GEN 499 Week 5 Final Paper New Syllabus

Final Research Project. Due by Day 7. The topic of your project needs to be a contemporary societal problem, such as healthcare reform, immigration reform, privacy rights, euthanasia, First Amendment Rights, stem cell research, capital punishment, corporate prisons, legalizing drugs, ageism, animal rights, cloning, prayer in schools, racial profiling, recycling/conservation, sexism, outsourcing jobs, workplace bullying, etc. The topic must focus on a single aspect, as in “How far do corporations intrude into the private lives of their employers?” or “The social costs of financing the distribution of custom-designed drugs.” You may suggest another topic to use, but the instructor must approve the topic during the Week Two Discussion.

The Final Research Project will present research relating the responsibilities of a critical thinker to contemporary society. In this assignment, you will do the following:

• Research one aspect of a contemporary social problem.
• Define the problem.
• Propose a possible solution for the problem.
• Create an argument that supports your thesis position. You should take on the perspective of a critically
  thinking researcher. The argument must present a thesis statement and evidence to support the thesis
  statement.
• Evaluate the ethical outcomes that result from the position you take on the issue and explain how those
  outcomes would influence society and culture.
• Interpret statistical data from at least two peer-reviewed scholarly sources. • Evaluate evidence using the following standards: validity, reliability and bias related to the chosen topic and accurately identify strengths and weaknesses.
  Research and Define the Problem

  You must take on the perspective of your major field of study and explain in your paper what that perspective is and how it informs your view of the topic. The topics listed above are far too broad to write about in 10–12 pages (3,300–3,900 words). Instead, you must choose a narrowly defined thesis and approach it from the perspective of your field.

  Example: If you are an economics major, and you are interested in immigration reform, you should approach a very specific aspect of immigration reform through the lens of economic theory and practice. A specific thesis question would not be, “How does illegal immigration influence the U.S. economy?” One could write thousands of pages on such a topic. Instead, a better question would be, “How do illegal immigrant hotel workers in Chicago impact the economy of Northern Illinois?” You would then want to do the research and determine the positive and negative impacts they have, ultimately trying to conclude how illegal immigration in this area should be approached ethically.

  How to Hone Your Thesis: It is important that you start your research early in this course. Try to find the most important contemporary questions and theories in your field of study and then align the most important questions with a very specific aspect of the general topics above. For example, if you are a psychology major, you might want to start thinking within the realm of healthcare reform or aspects of mental health and criminality in the prison system.

  Your Argument

  You must present a complete argument, including a major claim with at least five points of evidence, information, or data that will prove the claim.

  • The thesis statement must be
  o Aclear,simpledeclarativesentenceasthefirstorlastsentenceintheopeningparagraphoftheessay. o Of such a nature that it can be substantiated, corroborated, verified, and proved through appeal to

  primary or secondary academic research source materials. • The introductory paragraph must o Present the thesis statement, an explanation for the importance of the topic, and its relation to the student’s field of study.

  • Beliefs, opinions, and personal opinions must not be introduced at any point in the essay.
  • All beliefs and opinions should be supported with academic evidence. Sweeping generalizations with no
    supporting academic evidence do not reflect adequate critical thinking skills.
  • Do not include rhetorical questions in your essays. All the questions that are pertinent to your project need
    to be answered in your essay and your answers again need to be supported with evidence from peer- reviewed journal articles and academically published books. 

GEN 499 Week 5 DQ 1 Reflecting on General Education

Reflecting on General Education. 1st Post Due by Day 3.

Prepare: Start by reviewing General Education Curriculum found in “Section Five: General Academic Information and Policies” in the Ashford University Academic Catalog, which addresses the core competencies that the general education courses must cover: Applied Ethics, Communication, Information Technology, Critical Thinking, and Quantitative Reasoning.

Reflect: Think about the core competencies as previously mentioned and ponder on your time taking general education courses. Reflect on the specific courses not associated with your college major and determine the level of new information you have acquired that relates to the core competencies.

Write: Explain what you have learned about the principles guiding general education from this course and the courses you have taken in the past:

• What are the most important concepts you have learned (a) from this course and (b) throughout your time as a university student?
• Why do you think obtaining knowledge from general education courses is important?
• What are your plans for putting your education to use within your community?
• How might your newly acquired knowledge and skills shape your personal and professional
  development?
• Support your claims with examples from required material(s) or at least two scholarly sources, and
  properly cite any references.
• Your initial post should be at least 250 words in length 

GEN 499 Week 4 DQ 2 Final Research Project Progress

Final Research Project Progress. 1st Post Due by Day 3.

Prepare: At this point in the course, you should have a rough draft of your Final Research Project. In preparation for this discussion, make a list of what you learned most throughout this process, as well as difficulties you may have encountered along the way.

Reflect: This is the moment in which you can think about what you have learned in the development of your research and share with the class.

Write: Share your progress on the Final Research Project, including the following:

• Identify the Final Research Project topic. What influenced you to make this choice?
• Describe your rationale for selecting that topic in relation to your academic and career pursuits.
• Provide your thesis statement.
• Discuss interesting finds and/or frustrations that you have encountered in your research.
• Your initial post should be at least 250 words in length. 

GEN 499 Week 4 DQ 1 Critical Thinking Principles

Critical Thinking Principles. 1st Post Due by Day 3.

Prepare: In preparation for discussing the importance of critical thinking skills, please read Chapters 1 through 3 of Think Smarter: Critical Thinking to Improve Problem-Solving and Decision-Making Skills, as well as the following articles: “Critical Thinking and the Challenges of Internet,” “Common Misconceptions of Critical Thinking,” and “Making Decisions in an Uncertain World.”

Reflect: Critical thinking gets you involved in a dialogue with the ideas you read from others in this class. To be a critical thinker, you need to be able to summarize, analyze, hypothesize, and evaluate the new information that you encounter.

Write: For this discussion
• Define, describe, and explain the principles of critical thinking. 

• Search the Internet, media, or the Ashford University Library, and find an example of good, careful (critical) thinking, and explain why you think it exemplifies strong critical thinking skills. Post a link or reference information for that source, describe the content, and explain how it is a good example of critical thinking.
• Search the Internet, media, or the Ashford University Library and find an example that lacks good, careful (critical thinking). Post a link or reference information for that source, describe the content, and explain why you think it demonstrates poor critical thinking skills.
• Support your claims with examples from required material(s) and/or other scholarly sources, and properly cite any references. Be sure to include information from the websites and articles.
• Your initial post should be at least 250 words in length. 

GEN 499 Week 3 Final Research Project Preparation – Annotated Bibliography

Final Research Project Preparation – Annotated Bibliography. Due by Day 7. Review the Final Research Project instructions located in Week Five. To help with the preparation of the paper, complete the following items and submit them to your instructor as a single document.

• Introduction to Topic: Refer to the Final Research Project guidelines for your topic selection. For your introduction, you should write a 150-word paragraph which clearly explains the topic, the importance of further research, ethical implications, and how the topic relates to one’s academic and professional pursuits. Make sure you effectively inform the reader of the rationale behind your topic.
• Thesis statement: Write a direct and concise thesis statement, which will become the point or perspective you will argue or prove in the Final Research Project. A thesis statement should be a single declarative sentence that makes one point in 25 words or less. The thesis statement must appear within the introduction paragraph.
• Annotated Bibliography: To help prepare for your Final Research Project, write an annotated bibliography to indicate the quality of the sources you have read. The bibliography must include no less than five scholarly sources that will be used to support the major points of the Final Research Project. Critical thinking skills need to be demonstrated by accurately interpreting evidence used to support various positions of the topic. Please make sure to provide full reference information in accordance with APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center. Write a brief paragraph (around 150 words) summarizing the source and explaining how it is pertinent and relevant to the topic of the project and how each source will support your thesis statement. See the Sample Annotated Bibliography in the Ashford Writing Center for more detailed information. Keep in mind the academic research standards for all Ashford University papers.
  For information regarding APA, including samples and tutorials, visit the Ashford Writing Center. 

GEN 499 Week 3 DQ 2 Scholarly Sources & Bibliography Analysis

Scholarly Sources & Bibliography Analysis. 1st Post Due by Day 3.

Prepare: In order to prepare for this assignment, you should review the following tutorials in the Ashford Writing Center:

• Annotated Bibliography
• APA Checklist • Sample Annotated Bibliography
  Also, review the following information from the Ashford University Library:

  • Popular & Scholarly Sources tutorial
  • Primary and Secondary Sources tutorial
  • Primary Vs. Secondary Sources infographic
    Takes notes by listing examples and differences between these types of resources.
    Reflect: Compare your list of examples between primary and secondary resources. Good research is a combination of many types of sources. Prior to taking this course, did you understand the differences between these resources and the importance of finding one type of resource over another?
    Write: Provide your initial post that addresses these prompts:

  • Explain the differences between primary and secondary sources used in research.
  • Identify a type of resource for your Final Research Project topic that would be considered a primary
    source and one that might be a secondary source, and explain why they fit in those categories.
  • Explain the advantages of using primary source documents in your research on your Final Research
    Project topic.
  • Review two peer-reviewed, scholarly resources from the Ashford University Library that you will use for
    your Final Research Project, and explain why they were chosen.
  • Provide full reference information of the two scholarly articles chosen in APA format at the end of your
    response.
  • Download and attach the two articles that you found from the Ashford University Library to your answer
    using the “Attachments: Add/Remove” function located below your response.
  • Support your claims with examples from required material(s) and/or other scholarly sources, and properly
    cite any references. Be sure to include information from the websites and articles.
  • Your initial post should be at least 250 words in length. 

GEN 499 Week 3 DQ 1 Philosophy of Education

Philosophy of Education. 1st Post Due by Day 3.

Prepare: Read the articles “Philosophy as Translation: Democracy and Education from Dewey to Cavell” and “Philosophy as Education and Education as Philosophy: Democracy and Education from Dewey to Cavell” by Saito from the EBSCOhostdatabase in the Ashford University Library.

Reflect: As you take notes on the two articles, think about the importance of understanding the philosophy behind taking general education courses and how your courses have taught you academic integrity, global citizenship, and cultural sensitivity.

Write: For this discussion, respond to the following prompts:

• Describe the implications Stanley Cavell’s ordinary language philosophy has on democracy and
  education. Provide an example of ordinary language philosophy.
• Examine the ideas of mutual reflection and mutual understanding as it relates to cultural differences.
• Share a learning experience of an ethical or moral lesson based on John Dewey’s quote: “democracy must
  begin at home.” Explain how that experience has influenced your level of integrity while receiving your
  education.
• Support your claims with examples from required material(s) and/or other scholarly sources, and properly
  cite any references. Be sure to include information from the websites and articles.
• Your initial post should be at least 250 words in length.
  Respond to Peers: Review your classmates’ posts, and respond to at least two of your peers by Day 7. Comment on how your peer explained the key concepts of democracy, philosophy of education, and their view on understanding cultural differences. Each participation post should be a minimum of 75 words.