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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Sandy,</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Actually, the ballot measure might be leading
indirectly to their topic selection, without them being aware of the measure
itself. The fact such a ballot measure exists boosts the likelihood that
articles on the subject pop to the top of news searches, that the subject pops
up more on debate aggregators (as Kathleen noted), and that searches
through essay mills for papers pull them up. It also means that other classes
(sociology, political science, whatever) are more likely to be discussing the
subject than in previous terms. All of this, combined with the fact that
legalization papers have been popular choices among students and recycling
cheaters for a while, might create a spike like the one you're reporting.
</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Oh, hey. It just occurred to me that this creates a
great opportunity for an exercise in 1B classes: We can have students
Speculate about the Causes of the increase in the frequency of marijuana papers,
as a way to introduce that genre. It's a good example of a proper speculative
topic, and they aren't likely to have many preconceived theories.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>- Gray</FONT></DIV>
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style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: black"><B>From:</B>
<A title=sbaringer@gmail.com
href="mailto:sbaringer@gmail.com">sbaringer@gmail.com</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A title=englecturers@lists.ucr.edu
href="mailto:englecturers@lists.ucr.edu">englecturers@lists.ucr.edu</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Wednesday, May 05, 2010 5:01
PM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Re: UWP Lecturers marijuana
legalization</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>Yes, that might be it, but I'd have to give my students more
credit for <BR>knowing what's going on with ballot initiatives than they
otherwise seem to.<BR><BR>----- Original Message ----- <BR>From: "John Stamp"
<<A href="mailto:john.stamp@ucr.edu">john.stamp@ucr.edu</A>><BR>To:
<<A
href="mailto:englecturers@lists.ucr.edu">englecturers@lists.ucr.edu</A>><BR>Sent:
Wednesday, May 05, 2010 3:38 PM<BR>Subject: Re: UWP Lecturers marijuana
legalization<BR><BR><BR>> On Wednesday, May 05, 2010 02:04:29 pm <A
href="mailto:sbaringer@gmail.com">sbaringer@gmail.com</A> wrote:<BR>>>
Does anyone know of a particular reason why my students this year<BR>>>
have suddenly developed a fascination with the issue of marijuana<BR>>>
legalization? Has the issue been addressed in a gen ed course,
or<BR>>> perhaps Engl 4?<BR>>><BR>>> - Sandy
Baringer<BR>><BR>> Maybe it's because of the initiative that recently
qualified for<BR>> November's ballot: "Changes California Law to Legalize
Marijuana and<BR>> Allow It to Be Regulated and Taxed."<BR>><BR>> <A
href="http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/ballot-measures/qualified-ballot-measures.htm">http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/ballot-measures/qualified-ballot-measures.htm</A><BR>>
_______________________________________________<BR>> Englecturers mailing
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