WORLD ISSUES
INDEPENDENT RESEARCH ESSAY
PURPOSE:
The purpose of this exercise is to develop your critical thinking skills, to develop your knowledge of World Issues generally and in one topic area specifically, and to develop your ability to write a clear, concise, grammatically correct, scholarly yet impassioned essay based on solid research ("think...") as opposed to fuzzy thinking ("feel...")
THE ASSIGNMENT
Please submit a typed, properly documented 7-10 page research essay on a topic of your choice that relates to the main themes developed in this course. Please note that this course is GEOGRAPHY, not one of the other "social sciences". Consequently, my expectation is if you choose a topic that could fall under one of the other "social sciences" you MUST concentrate on the geographic aspects of that topic.
GUIDELINES
a) The style should be formal; therefore, you should:
- write in the third person
- avoid slang and colloquial language
- write out numbers under one hundred or if they begin a sentence
- do not refer to the essay (eg. This essay will prove...)
b) A minimum of seven to ten (5-7) sources should be consulted of which three must be substantial (ie., non-newspaper or magazine).
YOU MUST USE AT LEAST ONE ARTICLE FROM AN ESTABLISHED ACADEMIC JOURNAL (like Harpers or The Atlantic Monthly). YOU MUST ALSO INCLUDE AT LEAST ONE SOURCE FROM THE INTERNET. Remember, however, that a good variety of sources will make for a better, broader research base and thus a better essay. DO NOT USE THE INTERNET AS YOUR ONLY SOURCE OF RESEARCH. All sources in the bibliography should be cited in the essay. DO NOT pad the bibliography.
c) The standard for documentation in this paper can be found in the style guide on our school library website.
d) The essay should be written in proper manuscript form:
i. typewritten, double-spaced
ii. on 8 1/2 x 11 unlined paper
iii one inch margins
iv. titles of books, newspapers and periodicals should be underlined; titles of articles should be quotation marks.
v. page numbering. See the style manual
vi. a complete title page that includes an interesting title, course name1 teacher's name, your name, and date.
vii footnotes or endnotes MLA are acceptable.
ASSIGNMENT STAGES
1. Topic selection When? ASAP 10 marks
You will be expected to submit a topic proposal for my perusal. Your proposal
should include the following:
i. a working title which accurately reflects your topic.
ii. the topic expressed as a question. Be sure that your topic is not too broad and that it is thus sufficiently narrowed given time and space limitations.
iii. a paragraph explaining the main questions with which you will deal
iv. the limits of your study (time frame, country, group of people etc.)
2. Annotated Working Bibliography When? Due date. Friday May 13th.
Submit an annotated working bibliography in correct form. Each annotation should be 3-5 sentences written in proper paragraph form and should explain the contribution of the source to your research. If you only use a few pages from a source the annotation should deal only with those pages.
3. Outline. When? At least one week before the due date. May 20th 10 marks
The outline should be focused so that paragraph divisions are indicated. Complete and hand in an outline of the essay sheet by the due date. Late outlines will receive a mark of ZERO.
3. Submit the final draft. 75 marks. Due May 27th
As always, the first draft should not be the final draft. Please remember that this paper constitutes a significant portion of your year's mark and should be treated accordingly. A LATE PENALTY OF HALF A LEVEL PER DAY .
