Description
- Pick a topic that you WANT to learn more about and that you are driven to make an argument about! (consider issues that face your area of employment, academic interest, family, hobby, etc.)
- Pick a topic that you can make a FAIR-MINDED argument about, rather than a topic you are blindly passionate about. For example, I can make a fair-minded argument about just about any topic out there, but there are a few topics I know I just can’t see the other side on.
- This topic should be debatable (reasonable people should be able to argue different positions on this topic). For instance, few rational people would argue FOR murder (so it’s not a debatable topic), BUT you’d find folks on both sides of the fence regarding topics like capital punishment, use of drones in war, police force in a particular situation, etc.
- Avoid the highly sensationalized hot button issues (marijuana legalization, abortion, gun control) UNLESS you can narrow your topic to a specific and timely scenario. For instance, I heard something on the news this week about a new Florida law that made it legal for people to have a small amount of marijuana on them (not sure of the specifics), in Kansas there is a bill on the table making a particular abortion procedure illegal, etc.
- More specific, narrow topics are always better (rather than argue the benefits of holistic treatments, argue the benefits of a particular holistic treatment on a particular ailment/disease; rather than arguing for gun control (very vague and almost no one simply wants NO guns), argue for increased screening on owners or to limit purchase of a particular type of firearm or direct your attention to a specific bill being voted on in the country. Center your argument in the U.S. unless you have a reason for looking outside the country.
The goal of this essay is to write a researched argument on a debatable topic (see parameters for topic choice in week 1). The final draft of your research paper should have a clear and specific thesis and be organized to effectively express your ideas. It should be polished: there should be very few, if any, errors in grammar, mechanics, or APA formatting. It should stay focused on supporting the assertion made by your thesis, and should cite and analyze your research sources in an orderly and effective way.
Use the feedback and corrections you received on your Week 3 Outline and Smarthinking Draft as a starting point for revision. Also remember class lessons, Live sessions, reading assignments, discussion topics, etc. as you revise your draft toward the final submission.
The paper should be a minimum of 1300-1500 words in length. It should include at least 5 sources (3 of which should be academic sources from the Everglades University Library). Other authoritative sources may be utilized as well. It must be written according to APA format. All sources must be documented using in-text (parenthetical) citations with matching references on the References pages. Papers that fail to cite sources or include aligned reference entries for each source will not be graded.
