Engaging in Ongoing Debates within a Field of Study--MAKE UP 2

At any given time, within any profession or field of study, practitioners and theorists in that field are engaged in a myriad of conversations. They debate—primarily via writing—the merits of certain techniques, the need for certain developments, the ethics of certain policies. Books and peer-reviewed journal articles, editorials, lectures, contributions at panel discussions, and other means of professional communication contain the contributions to those ongoing discussions. One researcher who has recently unearthed artifacts previously hidden by feet of ice in the arctic, for instance, publishes his theories about human migration after analyzing those artifacts and another researcher, after reviewing those findings, asserts in an article her opinions that the original researcher’s calculations, estimations or assumptions are incorrect. This process is how knowledge is made, challenged, and verified in nearly every field.

The occasion for which you will be writing is an ongoing debate of your choice in a field of study in which you are interested. You will clarify this occasion yourself once you have done enough research to know what the ongoing debates are. One of the best ways to begin to know what those discussions and debates are is to speak to someone who currently studies or works in that field.

Audience: The audience of your essay will be determined by the discussion you enter. If, for instance, you plan to study psychology and you discover there is currently a large debate regarding the prescribing of antidepressants to teenagers, your audience could be medical doctors (general practitioners and/or child psychiatrists), parents, or teens themselves. You will clarify who your audience is once you have completed enough research to determine.

Purpose: You will determine the purpose of your essay. You must assert a thesis and persuade your reader to make a change, take action, enact a policy, etc. Build an argument; do not simply compose a research paper. Do not write a report on a career.

Support Via Sources:
You will build your argument using quality research documented via in-text citations and works cited entries in MLA format. Use a variety of types of sources (peer-reviewed journals, newspaper and magazine articles, web sources, government documents), but rely as heavily as possible on articles from peer-reviewed journals. If you are taking college courses or if a family member works for or attends a university, use university databases to find quality sources.  JSTOR offers a few articles free of charge; create an account at JSTOR.com to gain access to them.  Google Scholar can also be an excellent resource.  The quality of your sources will play a large part in establishing your credibility.  Beware of websites sponsored by groups with agendas and sites designed to sell you something. 

Planning and Preparation:
In the course of planning and composing your argument, you will submit a thesis statement, a preliminary outline, an in-depth outline, and at least one rough draft. All points earned on assignments and for meeting deadlines, etc. and on the final essay will appear in the “Extending Writing” category of the course grade.  The final essay will be worth 200 points.

Requirements:
Page length:  minimum 4 pages
Sources:  minimum 6 sources