Class Two: Academic Literacy, Scholarly Analysis, and Pre-Writing Strategies

Class Sequence and Continuation: This session, identified as class two, serves as a direct continuation of the lecture delivered in class one.
Lecture Distribution Strategy: The instructor follows a specific pattern for distributing course content throughout the academic week.
- Monday: The first class of the week features the initial lecture segment.
- Wednesday: The second class of the week features the follow-up or second lecture segment.
Frequency: This split-lecture format will be a recurring structure throughout the semester, though it may not be applied to every single class.

Purpose of Early Academic Reading: A scholarly article has been introduced early in the curriculum to facilitate the acquisition and honing of specific academic skills.
Skill Building: Students are expected to build the "muscle" required for reading complex academic and scholarly writing over time.
Contextual Application: The current assignment involving the work of Pilar Nicolley (also referred to as Pilar Meghoi or Pilar McHoy in the text) is not intended for deep research or formal analysis at this specific stage.
Thematic Focus: The article serves as a foundation for students to branch off into different ideas and brainstorm approaches for the upcoming "first essay."
Specific Topics for Consideration:
- Social media usage and its impact.
- Trends and behaviors among the younger generation.
- The intersection and integration of the digital world into the offline world.

Intended Audience: Scholarly articles, such as the one by Pilar Nicolley, are not typically authored for the general layperson.
Expert-to-Expert Communication: These texts are written by scholars and experts within a specific field for the benefit of other experts and scholars in that same or related fields.
Disciplinary Context: Pilar Nicolley’s work focuses on communications within the digital world and its relationship to the offline world.
Language and Comprehension: The language used in these articles may be difficult for the average person to comprehend due to specialized terminology and conceptual density; however, the instructor emphasizes that understanding is not impossible.

Audience Awareness: When reading, students must maintain the mindset that the text was originally written for a scholarly audience.
Goal-Oriented Reading: If a student encounters difficult words or complex concepts, the priority should remain on identifying the "main idea" of the article rather than getting bogged down in every detail.
Critical Inquiry: Students should constantly ask themselves why the specific reading was assigned and how it aligns with the overall theme of the course.
The First Read (Skimming):
- Perform a careful skim to identify the main argument or central idea.
- Search for keywords, specific terms, recurring phrases, and unique concepts or ideas introduced by the author.
The "Sit and Absorb" Technique: After the initial read, students should take time to process the information and attempt to recall what they have learned from memory.
Second Read and Deep Engagement:
- Reread the text, either in its entirety or in specific pieces.
- Engage in active reading techniques, including highlighting and annotating the text.

Handwritten Notes: The instructor strongly recommends that students take physical notes by hand.
Cognitive Benefits: Handwriting notes is cited as a more effective way to retain knowledge and information compared to digital methods.
Practical Examples: The instructor intends to provide a concrete example of effective note-taking techniques during the following week's class.

Definition of Deepfakes: These refer to images, videos, or audio recordings that have been specifically edited or generated using Artificial Intelligence (AI) and AI-related tools.
Subjects of Representation: Deepfakes can depict real individuals or entirely fictional subjects.
Relevance: This concept is highlighted as a term that students will encounter repeatedly throughout the semester.

Developmental Phase: This current stage is categorized as "brainstorming," which occurs before the actual writing process begins.
Purpose of Brainstorming: The objective of this phase is to help students develop, refine, and expand their ideas.
Application: Brainstorming is the essential precursor to sitting down and drafting the first essay, ensuring the student has a clear path forward.