What's in LaunchPad for Practical Argument?

LaunchPad for Practical Argument is packed with digital content that works with your textbook to help you sharpen your ability to read analytically and write successfully in first-year composition and in your coursework across campus. Whether your instructor assigns the resources in LaunchPad or encourages you to work with the material at your own pace, we’re confident that LaunchPad will help you develop the skills you need to succeed in college and beyond. For help using LaunchPad, please join the College Students Support Community or contact Tech Support. You can find Tech Support contact information by clicking “Help” in the upper right corner of your screen.

In the e-book you’ll find all the great content and activities from the printed book, including:

New essays and topics illustrate real-world arguments. 68 new professional essays and 72 new images provide fresh examples, including great new readings such as these:

• Rebecca MacKinnon writing about the impact of privacy settings on Iranian protestors in "Privacy and Facebook"
• Adam Cohen wondering about the path to the future in "Should Self-Driving Cars Be Legal"
• Sharon Jayson exploring the implications of media in "Is Online Dating Safe?"

New debate and casebook topics. 3 new topics ask whether helicopter parents are ruining their children, when bystanders are obligated to intervene, and whether or not it pays to study the humanities.

More help with the writing process and academic writing.

Expanded coverage of refutation, including an at-a-glance chart of strategies for countering opposing viewpoints.

Additional material on using sources in argument. The MLA paper is now annotated in a second color, providing guidance on why the student writer selected a particular quote or source.

Expanded, interactive templates on each type of argument provide additional practice for you to develop your writing skill. Comprehension quizzes on the instructional content, as well as every selection in the book, help you to assess your progress and understanding. In addition, you’ll find helpful tutorials on topics such as reading critically, working with and citing sources, and using digital writing tools.

Developed in light of the latest advances in learning research, LearningCurve is a game-like adaptive quizzing program that covers topics from grammar and usage to reading critically and argument. The less you know about a topic, the more LearningCurve focuses on it, and the better you do, the more challenging the questions become, helping you concentrate on exactly what you need to learn.