For this assignment, you will research a topical topic, determine your own stance, and write an argumentative research essay, 1000-1100 words in length that both supports your stance and refutes counter-arguments. Remember to take notes as you tackle each step of this process. DO NOT FORGET to note your sources (author, page number, place of publication, and any other relevant publishing information) as you are reading. Consider this headache prevention. Guidelines for Argumentative Research Essay Below are the recommended guidelines to follow as you write your Argumentative Research Essay: Scan the list of research questions. Perform a preliminary Google search (Google News might work better than a regular Google search) to familiarize yourself with some of the issues involved in each topic. Select a topic that interests you, preferably one that you feel strongly about. Effective research, as well as much critical reflection, should allow you to approach your chosen topic in a unique way; you are NOT being asked simply to reproduce oft-repeated arguments and deeply entrenched ideological views. Doing so, in fact, will work against you. Read widely enough in newspaper articles to determine the sorts of arguments being made in support of different sides of this issue. Select at least one newspaper article that supports each side of the issue (i.e., a minimum of two newspaper articles). Since editorials and opinion pieces in newspapers ordinarily offer more subjective and one-sided analyses of issues than do straightforward news articles, such articles might prove particularly useful for your purposes in this assignment. Remember that not all online news sources are newspapers. Via the D2L course email, inform your instructor of your topic and send the links to the two newspaper articles. Your instructor should let you know whether or not your chosen articles are appropriate. You have already completed the Library Research Essentials (LRE) module: LRE. Now you will need to access those article indexes that best suit your topic. Select at least two academic articles that investigate issues associated with your topic. It’s unlikely that the first two articles you read will be the two articles of your research dreams, so you should be prepared to devote some time to this part of the process. (Keep your notes to aid you throughout the writing process; do not submit these notes through the Dropbox.) Carefully reread your two selected academic sources and determine how this information corresponds to your chosen newspaper articles. Determine your own stance in relation to the arguments you have encountered in your research. Do you agree fully with one side or the other? Do you agree with some points but not with others? Endeavour not to rely on fixed opinions; consider various facets of the issue, striving to be reasonable and objective. Complete the Research Worksheet. Employ prewriting to generate ideas and to determine a suitable structure for your arguments, the counter-arguments, and your refutations of the counter-arguments. (Keep your notes to aid you throughout the writing process; do not submit these notes through the Dropbox.) Write a rough draft of your argumentative research essay (1000-1100 words) in response to the research question. Support your arguments and your refutations of the counter-arguments with the results of your journalistic and scholarly research. Employ rhetorical strategies to enhance the persuasiveness of your essay but be careful to avoid logical fallacies. Document (i.e., cite) all of your sources in MLA format; use in-text citations within your essay and include a list of works cited at the end of your essay. Ensure that you have not unwittingly committed plagiarism. Each sentence paraphrased and every quotation must properly cite the source. Review MLA citation guidelines and double check to ensure your essay complies with MLA conventions. Post the rough draft of your essay to the Discussion Forum for peer review. Review the essays of two members of your group and provide feedback in response to all of the questions on the Peer Review Questionnaire via the Discussion Forum. Revise your draft, bearing in mind the suggestions from your peers. In your group’s Peer Review Discussion Forum, describe the changes you made based on each reviewer’s feedback or explain why you did not follow the reviewer’s suggestions. Complete the Research Checklist and update your essay accordingly. Proofread your final draft, and submit it through the Dropbox. Checklist for Argumentative Research Essay Introduction Have you devised a captivating opening? Thesis Clear and concise Makes an assertion about the chosen topic? Is a contentious assertion that requires support and explanation? Includes an explanation with a because clause? Paragraphing Does each paragraph begin with a topic sentence that is sufficiently broad to unite the paragraph? Is each paragraph fully developed? Could any two short paragraphs be merged without sacrificing coherence? Would any paragraph function better split into two paragraphs? Coherence Does any sentence stray from the topic of the paragraph? Unity Do effective transitions between paragraphs increase the essay’s coherence? Does every part of the essay support the thesis in some evident way? Conclusion Is the thesis restated (not verbatim)? [OR stated, if you’ve chosen to place it only at the end of your essay] Do you offer a thought-provoking final insight? Sources Do you make use of all of the sources listed in the Works Cited? Is the Works Cited list formatted correctly? Do you correctly acknowledge the source for each quotation, paraphrase, or summary? [remember you must acknowledge words AND ideas] Do any quotations stand alone, not integrated? Could it be argued that you are relying too heavily on outside sources at any point in the essay? [i.e., is any paragraph little more than a quilt of quotations, paraphrases, and summaries?] Have you sufficiently altered the sentence structure and phrasing of passages you paraphrase? Other Have you read your essay aloud (preferably to a brutally honest friend or relative) to ensure that it flows well? Have you submitted to the Argumentative Research Essay Dropbox Your Final Draft (including Works Cited list)? Format Is your essay double-spaced (including your personal information, block quotations and Works Cited list)? Are your pages numbered? Have you followed standard essay format: Font (12-point Times New Roman)? Spacing (no spaces between paragraphs)? Indenting? Margins? Placement of personal info. & title? Have you chosen an interesting and fitting title and presented it in the correct format? Have you edited your essay to ferret out recurring problems in your writing? Have you proofread your final draft to catch any typos? Are you glad this assignment is finished?
Argumentative research essay
