The final assignment for the course “LVB, Youth Care, and Child Protection” for the academic year 2023-2024 is a paper. In this paper, students are required to reflect on the content of the course, integrate relevant literature, and connect it to a recent newspaper article about the position and support for people with LVB in healthcare, education, or society in general. The paper is to be completed in pairs.
Throughout the course, the goal is to develop a personal perspective supported by knowledge from literature (self-study) and practice (lectures). The final assignment assesses whether students have sufficiently assimilated the acquired knowledge to write an academic argument and reflection. Several recent newspaper articles will be made available on Canvas, from which each pair chooses one. In the final assignment, students then make connections between the chosen article, the literature related to the course, the content of the lectures, including contributions from guest lecturers and experts with lived experience. Additionally, they are required to find and integrate six other/new scientific articles from peer-reviewed journals into their paper. They also reflect on the potential application of what they have learned in this course to their future professional practice.The final assignment is a group assignment. Each group will have one student submit the assignment.
Scope and structure of the assignment:
6 pages A4, excluding cover page, reference list, and appendix
Font: Times New Roman, font size 12, line spacing 1.5
Cover page (course name, UvA, year, student names, student numbers)
Introduction
0.5 A4, justification for choosing the newspaper article and the purpose of your paper
Integration with knowledge from this course (knowledge integration, application of knowledge)
4 A4, using a minimum of 6 sources from this course and a minimum of 6 sources from scientific journals that you have found yourselves.
Personal reflection
1 A4 Describe awareness of the position and support for people with LVB in relation to your bachelor’s programs and potential careers.
Conclusion
0.5 A4, in this conclusion, also refer back to the purpose of your paper.
Reference list
Appendix with explanation of tasks and working methods in the group
Readability and presentation
Use relevant, peer-reviewed, and current research.
Clearly indicate who is making a claim or the source of the information.
Use predominantly affirmative rather than negative words.
It is better to say “people pay more attention to advertisements that appeal to emotions” rather than “people do not pay attention to advertisements that do not appeal to emotions.Use an active, concise writing style.
Limit the length of paragraphs to an acceptable size (6-8 lines).
Ensure coherence within and between paragraphs.
Ensure clear coherence within and between paragraphs.
Ensure that paragraphs have a clear purpose.
Each paragraph forms a cohesive whole and is a building block in the argument and reflection.
Indent to create paragraphs.
Paragraphs logically follow each other (use good transitions between paragraphs) and reasoning is clear.
Pronouns are used correctly (for example, words like “this” have a referent, a word that is referred to earlier or later in the text and must agree in gender and number with the pronoun).
Relative pronouns are used correctly: who, what, that, and which.
Content
Clear description of the topic and carefulness of the argument and reflection
Describe the chosen perspective or topic.
Make it clear who the argument pertains to.
Provide a clear definition of relevant concepts.
Discuss the scope of relevant concepts.
Indicate under what circumstances statements are valid.
The information is true, verifiable, and there is evidence for it (quality).
Not too much or too little information is given, the given information is current (quantity).The information is relevant to the purpose of this final assignment.
The information is clearly described (concise, orderly, clear, unambiguous).
In the personal reflection, a connection is made to the learning process of each student in this course and a connection to the completed bachelor’s degree.
Sufficiently support the argumentation (minimum 12 sources) with peer-reviewed literature.
Ensure a substantive and appropriate connection between the content of the argument and reflection and the literature used.
The conclusion aligns with the research question/goal stated in the introduction and the argumentation.
Describe the conclusion in a clear manner and provide concrete examples.
When calling for further research, also explain what exactly should be researched and how that research should be conducted.