Assignment 1: Position Paper

Purpose: You will learn how to make persuasive argument regarding an ethical issue.

Outcome Met by Completing This Assignment:

1. Identify ethical issues that arise in domestic and global business environments using an understanding of ethical concepts and of legal and business principles

2. Develop and evaluate alternatives to, and recommend solutions for, ethical dilemmas, taking into account ethical and legal requirements and the essential mission of the business enterprise

3. Effectively communicate to internal and external business stakeholders the complexities of ethical issues suggesting and analyzing various solutions in order to ensure appropriate business practices and accountability

Instructions:

Step 1: Preparation for the Assignment:

• Before you begin writing the assignment, you will read the following requirements that will help you meet the writing and APA requirements. Not reading this information will lead to a lower grade:
• Read the grading rubric for the assignment. Use the grading rubric while writing the report to ensure all requirements are met that will lead to the highest possible grade.
• Third person writing is required.  Third person means that there are no words such as "I, me, my, we, or us" (first person writing), nor is there use of "you or your" (second person writing).  If uncertain how to write in the third person, view this link:  http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/education/grammar/first-second-and-third-person.
• Contractions are not used in business writing, so you are expected NOT to use contractions in writing this assignment. 
• You are expected to paraphrase and NOT use direct quotes. You are expected to paraphrase, which can be learned by reviewing this link:   https://writing.wisc.edu/Handbook/QPA_paraphrase2.html.
• You are responsible for APA only for in-text citations and a reference list.
• You are expected to use the facts from the case scenario paired with the weekly courses readings to develop the analysis and support the reasoning.  Books cannot be used as resources for this assignment. The expectation is that you use of the course readings and that research is done on the topic. If any material is used from a source document, it must be cited and referenced and the page or paragraph number must be provided. A reference within a reference list cannot exist without an associated in-text citation and vice versa.  View the sample APA paper to gain a better understanding of how to use APA within the paper.

Step 2: How to Set Up the Paper:

Create a Word or Rich Text Format (RTF) document that is, 12-point font.  The final product will be between 4-6 pages in length excluding the title page and reference page. It is important to write clearly and concisely.

• Create a title page with title, your name, the course, the instructor's name and date
• Introduction
• Introduce the topic
• Provide background on the topic to explain why it is important
• Assert the thesis (your view of the issue). The thesis indicates the topic and your approach as well as to pique the interest of the reader.
• Counter Argument
• Summarize the counterclaims
• Provide support for counterclaims
• Refute the counterclaims
• Give evidence for argument
• Argument
• Assert point #1 of your claims
• Provide your thoughts and ideas supported using a minimum of one source
• Assert point #2 of your claims
• Provide your thoughts and ideas supported using a minimum of one source
• Conclusion
• Restate/Summarize argument
• Bring paper full circle reflecting on the importance of the arguments and conclude their development.

Source: Writing a Position Paper (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.sfu.ca/cmns/130d1/WritingaPositionPaper.htm

Step 3: Getting Started:

A position paper provides a point of view and can be view as taking a side in a debate. What you want to keep in mind as you research and write the paper is that the viewpoint is yours but it is necessary to support your ideas, reasoning and conclusions. 

Before starting, read the topic in Step 4 and lay out a plan for researching the topic. You will note that you have been given a few articles to get you started but the research you will do goes beyond these articles and must focus on identifying the ethical issue and taking a stance based on the ethical nature of the statement. 

To present a fair and convincing argument, you will research and present the counterclaims to the position you take and refute the other positions. 

Step 4: Read the articles below to gain a sense of the issue at stake. Research the issue further so that you are able to take a position.

Nestlé CEO: Water Is Not a Human Right, Should Be Privatized

Nestlé's Attempt to Completely Privatize (Steal) Water in Oregon Put to a Stop: "Our Water, Our Future"

Nestlé's Peter Braback: Our Attitude Towards Water Needs to Change 

Step 5: Create the introductory paragraph. Within this paragraph, provide a brief overview of the scenario. Then, provide a thesis statement and tell the reader the main topics covered in the paper. The introduction comes at the beginning of the paper and tells a reader the main topics covered in the paper. View this website to learn how to write introductory paragraph:  http://www.writing.ucsb.edu/faculty/donelan/intro.html

Step 6: You will write position paper in response to the quote below: 

To write a position paper, you will first organize and outline the counterclaims and your viewpoints on the issue. Be sure to frame the discussion to define the key points covered in the paper. Establish credibility by supporting the reasoning and conclusions using the course readings and your research.

Quote:

 "Water is not a right for all humans and; therefore, can become the property of a business."

Step 7: Writing Steps

• Use the topic provided in Step 6
• Gather sources using the library, the classroom and the Internet (scholarly articles). Make sure that you have information that supports more than one viewpoint. 
• Read the source documents and decide on a claim statement. The claim statement is the thesis of your paper. 
• Use the gathered sources to prepare the thesis.
• Consider preparing an outline based on the steps provided in Step 2.
• Identifying the ethical issue.
• Present the counterclaims, your position on the counterclaims including evidence to refute the counterarguments.
• Then, write paper by presenting your position. Argue your position by making three appropriate reasons with at least two supporting details for each reason;
• Lastly, conclude the paper by restating/summarizing the argument. Refer to the opening statements and main points made throughout the paper. Reflect on the importance of the arguments and conclude their development.

Step 8: Proofread the paper for spelling and grammatical issues and third person writing as this assignment requires college-level writing.

• Use the spell and grammar check in Word as a first measure;
• Have someone who has excellent English skills to proof the paper;
• Consider submitting the paper to the Effective Writing Center (EWC). The EWC will provide 4-6 areas that may need improvement.

Step 9: Submit the paper in the Assignment Folder (The assignment submitted to the Assignment Folder will be considered a student's final product and therefore ready for grading by the instructor. It is incumbent upon the student to verify the assignment is the correct submission. No exceptions will be considered by the instructor.)