an critique essay evaluating an editorial with sociology aspects like functionalist approach, conflict theory and symbolic interactionism
Page 6 of 6 SOC2000 – Individual Research Paper This project has 1 deliverable · An individual written research paper regarding one of the editorial newspaper articles (the editorials listed on Brightspace – pick one). · 20% of your final grade. · Critique the editorial from a scientific, sociological point of view. Some of the requirements 1. Each Paper MUST BE BASED ON EVIDENCE!! I do not want opinion pieces from you. For each statement you make that is not common knowledge, please provide an APA embedded citation within the text plus an APA reference in the Reference section. 2. Must be 100% original work (with allowances for a few sourced quotes). 3. Use of a minimum of 5 outside academic sources... 4. Academic sources include research articles in academic journals (i.e. periodicals) and books written by academics. Yes, your textbook would count as 1 academic source. 5. Wikipedia sources and other online sources are not permitted unless they are online versions of sources that I mention in point #4 above. Online versions of such sources (point #4 directly above) are permitted. 6. Your best sources will come from http://www.scholar.google.ca and the library’s online ONESEARCH tool (www.algonquincollege.com/library). 7. Must be in your own words with allowances for a couple of short quotes. Recommended Steps 1. Choose an editorial (Due: Week 2) · You can choose any editorial you want. · If you choose the same editorial as someone else that is fine. Just do not share your papers with each other as that can lead to plagiarism and a grade of zero, if any of your work is the same. 2. Write Your Individual Paper (Due: Week 10, beginning of class in Turnitin on Brightspace. Start Week 1 by looking at the editorials and choosing one.) · You will find the Turnitin link on Brightspace to post your paper under Activities Assignments in Microsoft Word format. · The exact specifications are found throughout this document. · No extensions under any circumstances. This was assigned Week 1. The Chapters of your Paper 1. INTRODUCTION (Section 1 of your paper) · What is the issue? · Based on evidence, how prevalent is it in today’s society? · Summarize the key points of the editorial. 2. THEORY. · Using the textbook and other sociology sources, how can we interpret the topic of the editorial? In other words, what does each theory say about this topic? · Do the statements in the editorial about this topic agree or disagree with the statements each theory makes about this topic? Section 2a. Which aspects of the newspaper editorial are consistent or inconsistent with Functionalist Theory? Section 2b.Which aspects of the newspaper editorial are consistent or inconsistent with Conflict Theory? Section 2c.Which aspects of the newspaper editorial are consistent or inconsistent with Symbolic Interactionist Theory? 3. CRITICAL ASSESSMENT (Section 3 of your paper). · What are the limitations of the newspaper editorial...? i. Are any biases (one-sidedness) evident and/or any points of view or evidence not expressed? ii. Are there any fallacies evident (e.g. red herring fallacy, etc.)? A great academic source about the various fallacies is this one: · https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/academic_writing/logic_in_argumentative_writing/fallacies.html#:~:text=Fallacies%20are%20common%20errors%20in,evidence%20that%20supports%20their%20claim. iii. Did the writer fail to include statistics that would have helped to support their opinion? iv. Did the writer (journalist) do anything well in their editorial to support their opinion? 4. REFERENCES. · Must format embedded citations and Reference Section according to APA style guide as outlined in the document posted on Blackboard. · Again, the body of the paper is formatted as follows: 12-point Arial font, single spacing and 1-inch margins. 5. Grading A+ submission will have the following features: · All the above components (subtract 2 grade levels per missing Section and subsection). · The body of the Individual Written Assignment shall be no less than 1.5 pages in length for each of sections: 1, 2a, 2b, 2c, and 3 (i.e. the body of your paper will be a minimum of 7.5 pages) using a 12-point Arial font, single spacing and 1-inch margins. · Must have section and subsection headings, a cover page, and a Reference section. · Use of a minimum of 5 academic outside sources. · No Wikipedia sources, no online sources in general unless they are scholarly sources (as defined by point #4 on page 1). · Clarity and logic. Strong, logical Quality of the arguments. · Richness of vocabulary and correct grammar using complete sentences. Individual Written Paper – Earning points: · Must use a 12-point Arial font, single spacing and 1-inch margins. · Minimum length 1.5 pages for the body of each of the 5 sections (Section 1, 2a, 2b, 2c, 3). The body of your paper will therefore be 1.5 pages per section X 5 sections = 7.5 pages minimum. · For Sections 1 and 3, a maximum of five points will be awarded for each. · For Section 2, five points will be awarded for each of the 3 subsections (2a, 2b, 2c). · Total: 25 points for the paper worth 20% of your final grade. · 1 point subtracted for each technical error and each grammatical/ Spelling error. A full grade subtracted for missing elements and missing references and embedded citations. · APA style references for both Reference Section and for all citations embedded in the body of your paper. · Must embed citations within the body of your paper using APA style. · All sentences must be complete and grammatically correct. Submitting Assignments · Due in Turnitin on Brightspace at the beginning of class, Week 10. Assignments handed in late will receive a grade of zero. · No extensions. · Must also be submitted on Blackboard using Turnitin. You can submit drafts into Turnitin to check the originality of your work (in order to avoid plagiarism). Turnitin has a limitation: You can submit drafts 24-hours apart (i.e. if you submit a draft written assignment to Turnitin then you may re-submit to Turnitin after you wait 24-hours. Just ensure that your Final Draft is submitted before class Week 10. · Written assignments will not be accepted via email. List of Editorials (Choose 1)... These are just ideas as to how to approach the editorial from a Sociological viewpoint. https://ottawacitizen.com/opinion/columnists/iversen-and-holder-global-promise-of-gender-equality-is-still-a-long-way-off Title: Global Promise of Gender Equality is Still a Long Way off Topics: Gender inequality DECRIMINALIZING DRUGS FROM A SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE 1 Decriminalizing Drugs from a Sociological Perspective Name: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Algonquin College DECRIMINALIZING DRUGS FROM A SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE 2 INTRODUCTION While rumours swirl around whether or not there are any future plans by the Liberal Party to decriminalize hard drugs and the deadline of July 1st, 2018 to legalize marijuana (or cannabis) is fast approaching, the controversy if drugs (hard or not) should be legalized, decriminalized or left as criminal offenses heats up (Dangerfield, 2017). The first legal framework in Canada for drug control was the Opium Act in 1908 which included regulations on alcohol and tobacco (Riley, Canadian Foundation for Drug Policy & International Harm Reduction Association, 1998). The subsequent acts of the Opium and Drug Act of 1911 and the Opium and Narcotics Act of 1929 further regulated the use of several drugs including cannabis in 1923 (Riley, Canadian Foundation for Drug Policy & International Harm Reduction Association, 1998). The international community added clarity which drugs should be legal and illegal in 1961 with the Single Convention of Narcotic Drugs and in 1971 with the Convention of Psychotropic Substances (Riley, Canadian Foundation for Drug Policy & International Harm Reduction Association, 1998). However, in 1969 the Le Dain Commission of Inquiry discovered hundreds of thousands of Canadians had “lifetime barriers to personal freedoms” (Riley, Canadian Foundation for Drug Policy & International Harm Reduction Association, 1998). In response to the findings the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act of 1997 was put in place (Riley, Canadian Foundation for Drug Policy & International Harm Reduction Association, 1998). Currently in Canada drugs like cannabis, heroin, cocaine, and opium are illegal to buy, sell and use with only a few exceptions for medical purposes under the Controlled Drugs and Substance Act of 1997 (Government of Canada, 2017). On August 15th, 2017, Michael Spratt (2017) wrote an article in the Ottawa Citizen entitled Canada Should Decriminalize All Drugs. Spratt (2017) starts off by quoting Ottawa’s medical officer of health, Dr. Isra Levy, with her support for decriminalization and condemning Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson for his stance against the city’s first safe injection site. Spratt (2017) goes on to state that the idea of decriminalization is not a crazy idea but an idea that shows compassion for those who suffer from addiction, public safety and even lowering crime itself. Next he states that he will go into the current drug policy of criminalization (Spratt, 2017). He says that there is “no need” to review Canada’s history on drug policy because it has not eliminated drugs from Canadian society (Spratt, 2017). Highlighting the fact that Supreme Court of Canada had to consider the harms of injectable drugs in concerns for the city of Vancouver’s east side (Spratt, 2017). Spratt (2017) continues by referencing a survey of 1000 drug users that listed all the ills found to be associated with drug use pointing out that this survey did not capture those who had died from overdose. DECRIMINALIZING DRUGS FROM A SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE 3 It is at this point that Spratt (2017) reiterates that criminalizing drugs has not benefited society. He admits that Canada does have a drug problem but that it is a political problem (Spratt, 2017). Spratt (2017) proceeds to discuss how decriminalization would be a simple idea. He first stipulates that the drug dealers, importers and traffickers would be the focus of criminalization not the users (Spratt, 2017). He puts forth the idea that from a public health perspective that it would assist addicts to get help (Spratt, 2017). To support this perspective, he gives the statistic of the number of opioid overdose in Canada last year (Spratt, 2017). Next he looks at it from a financial perspective giving the statistics of how much it costs to incarcerate an addict (Spratt, 2017). Following this, Spratt (2017) asks the reader