Connection to other Course Assignments
- The Case Study Project is the
culminating assignment, where you will tie together all of the information
and ideas from the course.
- All of the reading, writing,
thinking, and discussing that you have done over the past several weeks
have led up to this assignment.
Content
- Describe a “real life” instance
of your selected social issue in a professional or a personal setting. - Discuss your perspective on your
selected social issue, including the reasons for your viewpoint. - Discuss how your core values
inform or influence your perspective on your selected social issue. - Demonstrate that you are really
thinking about your issue—don’t settle for easy answers, don’t pretend
that conflicting evidence doesn’t exist, and don’t feel that you have to
take an either-or position. - Discuss the complexities of your
selected social issue. For example, do not just conclude that using
academic language is always good, or that government surveillance is
always bad, or that wealth automatically leads to health. Think about the
intricacies of these issues and how they play out in everyday life.
Organization
- Include an introductory
paragraph, where you clearly outline a “real-life” instance of your
social issue and you give a thesis statement that indicates your
perspective (see learning resource: Writing Your Introduction for an
example). - Include 3-5 body
paragraphs where you include details, examples, and quotes from
at least three of the course readings and two additional readings to help
you develop and support your key points (see learning resource: Writing
Your Body Paragraphs for an example). - Include one body
paragraph where you discuss how your core values inform or
influence your perspective on your selected social issue (see learning
resource: Writing Your Body Paragraphs for an example). - End your essay with a concluding
paragraph where you restate your thesis, summarize your key
points, and leave the reader with the “so what?” (see
learning resource: Writing Your Conclusion for an example).
Language Choices
- As a writer, you are free to
decide how you use language, keeping the following in mind: - style: your language choices should result in a
consistent writing style that is purposeful and aligned with your goals - readability: your language choices should ensure that your
ideas are clear and easy to follow - When composing your paper, think
about the conventions for academic writing, including: - punctuation: this includes things such as recommended use of
commas, colons, and apostrophes. - word-level accuracy: this includes things such as capitalization,
spelling, word-tense, and usage. - sentence-level accuracy: this includes things such as sentence
boundaries, subject-verb agreement, and pronoun-antecedent agreement. - Take time to review your language
choices after you’ve written your essay. Think about your goals for the
style of this essay and your own writing habits (like using “text-speak,”
omitting capitalization, or writing sentence fragments). Revise as necessary
to accomplish your style and readability goals. - Reading your paper aloud is
helpful technique when reviewing your language choices for style and
readability.
Sources and Documentation
To earn the maximum
possible points on this assignment, use and cite at least five sources:
- Use and cite three of
the assigned course readings on your selected issue (language and
power; freedom and security; health and wealth). Sources from the
assigned readings do not require a reference list for this assignment. - Use and cite two more sources
(course readings or otherwise). Sources that are not from the assigned
readings must be listed at the end of the paper on a reference page. List
author, year of publication, title, and URL. Full APA format is not
required for the reference page. - In-text citations for all sources
should be in APA style.
These examples show
options for citing a paraphrase:
This is a paraphrased
sentence (Author, year).
Author (year) explains
that ….
These examples show
options for citing a quote:
A recent study showed
that “this is the quoted passage” (Author, year, p./para. number).
Author (year) explains,
“this is the quoted passage” (p./para. number).
Note that it is possible
to earn a B (up to 85%) on this assignment by using only three sources from the
course readings and no reference page. To earn an A (up to 100%) will require
an additional two sources and reference page, if needed.
Format and Length
- At the top of the page, include
your name, the assignment name, and a title that reflects your specific
essay focus. (See example below.) - Your paper should be typed,
double-spaced and in 12-point font. - Your final product should be a
minimum of six paragraphs (about 900-1100 words) in length. However, the
quality of the content of this essay is most important. Be sure to fully
answer the prompt. -
Reflection Questions
The reflection questions
are to be answered separately. (They are not part of the essay.) Post these in
the “comments” box when submitting your assignment. You can
number your answers or write the in paragraph form. Be sure to address all
four questions.1.
1.
Aside from simply
meeting the requirements, what were your personal goals for this assignment?2.
When reviewing your
language choices, what impact did the Grammar Lab content have on the choices
you made with pronouns? Did you find any “Pronoun Problems” in your writing and
how did you resolve them?3.
What parts of your work
on this assignment are you most proud of?