SSCI 1000U PAPER ASSIGNMENT

The Assignment: Students submit ONE minimum 5 page paper, (maximum 6 pages)
double-spaced. All papers should be in Times New Roman 12pt, with standard default
margins.
Page count DOES NOT include cover page or bibliography

Value: The paper is worth 40% of the total course mark

The Topic: You may choose to write either on Topic #1 or Topic #2 (you may not write
on both topics):

Topic #1: Most economists and politicians agree that a large government-funded
economic revitalization plan is needed for the world’s economies to recover from
the Covid-19 Pandemic. Some, such as Rhiana Gunn-Wright, have argued that
this stimulus should take the form of a Green New Deal. What is a Green New
Deal? Do some research on the topic. Does your research suggest that a Green
New Deal should be pursued immediately as part of the Covid-19 recovery plan,
or should it be delayed, or not be pursued at all?

Topic #2: In the spring and summer of 2020, dramatic social unrest emerged
around the topic of racism. What evidence is there that people of colour are
disadvantaged? Given the evidence, should changes be made in the world? If yes,
what changes should be made?

Type of Paper: This is a research paper, not an opinion essay. The purpose is to give
you experience in writing and researching a sociological paper. Your job is to display the
available evidence, cite it properly, and make your conclusions based on that evidence. It
must have a clear thesis statement in the introduction.

Due Date: Papers are due November 3 by 11:59 pm

Papers more than one week late will not be accepted

Submission: Students will submit all papers electronically via the Assignments section in
Canvas which will automatically submit to TurnItIn (without need of a password)

Feedback: A link to your marked grading rubric with comments will appear in the Paper
section once your mark has been released. It will be in the bottom, right-hand side, and
will be a file with your name on it. There will also be comments made directly on your
paper

Late Assignments: 2 points out of the total of 40 will be deducted for each day that
an assignment is late. No exceptions other than for SERIOUS and DOCUMENTED
reasons. (Doctors notes, notes from funeral home directors etc. MUST be provided
for an exemption to be considered). No papers will be accepted if they are over
seven days late, unless substantiated with medical or other documentation.
Content:
All information must be properly cited in APA format. The paper will include
information from:

1) For Topic #1 (environment), cite the following news article:

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/15/opinion/climate-change-covid-
economy.html?action=click&module=Opinion&pgtype=Homepage

For Topic #2 (race), cite the following news article:

https://www.refinery29.com/en-ca/2020/05/9844049/regis-korchinski-paquet-
pandemic-black-trauma

2) AT LEAST three additional peer-reviewed, academic journal articles must be

used as a source (from UOIT library website). To find these, go to
https://ontariotechu.ca/sites/library/, type your search terms into the Omni search
engine, and download full text of articles you find (you may need to enter your
student number and password if not on campus).

3) Your textbook May be used but is not required

4) You MAY use government websites, news, or magazine articles only if the
information used is not already available in peer-reviewed journals and you must
have already used your minimum number of peer-reviewed journals.

5) Lecture notes are NOT acceptable as a source.

6) There is a marking rubric at the end of this document. This rubric must be
copied and pasted to your paper after the bibliography. If you fail to do so,
you will lose 2 points and will not receive an overall paper evaluation with
comments – you will receive just a mark.

Mandatory Guidelines:
1) Style: May be written in either first or third person depending on student’s
preference
2) Title Page: Must contain a title, professor’s name, date, and course code.
3) Page Numbering: All pages must be numbered EXCEPT the title page – the page
with your intro paragraph will be page #1. (in Word, start page numbering at 0
and suppress page numbers on the title page to do this). Numbers may appear
anywhere on pages as students desires.
4) Intro Paragraph: Must have an introductory paragraph which contains the
following elements, in ANY ODER that you feel comfortable with:
a. The sell: A sentence or two that convinces the reader that the paper is
addressing and important topic (i.e. make the reader care about your
paper). Example: “poverty rates, as baker (2011) has shown, are rising
 dramatically in Canada, it is important, then, to explore the causes of
poverty in this country.”
b. Topic Statement: A statement about WHAT your paper will explore:
Example: “This paper will explore the causes of poverty in Canada”.
c. Theses Statement: A strong stance that you will be arguing with regards to
the topic – often contains the word “THAT.” Example: “I will ague THAT
poverty in Canada is caused by a lack of opportunity available to those
with lower incomes” (Yes, you will be giving away the ending of your
paper here).
d. An Outline: A very brief (one or two sentence) explanation of the form
that your argument will take in the paper. Example: “In the first part of the
paper, current thinking about [the topic] will be explained; this will be
followed by a critical reflection on the issue”.
e. IMPORTANT: Be concise. A good introductory paragraph should be
between ½ and ¾ of a double-spaced page and must NEVER exceed one
page in length.

5) Body Paragraphs: A paper this size should contain 4-8 body paragraphs that are
approximately ½ to ¾ of a page in length. If you are writing a paragraph that
exceeds one page, you should break it down into two separate paragraphs.
6) Topic Sentences: Each body paragraph should have a clear topic sentence
(usually the first sentence) that relates directly to every other sentence in the
paragraph. It is like either a thesis or topic statement for just that paragraph. It
may not have to be cited if it is just your indication of the content of the paragraph
to follow.
7) APA In-Text Citation: Cite properly, according to APA guidelines ALL
INFORMATION YOU WERE NOT BORN KNOWING. You must cite
information whether is in your own words, or is a direct quotation. Examples of
APA in-text Citation are here: https://guides.library.uoit.ca/ld.php?
content_id=4715041

Everything must be cited except:

a. Your topic sentence: Since this is just a statement of what you want to
explore. You also may not need to cite topic sentences of each paragraph
if they are just your indication of the content of the paragraph to follow
(you will have to use your common sense to decide when a topic sentence
needs a citation and when it doesn’t)..
b. Your thesis sentence: Since this is by definition YOUR FINDING after
critically considering all information..
c. Your Conclusion: The conclusion paragraph should be a summary of your
entire paper and especially your findings. NO NEW INFORMATION
should appear. Therefore there should be no need to cite anything. It is
your own very concise summation of the issue.

8) Conclusion: All papers should have a short concluding/summary paragraph in

which you (in any order you like):
 a. Re-state your thesis
b. Summarize the main arguments
c. This should be little more than a summary of information and findings that
you have already presented. Somebody should be able to read it without
reading the rest of the paper, and know the main points you made.
d. Keep it very short – including only the most important information.

9) List of References: All papers must contain a proper APA-format list of

References. Examples of a proper APA reference list are Here:
https://guides.library.uoit.ca/ld.php?content_id=4715041

10) Overall Outline: Given the information above, the paper should roughly follow
this outline (the number of paragraphs for the body sections are up to the
discretion of the student):
a. Title page
b. Introductory paragraph
c. 4-8 body paragraphs
d. Concluding/summary paragraph
e. Proper APA Reference Page.

SAMPLE MATERIAL FOR GUIDELINES

1) Sample Essay: A sample essay has been provided for you on Blackboard. This is
a third-year essay of a different length and of a different topic, but will give you a
very good idea of format, style, and citation requirements.

2) Grading Rubric: A rubric outlining the criteria we will use for grading this paper
has been made available below, so you know exactly what we are looking for
when we are marking. There is not a set number of points attributed to each
section of the rubric – they are all important. Failure in one category could mean a
failure in the paper. You must copy and paste this rubric at the end of your
paper.

CONTESTING/REVISION OF MARKS
If a student strongly disagrees with the mark they receive for this assignment, the
procedure for re-marking is to first submit a paragraph outlining the specific reasons why
you believe you deserve a higher mark. This should be submitted to whoever marked
your paper (professor or TA) within one week of receiving the original mark. After a
review you may end up with a mark that is higher, lower, or (more likely) the same as the
original. So make sure that you are requesting a remark for a very good reason.

GRADING RUBRIC – copy and paste at end of paper before submitting

Organization
Introduction paragraph is concise with clear topic sentence, thesis statement and
indication of the outline and purpose of the paper.

Very Poor Needs Work Good (average) Very Good

Excellent
Discussion of general issue: How well and thoroughly does the student explain the
issue? Do they understand their own sources (film, articles, text) and convey this
understanding clearly?
Very Poor Needs Work Good (average) Very Good
Excellent
Analysis: How well does student explore the issue critically?
Very Poor Needs Work Good (average) Very Good
Excellent
Conclusion: re-iteration of main points and thesis plus some originality and policy
suggestion/s.
Very Poor Needs Work Good (average) Very Good
Excellent
Clarity of Argument: How convincing, direct, substantiated, logical, and clear is the
argument as presented?
Very Poor Needs Work Good (average) Very Good
Excellent
In-text citation used for ALL information other than thesis statement, conclusion, and
perhaps some topic sentences of paragraphs.
Very Poor Needs Work Good (average) Very Good
Excellent
Paragraphs are ordered logically, have clear topic sentences, contain only relevant info,
are less than one page (double-space) in length, with smooth transitions.
Very Poor Needs Work Good (average) Very Good
Excellent
General grammar and writing style:
Very Poor Needs Work Good (average) Very Good
Excellent
References: Does the student use proper references such as the textbook and peer-
reviewed journals and avoid pure speculation, “common knowledge”, lecture notes, and
non-academic sources?
Very Poor Needs Work Good (average) Very Good
Excellent
Reference page: with proper sources, and proper format
Very Poor Needs Work Good (average) Very Good
Excellent
Formatting: Pages are numbered and the paper is generally well formatted.
Very Poor Needs Work Good (average) Very Good
Excellent
TOTAL: /40