Continuation of DACA

AdvocacyAssignment-21 x

 Continuation of DACA 

Composition II

Advocacy Assignment

· Peer Review Essay III between March 30th and 11:59 PM

I ask that you do not write about abortion and gun control or related topics in this assignment. Any paper on these topics will not be accepted for a grade.

All work submitted for this class must be specifically written for this class.

Skills you will learn/practice in this assignment include (but are not limited to):

1. Determining and narrowing down a research topic.

2.

Find the appropriate tone to write for an academic audience.

3. Critical reading and thinking skills.

4. Conducting research on specific issues and aspects of a larger topic.

5. Synthesizing information from outside sources into your paper.

6. Using quotations from outside sources effectively.

7. Providing in text citations in proper MLA format.

8. Organizing a paper to clearly answer several aspects of a topic in a logical manner with each topic building on the previous one.

9. Using formal tone and diction (word choice).

10. Creating a Works Cited page in correct MLA format.

11. Using transitions for smooth flow.

12. Editing and proofreading.

Advocacy Proposal must be submitted and approved prior to submitting the paper. The paper will not be accepted, and you will not receive credit for it unless this proposal has been submitted and approved first.

Aim for 5 pages (double spaced using Times New Roman 12 font). You should have at least half a page (12 lines or more on the fifth page for the paper to meet the page length requirement. You should also have a Works Cited page in addition to the five pages. 5% will be deducted from papers which do not meet the page length requirement or are missing a Works Cited Page. 10% will be deducted if the paper does not meet the page length requirement and does not have a Works Cited page.

In this assignment, you will find a social issue that you find meaningful and relevant. This could be an issue that is affecting the world or our country or our state or even the local community you live in. This is not a strictly argumentative paper although you might use argument to show why this is a topic that is worthy of advocation.

Once you have identified the issue, you will write a paper advocating for this issue. Here are the points you must cover in your essay:

1. General introduction

2. What is advocacy?

3. What is the specific issue that you are advocating for?

4. Whom does this issue affect? Be specific in answering this question.

5. Why is it important to address this issue?

6. Are there programs/solutions that are already in place addressing this issue?

7. Which nonprofits are already advocating for this issue? Provide an overview of at least one nonprofit and their activities and accomplishments.

8. What do you want to persuade your audience to do (call to action)?

Your essay must go beyond informing your audience. You must also provide viable suggestions that you would like your audience, individually as well as a community, to consider.

In this paper you must:

1. Begin with the general introduction should provide a broad overview of the issue. Also, who is audience for this assignment and what, beyond informing and making aware, would you like them to do? Be specific in your choice of audience. For example, this issue affects everyone is too broad.

2. Provide a detailed explanation of the issue, explain whom it is affecting, explain why this issue is worth advocating for. You will need to some provide some background information and facts about the issue here.

3. Identify specific actions you want the audience to identify and explain why. You may or may not use outside sources here.

4. Discuss programs/solutions are already in place. You will also use information from outside sources here.

5. Provide a general conclusion should sum up the main points of the essay.

6. Use approved sources cited in text and on a Works Cited page in correct MLA format.

7. Develop paragraphs well.

8. Introduce contextualize quotations properly.

9. Use formal tone and diction.

10. Edit and proofread very carefully.

Research Requirements:

You must use at least 6 sources in this paper. They should be well developed sources, not abstracts or reviews. You can use up to 7 sources in this paper. You can use a .com source for this paper (such as the website for a non-profit organization) but avoid using more than 2 .com sources. As far as possible, use JCCC”s database to find your sources. Please email me with the link if you have doubts about a website’s reliability.

Below are some topic suggestions:

You can either pick from this list or you can come up with your own topic. Either way, your proposal must be approved before you write this paper.

1. Equal Pay

2. Continuation of DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals)

3. Ending Domestic Violence

4. Ending Use of Private Prisons

5. Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy

6. Student Loan Protections OR Forgiveness

7. Affordable Housing

8. After School Programs

9. Arts Programs in Schools

10. LGBTQ Equality

Final Draft Checklist:

1. Does the essay have a well developed introduction that catches the reader’s attention?

2.

Does the essay clearly lay out the issue that s/he is advocating for? This section should be done in some detail.

3. Does the essay discuss in some depth at least one program or solution or non profit that is already in place to address the issue?

4. Is there a clear call-to-action? What does the writer want the reader to do, both individually as well as a community, to address this issue?

5. Have quotations from outside sources been seamlessly introduced into the body paragraphs?

6. Is it free of grammatical and sentence level errors?

7. Is the tone and diction suitable for an academic audience?

8. Is there a Works Cited page in MLA format?

Note: Take a quick look at the Common Errors handout in the first week’s module to ensure your paper is free of the errors mentioned in the handout.

Begin at the homepage:

https://library.jccc.edu/home/

You will see three tabs at the top of the page. Click on the third tab: Browse Databases

Then click on the “Alphabetical” link

Click on P for Research Library or A for Academic OneFile.

On the next step, you will have to enter your password and ID to get into the database. Once you do that, you will be inside ProQuest.

Enter your search terms here. Academic OneFile also works the same way. You could do an advanced search, if you like.

If you go to a website that features a lot of advertisements for products that you can click on to go to another site to buy a product then it is a good idea to stay away from it. It is most likely a commercial site that is considered neither credible nor academic. Use the library databases to find your sources. Here are the general databases that I recommend: 

ProQuest 

Academic OneFile 

CQ Researcher Online 

Statista–if you are looking for statistics

GreenFile–only if you are looking for articles related to the environment. 

PsycARTICLES–only if you are looking for articles on human psychology 

These are some general websites, so you can choose whichever will work best for you depending on your topic.