background information on my topic, it will not be useful to me with my thesis statement in mind. Comment [7]: Good concluding paragraph! Nice summary of your points from above. Sophia Pathways for College Credit – English Composition II SAMPLE TOUCHSTONE AND SCORING References 1. Columbia Basin Fisheries and Tribes. “Annual Adult Salmon Totals” (04/22/2008): web (02/10/2010). . 2. Netboy, Anthony. “The Salmon: Their Fight for Survival” Houghton Mifflin. (1974): 45, 152, 235, 548. Print. Sophia Pathways for College Credit – English Composition II SAMPLE TOUCHSTONE AND SCORING Reflection Questions: 1. What types of questions did you ask yourself when evaluating the credibility and usefulness of your source? I’ve learned that a good source to use for accurate research should be recent, reliable, and factual. Those were the main things that I considered throughout my analysis of the source, so I asked myself when the source was published, whether the author showed any bias, and whether the author adequately cited any factual information presented. 2. How do you feel this evaluation practice will help you as you continue to move through the research process? By making sure all of my sources are reliable, recent, and factual, I am able to strengthen my argument on this topic and back it up with factual evidence. An argument will be easy to debunk if it doesn’t have the data and facts to support it. Sophia Pathways for College Credit – English Composition II SAMPLE TOUCHSTONE AND SCORING Source Evaluation Essay Rubric and Feedback Rubric Category Thesis Feedback Score (acceptable, needs improvement etc.) You have a great thesis here. It takes a clear stance on the issue and you are very clear about why. I would try and work it in a bit more seamlessly, instead of starting with it right off the bat. Evidence and Analysis You do an outstanding job of including points from the source that adequately support your analysis. I can see how you’ve done your research. Organization A few elements of your organization could be tweaked to enhance the flow, but not to the point where it is hard to follow. Style Conventions Reflection You have done a great job ensuring there are no major sentence-level errors. You have consistently used correct grammar and punctuation throughout your essay. You have provided thoughtful responses to the reflection questions. Well done. 9/10 Proficient 20/20 Proficient 3/5 Proficient 5/5 Proficient 5/5 Proficient 5/5 Proficient Overall Score and Feedback: 47/50 I think you really know your stuff when it comes to this topic! It shows throughout your analysis of the source you chose. I think you do a bit more brainstorming when you are putting your essays together in the future. The organization of your information can take a good paper and make it a great paper. 
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