The Bedford Researcher -- Chapter 19 Summary

The Bedford Researcher, Chapter 19: Designing Documents and Presentations, gives helpful instructions for the following: How the writer can design academic essays; how the writer can design multimodal essays; how the writer can design articles; how the writer can design Wed sites; how the writer can design oral presentations; how the writer can design multimedia presentations; and, finally, how the writer can design poster presentations. For the purposes of this class and for the sake of a brief summary, the only one I will go into detail about is how the writer can design academic essays. The writer can design an academic essay, according to Mike Palmquist, the author of The Bedford Researcher, by considering their purpose, considering their reader's expectations about design, and viewing an essay. The writer may consider their purpose by reflecting on their own writing situation. In this class, the writer's situation is directed by the class instructor, and the instructor has directed the writer to construct an argumentative essay. By considering the reader's expectations about design, the writer can learn how wide margins should be, whether or not to double-space, and what type of font and size of font to use. Finally, by viewing an essay, the writer can be aware of specific details to use in their own papers, such as page numbering, margins, line spacing, documentation system, and a heading.