F 01: Research Workshop: Bibliography, Fallacy
M 04: Issues Research/Planning/Drafting/Bibliography
W 06: Issues Round Table Discussion – Getting to Know Your Issues
F 08: Issues Bibliography/Summary Drafts due for peer editing
M 11: Issues Preparation Due; Research Paper Assignments Film Review/Analysis [Expanding your issue...]:
T 05: Research Workshop: Biography, Fallacy
R 07: Issues Research, Planning, Drafting, Bibliography Continued
T 12: Issues Bibliography/Summary Drafts due for editing
R 14: Issues Preparation Due; Research Paper Assignments—Film Review /Analysis—Expanding Issues; Ch. 30: “Planning & Managing Your Research Project”
M 04: Issues Research/Planning/Drafting/Bibliography
W 06: Issues Round Table Discussion – Getting to Know Your Issues
F 08: Issues Bibliography/Summary Drafts due for peer editing
M 11: Issues Preparation Due; Research Paper Assignments Film Review/Analysis [Expanding your issue...]:
T 05: Research Workshop: Biography, Fallacy
R 07: Issues Research, Planning, Drafting, Bibliography Continued
T 12: Issues Bibliography/Summary Drafts due for editing
R 14: Issues Preparation Due; Research Paper Assignments—Film Review /Analysis—Expanding Issues; Ch. 30: “Planning & Managing Your Research Project”
Research
This assignment is the first installment of your final research paper.
Directions: Choose a topic. Research the issue. Write a 4 paragraph, 2 page paper in MLA format that 1. Defines the issue (introduction), 2. Gives an overview of your research. (body), and 3. Expresses the importance of this issue as it affects society today (conclusion).
Your research should be thorough and cover all "sides" of the issue. You can organize your body paragraphs simply: one paragraph presents this side and the next presents this other side.
Each body paragraph should contain at least 3 correctly cited quotes from your sources. At least 4 different sources should be cited within the essay; at least 2 separate sources should be cited in each body paragraph.
Outline:
Introduction: Introduce the ISSUE. DEFINE the terms. Explain that this is a controversial issue and why.
Body 1: Clearly explain ONE side of the issue. What is the position? What are the highlights of the argument on this side of the issue? Cite your sources.
Body 2: Clearly explain the OTHER side of the issue. What is the position? What are the highlights of the argument on this side of the issue? Cite your sources.
Conclusion: Update the reader on the most recent developments on this particular issue (cite your sources). Wrap up the distinction between the "2" (or more) sides to the issue. Make it clear which side seems to have a more credible argument.
** Write in 3rd person! No "I," "In my opinion," I think," or "YOU."
Works Cited: Cite at least 4 sources in MLA format. (Try to find 2 on each "side" of the issue, and make sure one of them presents the most current updates on the issue).
Grading:
Overall MLA Format: 3 points
Overall Grammar: 5 points
Paragraph 1, 2, 3, 4 Content & Mechanics-- what you say & how well you say it: 5 points per paragraph = 20
Internal Citations (6 short quotes, worked in properly, 4 different sources, at least 2 different sources in each body paragraph):
= 12 points
Works Cited Page: 4 sources, 2 points per source + page format: =10
Total = 50 Points
Issue Choices: Animal Rights (Animals in Captivity); Environment/Climate Change (Scope of the Problem); The Death Penalty (Fairness of Implementation); Gay Rights (Role of Religion in Politics); Healthcare (Universal vs. Privatized Systems); Education (Education Reform/Role of Charter Schools);
MWF will have 5 groups; TR will have 6 groups.
Keep in mind: Whatever topic you choose, you will also write about for the final research paper. The final research paper will EVALUATE a documentary film-- it will judge its rhetorical effectiveness. In other words, your final paper will educate readers on a particular issue AND judge how well the documentary film presents the issue to its viewers. This particular paper will not take the film into consideration; this paper is only preparation for the film evaluation and will focus on research of the issue itself, not the film.
Three students will be assigned to each topic. You will each do your own papers, but you will present your topic (for which making a video is required) as a group.
**Please note: I could choose from dozens of topics and films... I try to keep a few that students did well with in prior semesters and add a few new ones to the list each semester.
Issues: Film Companion: Application/Argument:
Climate Change An Inconvenient Truth Extent of problem-What can/should be done?
**Also see: The 11th Hour
Animal Rights/Animals in Captivity Blackfish Should animals be held in captivity for public entertainment?
**Also see: The Cove
The Death Penalty West of Memphis (Companions: Paradise Lost I, II, III) Should it be legal-- takes it from a moral issue to more
of an issue of the fairness of our justice **Also see: The Central Park Five What part does race/class play in wrongful convictions/ unfairness in the justice system?
Gay Rights For the Bible Tells Me So The issue is whether or not gay marriage should be legalized in the U.S., but the film is more about the
misconceptions that have led to America's views on homosexuality. In other words, should The Bible be used as consideration of laws affecting gay rights in America?
**Also see: The Laramie Project
Religious Indoctrination Jesus Camp Explores the fine line between religious freedom and
brainwashing/cults. Should we make laws against "religions"?
**Also see: Deliver Us from Evil
Healthcare Sicko Should America implement government run, i.e. "universal" "socialized" healthcare?
**Also see: Money and Medicine or Escape Fire
Euthanasia (Doctor Assisted Suicide) How to Die in Oregon Should doctor-assisted suicide be legalized?
**Also see: Kevorkian
Education (Education Reform) Waiting for Superman Are charter schools a good answer to the issue of education reform in America?
**Also see: The Lottery
These films do not have to be/should not be viewed until after the bulk of the work on the issues preparation paper is completed! You don't want to confuse yourself. Please follow the steps of the assignment.
Where can you watch these films when the time comes? The NCTC library, Netflix, Amazon download, and in rare cases, YouTube.
Directions: Choose a topic. Research the issue. Write a 4 paragraph, 2 page paper in MLA format that 1. Defines the issue (introduction), 2. Gives an overview of your research. (body), and 3. Expresses the importance of this issue as it affects society today (conclusion).
Your research should be thorough and cover all "sides" of the issue. You can organize your body paragraphs simply: one paragraph presents this side and the next presents this other side.
Each body paragraph should contain at least 3 correctly cited quotes from your sources. At least 4 different sources should be cited within the essay; at least 2 separate sources should be cited in each body paragraph.
Outline:
Introduction: Introduce the ISSUE. DEFINE the terms. Explain that this is a controversial issue and why.
Body 1: Clearly explain ONE side of the issue. What is the position? What are the highlights of the argument on this side of the issue? Cite your sources.
Body 2: Clearly explain the OTHER side of the issue. What is the position? What are the highlights of the argument on this side of the issue? Cite your sources.
Conclusion: Update the reader on the most recent developments on this particular issue (cite your sources). Wrap up the distinction between the "2" (or more) sides to the issue. Make it clear which side seems to have a more credible argument.
** Write in 3rd person! No "I," "In my opinion," I think," or "YOU."
Works Cited: Cite at least 4 sources in MLA format. (Try to find 2 on each "side" of the issue, and make sure one of them presents the most current updates on the issue).
Grading:
Overall MLA Format: 3 points
Overall Grammar: 5 points
Paragraph 1, 2, 3, 4 Content & Mechanics-- what you say & how well you say it: 5 points per paragraph = 20
Internal Citations (6 short quotes, worked in properly, 4 different sources, at least 2 different sources in each body paragraph):
= 12 points
Works Cited Page: 4 sources, 2 points per source + page format: =10
Total = 50 Points
Issue Choices: Animal Rights (Animals in Captivity); Environment/Climate Change (Scope of the Problem); The Death Penalty (Fairness of Implementation); Gay Rights (Role of Religion in Politics); Healthcare (Universal vs. Privatized Systems); Education (Education Reform/Role of Charter Schools);
MWF will have 5 groups; TR will have 6 groups.
Keep in mind: Whatever topic you choose, you will also write about for the final research paper. The final research paper will EVALUATE a documentary film-- it will judge its rhetorical effectiveness. In other words, your final paper will educate readers on a particular issue AND judge how well the documentary film presents the issue to its viewers. This particular paper will not take the film into consideration; this paper is only preparation for the film evaluation and will focus on research of the issue itself, not the film.
Three students will be assigned to each topic. You will each do your own papers, but you will present your topic (for which making a video is required) as a group.
**Please note: I could choose from dozens of topics and films... I try to keep a few that students did well with in prior semesters and add a few new ones to the list each semester.
Issues: Film Companion: Application/Argument:
Climate Change An Inconvenient Truth Extent of problem-What can/should be done?
**Also see: The 11th Hour
Animal Rights/Animals in Captivity Blackfish Should animals be held in captivity for public entertainment?
**Also see: The Cove
The Death Penalty West of Memphis (Companions: Paradise Lost I, II, III) Should it be legal-- takes it from a moral issue to more
of an issue of the fairness of our justice **Also see: The Central Park Five What part does race/class play in wrongful convictions/ unfairness in the justice system?
Gay Rights For the Bible Tells Me So The issue is whether or not gay marriage should be legalized in the U.S., but the film is more about the
misconceptions that have led to America's views on homosexuality. In other words, should The Bible be used as consideration of laws affecting gay rights in America?
**Also see: The Laramie Project
Religious Indoctrination Jesus Camp Explores the fine line between religious freedom and
brainwashing/cults. Should we make laws against "religions"?
**Also see: Deliver Us from Evil
Healthcare Sicko Should America implement government run, i.e. "universal" "socialized" healthcare?
**Also see: Money and Medicine or Escape Fire
Euthanasia (Doctor Assisted Suicide) How to Die in Oregon Should doctor-assisted suicide be legalized?
**Also see: Kevorkian
Education (Education Reform) Waiting for Superman Are charter schools a good answer to the issue of education reform in America?
**Also see: The Lottery
These films do not have to be/should not be viewed until after the bulk of the work on the issues preparation paper is completed! You don't want to confuse yourself. Please follow the steps of the assignment.
Where can you watch these films when the time comes? The NCTC library, Netflix, Amazon download, and in rare cases, YouTube.
Notes about incorporating research...
The authors go through a conflict they wish they never have to face "Maybe then I'll fade away and not have the facts" (line 11); they rather die than be in agony.
The above is a HANGING QUOTE. It is stuck in the sentence; its placement makes no logical sense. Quotes need to be introduced or blended.
Example: The impact of the conflict faced by the narrator is evidenced by his lament, "Maybe then I'll fade away and not have the facts" (line 11); he makes it clear that he'd rather die than to agonize over the reality of the situation.
Example of blending: The writer of the song is being serenaded home when he hears "a sweet refrain drift[ing] in from the past" (line 12) as he recalls the history of the place he calls home.
Another way to incorporate your quotes is by using a colon:
He also refers to one specific color to paint over with black: "I see a red door and I want to paint it black" (line 5); he wants to disguise or "paint over" his sad emotions with the ones of passion and love, symbolized by the color red, that he once felt.
Remember: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8CoVWLBgnA
The above is a HANGING QUOTE. It is stuck in the sentence; its placement makes no logical sense. Quotes need to be introduced or blended.
Example: The impact of the conflict faced by the narrator is evidenced by his lament, "Maybe then I'll fade away and not have the facts" (line 11); he makes it clear that he'd rather die than to agonize over the reality of the situation.
Example of blending: The writer of the song is being serenaded home when he hears "a sweet refrain drift[ing] in from the past" (line 12) as he recalls the history of the place he calls home.
Another way to incorporate your quotes is by using a colon:
He also refers to one specific color to paint over with black: "I see a red door and I want to paint it black" (line 5); he wants to disguise or "paint over" his sad emotions with the ones of passion and love, symbolized by the color red, that he once felt.
Remember: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8CoVWLBgnA
Citation Reminders
Note on Cross-referencing Several Items from One Anthology: If you cite more than one essay from the same edited collection, MLA indicates you may cross-reference within your works cited list in order to avoid writing out the publishing information for each separate essay. You should consider this option if you have several references from a single text. To do so, include a separate entry for the entire collection listed by the editor's name as below:
Rose, Shirley K., and Irwin Weiser, eds. The Writing Program Administrator as Researcher. Portsmouth: Heinemann, 1999. Print.
Then, for each individual essay from the collection, list the author's name in last name, first name format, the title of the essay, the editor's last name, and the page range:
L'Eplattenier, Barbara. "Finding Ourselves in the Past: An Argument for Historical Work on WPAs." Rose and Weiser 131-40.
Peeples, Tim. "'Seeing' the WPA With/Through Postmodern Mapping." Rose and Weiser 153-67.
Article in an Online Scholarly Journal That Also Appears in Print
Cite articles in online scholarly journals that also appear in print as you would a scholarly journal in print, including the page range of the article. Provide the medium of publication that you used (in this case, Web) and the date of access.
Wheelis, Mark. "Investigating Disease Outbreaks Under a Protocol to the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention." Emerging Infectious Diseases 6.6 (2000): 595-600. Web. 8 Feb. 2009.
List films by their title. Include the name of the director, the distributor, and the release year. If relevant, list performer names after the director’s name. Use the abbreviation perf. to head the list. End the entry with the appropriate medium of publication (e.g. DVD, VHS, Laser disc).
Ed Wood. Dir. Tim Burton. Perf. Johnny Depp, Martin Landau, Sarah Jessica Parker, Patricia Arquette. Touchstone, 1994. DVD.
REVIEW:
Review Author. "Title of Review (if there is one)." Rev. of Performance Title, by
Author/Director/Artist. Title of Periodical day month year: page. Medium of
publication.
This handout provides an example of a Works Cited page in MLA 2009 format. Although it may not be clear here, all entries and lines are double spaced.
Works Cited
"Blueprint Lays Out Clear Path for Climate Action." Environmental Defense Fund. Environmental Defense Fund, 8 May 2007. Web. 24 May 2009.
Clinton, Bill. Interview by Andrew C. Revkin. “Clinton on Climate Change.” New York Times. New York Times, May 2007. Web. 25 May 2009.
Dean, Cornelia. "Executive on a Mission: Saving the Planet." New York Times. New York Times, 22 May 2007. Web. 25 May 2009.
Ebert, Roger. "An Inconvenient Truth." Rev. of An Inconvenient Truth, dir. Davis Guggenheim. Rogerebert.com. Sun-Times News Group, 2 June 2006.
Web. 24 May 2009.
GlobalWarming.org. Cooler Heads Coalition, 2007. Web. 24 May 2009.
Gowdy, John. "Avoiding Self-organized Extinction: Toward a Co-evolutionary Economics of Sustainability." International Journal of Sustainable
Development and World Ecology 14.1 (2007): 27-36. Print.
An Inconvenient Truth. Dir. Davis Guggenheim. Perf. Al Gore, Billy West. Paramount, 2006. DVD.
Leroux, Marcel. Global Warming: Myth Or Reality?: The Erring Ways of Climatology. New York: Springer, 2005. Print.
Milken, Michael, Gary Becker, Myron Scholes, and Daniel Kahneman. "On Global Warming and Financial Imbalances." New Perspectives Quarterly
23.4 (2006): 63. Print.
Nordhaus, William D. "After Kyoto: Alternative Mechanisms to Control Global Warming." American Economic Review 96.2 (2006): 31-34. Print.
---. "Global Warming Economics." Science 9 Nov. 2001: 1283-84. Science Online. Web. 24 May 2009.
Shulte, Bret. "Putting a Price on Pollution." Usnews.com. US News & World Rept., 6 May 2007. Web. 24 May 2009.
Uzawa, Hirofumi. Economic Theory and Global Warming. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2003. Print.
Note on Cross-referencing Several Items from One Anthology: If you cite more than one essay from the same edited collection, MLA indicates you may cross-reference within your works cited list in order to avoid writing out the publishing information for each separate essay. You should consider this option if you have several references from a single text. To do so, include a separate entry for the entire collection listed by the editor's name as below:
Rose, Shirley K., and Irwin Weiser, eds. The Writing Program Administrator as Researcher. Portsmouth: Heinemann, 1999. Print.
Then, for each individual essay from the collection, list the author's name in last name, first name format, the title of the essay, the editor's last name, and the page range:
L'Eplattenier, Barbara. "Finding Ourselves in the Past: An Argument for Historical Work on WPAs." Rose and Weiser 131-40.
Peeples, Tim. "'Seeing' the WPA With/Through Postmodern Mapping." Rose and Weiser 153-67.
Article in an Online Scholarly Journal That Also Appears in Print
Cite articles in online scholarly journals that also appear in print as you would a scholarly journal in print, including the page range of the article. Provide the medium of publication that you used (in this case, Web) and the date of access.
Wheelis, Mark. "Investigating Disease Outbreaks Under a Protocol to the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention." Emerging Infectious Diseases 6.6 (2000): 595-600. Web. 8 Feb. 2009.
List films by their title. Include the name of the director, the distributor, and the release year. If relevant, list performer names after the director’s name. Use the abbreviation perf. to head the list. End the entry with the appropriate medium of publication (e.g. DVD, VHS, Laser disc).
Ed Wood. Dir. Tim Burton. Perf. Johnny Depp, Martin Landau, Sarah Jessica Parker, Patricia Arquette. Touchstone, 1994. DVD.
REVIEW:
Review Author. "Title of Review (if there is one)." Rev. of Performance Title, by
Author/Director/Artist. Title of Periodical day month year: page. Medium of
publication.
This handout provides an example of a Works Cited page in MLA 2009 format. Although it may not be clear here, all entries and lines are double spaced.
Works Cited
"Blueprint Lays Out Clear Path for Climate Action." Environmental Defense Fund. Environmental Defense Fund, 8 May 2007. Web. 24 May 2009.
Clinton, Bill. Interview by Andrew C. Revkin. “Clinton on Climate Change.” New York Times. New York Times, May 2007. Web. 25 May 2009.
Dean, Cornelia. "Executive on a Mission: Saving the Planet." New York Times. New York Times, 22 May 2007. Web. 25 May 2009.
Ebert, Roger. "An Inconvenient Truth." Rev. of An Inconvenient Truth, dir. Davis Guggenheim. Rogerebert.com. Sun-Times News Group, 2 June 2006.
Web. 24 May 2009.
GlobalWarming.org. Cooler Heads Coalition, 2007. Web. 24 May 2009.
Gowdy, John. "Avoiding Self-organized Extinction: Toward a Co-evolutionary Economics of Sustainability." International Journal of Sustainable
Development and World Ecology 14.1 (2007): 27-36. Print.
An Inconvenient Truth. Dir. Davis Guggenheim. Perf. Al Gore, Billy West. Paramount, 2006. DVD.
Leroux, Marcel. Global Warming: Myth Or Reality?: The Erring Ways of Climatology. New York: Springer, 2005. Print.
Milken, Michael, Gary Becker, Myron Scholes, and Daniel Kahneman. "On Global Warming and Financial Imbalances." New Perspectives Quarterly
23.4 (2006): 63. Print.
Nordhaus, William D. "After Kyoto: Alternative Mechanisms to Control Global Warming." American Economic Review 96.2 (2006): 31-34. Print.
---. "Global Warming Economics." Science 9 Nov. 2001: 1283-84. Science Online. Web. 24 May 2009.
Shulte, Bret. "Putting a Price on Pollution." Usnews.com. US News & World Rept., 6 May 2007. Web. 24 May 2009.
Uzawa, Hirofumi. Economic Theory and Global Warming. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2003. Print.