Question: Response Paper - Freshman Composition Spring 2018
Prompt: For this assignment, you should begin with Victoria Jackson's articles on college athletics and race and decide on an aspect of this debate - or one close to it - you find most interesting or worth investigating further. You could simply choose to go further in responding to Jackson's claims about racial exploitation in revenue-generating college athletics, or you could look at some of the more conventional related topics like the physical/psychological toll of football, the topic of compensation for college athletes, etc.
The goal is to write a persuasive essay on the topic you choose, using at least three sources for support. We will spend some time looking at possible sources in class, but you will need to include at least one peer-reviewed article.
In your essay, you will need to explain the topic generally, highlighting a key controversy, and defend a thesis that takes a position in relation to that controversy. In order to do this effectively, you will need to provide an overview of the topic, summarize key arguments from your sources, and respond to the ideas you introduce by agreeing, disagreeing, or some combination of the two.
Remember - unlike the last paper, your goal here is to defend your position in relation to others'.
Target Word Count: 1400+ words (about 4-5 pages per required format)
The body of the paper should be 1,000 to 1,500 words (i.e., excluding attachments) and should concisely but clearly answer the following questions:
1) What was the background and purpose of the study or theoretical paper?
2) What was the precise scientific question being asked or explored?
3) How was the study conducted and with what methods and subject populations?
4) What were the results and what are the meaning and value of the results of the study? In reporting the results, DO NOT REPORT p-values, F-scores, t-scores, etc.
5) What do you find personally interesting and rewarding (or problematic) about the study or theorizing, and the conclusions of the author(s)?
DO NOT LIST THESE QUESTIONS IN YOUR PAPER; USE THEM AS A GENERAL GUIDE FOR YOUR THINKING.
If you are reviewing an empirical paper, you should organize your write-up according to the format of an empirical paper, which will include the following sections: Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion. In the discussion section of your review, be sure to both report on the author's discussion section and provide your own thoughts and recommendations. Keep all of your writing clean, clear, and direct, i.e., avoid all "fluff."