Topic: Homelessness and mental illness- The relationship between homelessness and mental illness can be a "chicken or egg" situation, but undoubtedly there is a correlation. This is in part due to the way in which we have dealt with mental illness in the past (deinstitutionalization) as well as the way in which we deal with homelessness today (criminalization). For this topic, you may wish to focus on a specific subgroup of the homeless, such as veterans or LGBTQ teenagers, or you may want to focus on a specific mental illness. Do not accidentally write a paper for psychology class. Stay focused on the social causes and consequences, not the specifics of diagnosis or prognosis.
To measure critical thinking and communication skills, you will be required to write a research paper on a subject of your choosing (from aprovided list of approved topics). You will not be conducting original research (like we learned about in Chapter 5), but rather, you will be doing library research and writing a paper that uses other people's work to support your ideas on a topic.
A paper in sociology isnotjust a summary of sources. It is alsonota "reaction" paper. You arenotbeing asked to discuss or give your opinion on anything. A paper in sociology is anargumentassembled to answer some question that uses credible, scholarly sources as evidence to support your claims.
After selecting your topic, you will determine a question of sociological importance regarding your topic that you can answer, and then come up with a proposed answer (your argument). Then you will turn to credible, scholarly sources to provide evidence for your argument. Again, this is not an opinion paper, a summary paper, or a "about about your feelings and life story" paper. You may end up picking at topic that you feel strongly about or have personal experience with, but you must be objective and support a defensible argument.
Pick a topic. Determine a question. Make an argument. Defend with evidence.
Paper Specifics:
- Minimum of 1000 words
- Cover page (if included) and works cited (must be included) do not count towards overall word count
- Double spaced
- 1 inch margins on all sides
- Size 11 or 12 standard font
- Minimum of 5 scholarly sources
- Scholarly sources are sources that are written from an objective, scientific standpoint, and have undergone the process of peer review. This may include books, eBooks, academic journal articles, and reliable websites. Wikipedia is not an academic source. Religious texts of faith are not an academic source (at least not in sociology). Newspaper articles (including those online) are not academic sources. Publications from politically motivated entities trying to sell something are not academic sources.
- There is a difference between a source and something that just needs to be cited. Pop culture references (songs, movies, newspaper stories, etc.) need to be cited, but do not count towards your scholarly sources.
- You may cite your textbook, but it doesn't count towards your source count. (Hint: If you want to use something you learned from the textbook, look up the original reference for the theory/theorist and use that instead)
- Works cited (APA, MLA, Chicago, etc.... Your choice)
- You may select whichever style guide you are most comfortable with, so long as you apply is consistently and correctly
- In-text (parenthetical) citations required (or footnotes if you are using a style guide that calls for them)
- If you are unfamiliar or uncomfortable with citations, the librarians and Tutoring Center (2nd floor of the library) are great resources. Check out Noodle Tools on the library website.
Grading:
Your paper will be graded by rubric, which can be found on theassignment page. This rubric is based off of shared cross-college multi-disciplinary standards in critical thinking and communication as well as course specifics. I am providing it to you in the interest of grading transparency. Please consult is as you construct your paper so that you are fully informed on how your grade determination will be reached.
Plagiarism:
Plagiarism of any sort on this paper will not be tolerated. Please note that plagiarism includes turning in the same paper for two different classes, or using the work of another student as your own, and is not solely limited to the copying of published works. If it is found that a notable (more than 40%) of your paper is plagiarized, you will receive a zero (0) for the paper grade and I will initiate disciplinary action with the college for violation of the Student Code of Conduct. Once you upload your final paper to Canvas, it will be automatically run through TurnItIn, which will generate a "similarity score" that you can see. If your score is too high, fix the problem and upload again. Leave yourself time to check. If you are unfamiliar with or uncomfortable with the concept of plagiarism, please utilize the Tutoring Center services.
Getting Help:
As you progress through this assignment, I am happy to help as needed, to include help finding sources, reading drafts, talking through ideas, etc. You have to ask though. I cannot rightfully hunt you down and force my help upon you.
You also have access to online writing tutors through Brainfuse. If you need assistance in how to write a term paper, I highly recommend taking advantage of this service that is made available to you. I can help you with how to address topics in the social sciences, but general writing help might be better addressed with a writing tutor.
Finding Sources:
As you search for sources to use in your paper, I highly recommend utilizing NLC's library resources. You can find a list of online databases useful to sociology to which you have accesshere(Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.. To access these databases off campus, log in with your ACES ID as your username and your Banner ID as your password. Since you need to stick to academic sources, I highly recommend using these databases to start your search. Rely only on sources that meet the criteria of quality sciencethat we discussed in our social research section. Be weary of just typing things into Google.
To help you get started, the librarians have put together aLibGuide(Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.to help point you in the right direction as you search for sources. The library will be an excellent resource for you as you complete this paper. Please make full use of its services.
Turning Everything In:
The final draft of the paper must be uploaded through TurnItIn in Canvas so that it can be checked for plagiarism. I will not, under any circumstances, accept hardcopies or email attachments of the paper. Please allow yourself more than ample time to upload your assignment and avoid any technical errors. A last minute technical error does not provide you with an excuse to turn in the assignment late, as you should have uploaded earlier. You may view your originality score after upload and, if desired, may resubmit the assignment as many times as necessary up until the due date.