you will write a 1000-1500 word response to your chosen paper topic from the list below. See Course Outline for the due date. 

This assignment is worth 300 points, or 30% of your grade. 

DO NOT USE ANY SOURCES OTHER THAN THE DALRYMPLE ARTICLE AND YOUR TEXTBOOK.

YOU WILL ATTACH A FILE IN THE BOX AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS PAGE.

Learning Objectives:

Students will demonstrate their ability to construct arguments about issues of both personal and universal significance. Their writing should demonstrate that they can construct cogent, concise, and logically coherent arguments.

Assessment:

Students should demonstrate that they can distinguish the relevant points that form a logically coherent argument. They should also be able to construct criticisms which effectively undermine, through the use of appropriate counter-examples, some premise of that argument.

Your assignment is to read any ONE of the following four articles:

The Frivolity of Evil

How and How Not to Love Mankind

What We Have to Lose

Roads to Serfdom

Then, FOR THE ARTICLE YOU CHOOSE TO WRITE ON, you will type a 1000-1500 word response in which you address EACH of the following points IN YOUR OWN WORDS: 1) What is the author’s main argument? 2) How does he support his main argument (evidence, ancillary arguments, etc.)? 3) Do you agree or disagree with him? 4) Why or why not? 5) Apply the insights of at least two of the readings we have studied in this course (in chapters 1-9) to your analysis. Make sure to give a substantive explanation of how the philosophers’ insights are relevant to the topic you are discussing.

A WORD OF WARNING: These articles are rather long and complex. The author likes to make extensive use of his rather copious vocabulary, so I strongly urge you to have dictionary.com handy as you work your way through your chosen article. The purpose of this essay assignment is for you to demonstrate your ability to discuss, analyze, and evaluate complex philosophic arguments. I am confident that the reading assignments, tests, and discussion boards will have prepared you for this final, and no doubt challenging, essay assignment.

Note: I only allow one attempt on this assignment. Students who do not fully address all of the components of the assignment as stated in the instructions as well as the grading rubric below will have to be content with the grade they earned. 

Please use MLA format.

Your paper will be graded according to the following rubric:

Grading Rubric:

The following standards are numbered in order of importance for grading.

1.Essay demonstrates an understanding of the material: The student has correctly grasped a philosophical problem or question, has explained it accurately, and on the basis of a substantially correct interpretation of any texts involved. Key terms are used correctly. The essay shows evidence of the student’s independent thought, and is written in his or her distinctive voice. Short (one sentence) quotations are used (comprising no more than 10% of the body of the paper), when appropriate, to support the writer’s analysis, and an explanation is offered for each quotation. The use of block quotations will result in a severe point deduction.

95 points

2.Essay has clear and coherent argument: There is a clearly stated thesis, and support for this thesis in the body of the paper. Each paragraph contributes to this argument, and follows logically from the paragraph before it. The argument presented is persuasive. The insights of two other philosophers are incorporated into the analysis.

95 points

3.Essay fulfills assigned task: The essay addresses the entire assigned question or topic, elaborating on important ideas in satisfactory depth, but without bringing in anything extraneous or irrelevant. The introduction of the essay focuses and provides clarity for the paper. Important terms are clearly and accurately defined. Each paragraph conveys a coherent, organized thought. Short (one sentence) quotations are occasionally used, when appropriate, to support the writer’s analysis, and an explanation is offered for each quotation. No more than 10% of paper is made up of direct quotes. No block quotations.

40 points

4.Essay obeys standards for good persuasive writing: the writer shows that he or she is comfortable using philosophical language, and the prose is clear, not awkward. The structure of the sentences reflects the relationships between/among the ideas discussed.

40 points

5.Essay is technically correct: The essay has been carefully and thoughtfully proofread. The argument is written in complete sentences, with punctuation that does not mislead the reader. There are no mistakes in spelling, grammar, word choice, and punctuation.

The purpose of this assignment is  to broaden your understanding of a community, develop analytical skills regarding communities in relation to specific populations and their needs, and to better plan and develop interventions to address issues and problems facing the community.

This assignment has three parts: Part I Understanding Your Community, where you will consider the current demographics of the community and analyze how that has changed over the past 20 years; Part II Community Assessment, where you assess your community and a problem within your community; and Part III Community Action Plan, where you develop a specific action plan to address the problem you identified. As you reflect on the learning resources and concepts from Weeks 1-4, be sure to explain what you have learned about the policy’s effect on various groups. Consider how will this knowledge assist you with your community action plan.

By Day 7

Submit a 4-6 page paper. The paper needs to be well-researched and written using APA guidelines. Data should come from at least five sources.

Part I: Understanding your Community

• Analyze how your community has changed over the past 20 years. Use policy and community concepts and theories from the learning resources to support your analysis.
• Describe your community, using research and statistics to describe socio-demographic make-up. (For example: How many persons live in the city and/or in the town? What were/are their cultural/racial characteristics? What were/are their incomes, ages, political affiliations, etc.?)

Part II: Community Assessment

• Describe a problem that the community is currently experiencing.
  • Assess the duration, intensity, and frequency of the problem.
  • Analyze the probable etiology of the problem, supporting your analysis with resources.
• Analyze the key elements and characteristics of the community that make it vulnerable to this problem.
• Analyze the key strengths of the community that give the community resilience and the potential for overcoming the problem.
• Identify major institutions (e.g., schools, factories, churches, attraction sites, etc.) and explain how these institutions contribute to or inhibit the community’s ability to address the problem?
• Explain which groups are most affected by the problem.

Part III: Community & Policy Action Plan

• Describe your proposed plan for community change.
• Explain the strategies and tactics you would you use to bring about change. Consider if you would need multiple strategies, and if so, explain which strategy would be used for each target.
• Explain any policies that may influence the ability, either supportive or prohibitive, to influence proposed community change.
• Explain what policies would need to be in place to ensure proposed plans are sustainable.

Demographics/ community. Fort Wayne Indiana.