English 1A  Essay #2: Informed Argument

Electronic copy due to turnitin.com and paper copy due to me by the beginning of the first class meeting during the week of February 25.

 

Length: 1000-1400 words (no less, no more).  Include a word count in your heading.

 

Appropriate and correct incorporation of quotes and information from a CQ Researcher report

 

Include a print out of the first page of the CQ report you used to inform yourself

 

Assignment

 

Offer an argument that addresses a specific question at issue that has been explored in a report by CQ Researcher .  Your goal is to convince your readers that your position on the issue represents an informed, logical way to think.  You are free to use any report done by CQ Researcher.  Here are some examples of recent reports:

  • Military Draft

  • Intelligent Design

  • Endangered Species Act

  • Teen Sex and Sex Education

  • Stem Cell Research

  • Health Care Costs

  • Nuclear Energy

  • Gay Marriage

  • War against Iraq

  • Corporate Social Responsibility

  • Fish Farming

  • Shock Jocks

  • Hip Hop

  • Students under Stress

  • Cuba

  • Poverty in America

  • HPV Vaccine

  • Slow Food Movement

Additional Requirement: You must demonstrate your ability to use templates from They Say, I Say.  Put these in bold in your essay.

 

Important Notes

You must choose a subject that has been covered by CQ Researcher.  No exceptions.

 

A good strategy to use in finding a topic is to click the "Browse by Date" link on the CQ Researcher homepage.  Skim through recent CQ reports (i.e. reports from 2005 and 2006 and 2007) and pick one that interests you.

 

Be sure to study carefully the criteria by which this essay will be evaluated.  

 

Keep in mind that this essay is not a mere “report” on an issue; it is an argument on the issue.

 

Study the sample essays linked in PATH #3.