Writing Assignment Four: Proposing a Change

First draft due: April 23rd
Final draft due: April 28th

In this assignment, you will combine the work that you have been doing all semester with additional research and argumentation in order to propose a change. This change need not be a legal change, although it certainly may be; it can also be a proposal to change an attitude, a trend, a behavior pattern, or a series of actions.

What do I have to write about?

Topics for this assignment have already been chosen. If you do not feel that you can write a research paper on the topic you are currently working with, you need to get in touch with the instructor immediately.

The paper should contain the following sections:

• An introduction.
• A section which presents the issue you are working with, defines key terms, and speculates about some of the reasons as to why there are problems, so that the reader has a good background on the issue as well as a clear idea of why your change is needed.
• A clear and explicit thesis which proposes your change.
• Explanation of how your change could be implemented.
• A rebuttal of any opposition to your proposed change.
• A conclusion.

How do I do it?

To satisfy this writing assignment, you will need to accomplish the following steps:

1) Write a prospectus.

The prospectus will be a 1-2 page document (no more than two pages) which explains the following:

• an overview of the background of your paper (what issue are you investigating? what are the most important things your audience needs to know about it?)
• your thesis for the paper (i.e., what policy change you will be proposing)
• an overview of the chains of reasoning and evidence which you will be using to support your thesis, including key sources
• any opposition to your proposal, and how you will rebut it

2) Attend a conference with the instructor.

Conferences will be the week of March 29th-April 2nd. You will sign up for a time in class. Conferences are mandatory; you will bring your prospectus and the instructor will read it and discuss it with you. Conference attendance will count as 5% of the final grade for this paper.

3) Turn in a rough draft for peer and instructor review.

You will turn in a rough draft of your paper for peer and instructor review. This rough draft will count as 5% of your grade for the final paper.

4) Participate in peer review of your rough draft and others.

You will attend class on the workshop days and participate in constructive criticism of other people's drafts as well as accepting their feedback and incorporating it into revision.

5) Show evidence of revision in the final draft.

Your final draft will show evidence of substantial revision. This does not mean that you have gone through and proofread it for errors; this means that you have paid attention to feedback about higher and lower order concerns and revised accordingly.

How will it be graded?

Your grade for the paper will be based on all of the work which you put into it, including writing a prospectus, conferencing with the instructor, turning in a rough draft, participating in peer review, and producing a revised final draft.

Higher order concerns:

• The draft contains all required sections.
• All required sections are developed fully.
• The paper contains a clear, explicit thesis which proposes a change.
• The proposed change is adequately explained and supported with reasoning and evidence.
• Opposition is addressed and rebutted.

• The paper is well organized; there is a clear introduction and conclusion, and transitions are made between sections and paragraphs.
• The paper pays attention to conventions for paragraph and sentence structure.
• The paper is proofread (either by you, or preferably, by someone else) to make sure it conforms to conventions for spelling and homonym use.