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Analysis Paper 150 PointsSpring 2023American Government
IMPORTANT: Please read every word of this document before you begin your work.
Do not hesitate to contact the instructor with any questions or concerns. 3 pages
Purpose: The primary purpose of this assignment is to help students build practical skills including careful reading, critical thinking, thoughtful writing, time management, and a keen attention to detail as they improve their understanding of course materials.
Topic Selection: The student will select a document from an approved list. Alternately, students may request instructor approval for another document, not on the list. Any student using an alternate document, not listed as an approved document for that analysis assignment, must receive approval in writing before beginning work on their analysis.
Headings: The paper’s headings, indicating each section of the analysis, must be clearly presented in bold font, like in the example.
Failure to use the appropriate headings may result in a zero.
Formatting: Your work should use one-inch margins. The body of the text should be double spaced in Times New Roman 12 PT. Footnotes (if used) should be single spaced in Times New Roman 10 PT. The works cited section should be single spaced in Times New Roman 12 PT. You must include page numbers in the upper right-hand corner. Failure to use the proper formatting may result in a deduction of ten points. In extreme cases, improperly formatted documents may receive a score of zero. If you do not know how to change the default formatting, ask for help.
Citations: The work should cite their sources with MLA style parenthetical citations and a works cited section at the end. Any student who fails to cite the document and at least one additional peer reviewed resource with in text parenthetical citations and a works cited section may suffer a ten point reduction in grade.
Research: This is a scholarly endeavor, and you should only use peer reviewed journal research in the thesis assessment section. Any student in need of research help should contact the instructor for assistance.
Helpful peer reviewed articles may be found at the following databases.
1.ProQuest Central – Available Through the College Library’s Webpage
Select the Options for Full Text and Peer Reviewed When Using ProQuest
2. JSTOR – Free JSTOR articles are Available Here https://about.jstor.org/oa-and-free/
Additional JSTOR Articles are Available If You Sign Up for a Free Account
3. Directory of Open Access Journals – https://doaj.org/
Click the Option for Articles When You Search DOAJ
4. The Encyclopedia of North Carolina – https://www.ncpedia.org/
Plagiarism: Any work shown in the analysis must be the student’s own work and words; otherwise this constitutes plagiarism or cheating. You may not work together. No student should ever be in possession of another student’s work for any reason, even after the work has received a grade. If you want to improve your work or do not understand your grade, you should speak with the instructor, not another student. Plagiarized assignments will receive a zero and may result in additional penalties up to and including expulsion from the college. If a student turns in another student’s work from any class, both students will receive a zero on that assignment.
Quotes: You may not use any quotes in the analysis – not even from the document. No quotation marks should appear anywhere in the document , other than in the citations. Any analysis containing a quote, will receive a ten point reduction in grade. In extreme cases, excessive quotations may result in a score of zero.
Length: Papers will not exceed three pages of analysis. Students may list their works cited on a fourth page, but nothing else. Anything over this length will not be read or graded.
Writing Mechanics: Your work should follow standard rules of English grammar, spelling, and punctuation. Proofread your work carefully.
Rough Drafts: Students may send rough drafts to the instructor as email attachments. The instructor will be happy to answer questions and provide comments on rough drafts. However, time is limited. If a student wants help with their assignment, they should ask sooner rather than later.
Submission Process: Each analysis must focus on an approved document for that analysis. Each analysis must be submitted under the corresponding upload link in Blackboard. Any assignment which is not submitted under the correct upload link, will receive a score of zero. If a student uploads the wrong document, they may upload an additional document under the corresponding upload link in Blackboard before the deadline. Only the last submission will be graded. Once a document receives a grade, no part of the work may be reused for any purpose.
Deadlines: Late papers will suffer a ten-point reduction in grade for each business day the work is due, unless the student is dealing with a serious extenuating circumstance and provides proof of that circumstance to the instructor. If a file does not arrive before the deadline, is damaged, or fails to open for any reason, the student will receive no points. Students are strongly encouraged to submit work early and request confirmation that the document opened correctly if they are concerned about their file.
Example: Model your work on the provided example. Your work should be nearly indistinguishable from the example.
Extra Credit: Students may produce one additional analysis assignment for up to 100 points of extra credit. Extra credit assignments must come from the extra credit and make up document list. Each analysis assignment a student submits must be on a different document.
