Reflecting on General Education
 
This is 4 separate assignments. Please do not combine them

1- For this discussion

• Define, describe, and explain the principles of critical thinking.

• Search the Internet, media, or the Ashford University Library, and find an example of good, careful (critical) thinking, and explain why you think it exemplifies strong critical thinking skills. Post a link or reference information for that source, describe the content, and explain how it is a good example of critical thinking.

• Search the Internet, media, or the Ashford University Library and find an example that lacks good, careful (critical thinking). Post a link or reference information for that source, describe the content, and explain why you think it demonstrates poor critical thinking skills.

• Support your claims with examples from required material(s) and/or other scholarly sources, and properly cite any references.

• Your initial post should be at least 250 words in length

2 - Share your progress on the Final Research Project, including the following:

• Identify the Final Research Project topic. What influenced you to make this choice?

• Describe your rationale for selecting that topic in relation to your academic and career pursuits.

• Provide your thesis statement.

• Discuss interesting finds and/or frustrations that you have encountered in your research.

• Your initial post should be at least 250 words in length.

3- Explain what you have learned about the principles guiding general education from this course and the courses you have taken in the past:

• What are the most important concepts you have learned (a) from this course and (b) throughout your time as a university student?

• Why do you think obtaining knowledge from general education courses is important?

• What are your plans for putting your education to use within your community?

• How might your newly acquired knowledge and skills shape your personal and professional development?

• Support your claims with examples from required material(s) or at least two scholarly sources, and properly cite any references.

• Your initial post should be at least 250 words in length

Link- http://www.ashford.edu/general-academic-information-policies.htm#catalog11207

4- The topic of your project needs to be a contemporary societal problem, such as healthcare reform, immigration reform, privacy rights, euthanasia, First Amendment Rights, stem cell research, capital punishment, corporate prisons, legalizing drugs, ageism, animal rights, cloning, prayer in schools, racial profiling, recycling/conservation, sexism, outsourcing jobs, workplace bullying, etc. The topic must focus on a single aspect, as in "How far do corporations intrude into the private lives of their employers?" or "The social costs of financing the distribution of custom-designed drugs." You may suggest another topic to use, but the instructor must approve the topic during the Week Two Discussion.

The Final Research Project will present research relating the responsibilities of a critical thinker to contemporary society. In this assignment, you will do the following:

• Research one aspect of a contemporary social problem.

• Define the problem.

• Propose a possible solution for the problem.

• Create an argument that supports your thesis position. You should take on the perspective of a critically thinking researcher. The argument must present a thesis statement and evidence to support the thesis statement.

• Evaluate the ethical outcomes that result from the position you take on the issue and explain how those outcomes would influence society and culture.

• Interpret statistical data from at least two peer-reviewed scholarly sources.

• Evaluate evidence using the following standards: validity, reliability, and bias related to the chosen topic and accurately identify strengths and weaknesses.

Research and Define the Problem

You must take on the perspective of your major field of study and explain in your paper what that perspective is and how it informs your view of the topic. The topics listed above are far too broad to write about in 10-12 pages (3,300-3,900 words). Instead, you must choose a narrowly defined thesis and approach it from the perspective of your field.

Example: If you are an economics major, and you are interested in immigration reform, you should approach a very specific aspect of immigration reform through the lens of economic theory and practice. A specific thesis question would not be, "How does illegal immigration influence the U.S. economy?" One could write thousands of pages on such a topic. Instead, a better question would be, "How do illegal immigrant hotel workers in Chicago impact the economy of Northern Illinois?" You would then want to do the research and determine the positive and negative impacts they have, ultimately trying to conclude how illegal immigration in this area should be approached ethically.

How to Hone Your Thesis: It is important that you start your research early in this course. Try to find the most important contemporary questions and theories in your field of study and then align the most important questions with a very specific aspect of the general topics above. For example, if you are a psychology major, you might want to start thinking within the realm of healthcare reform or aspects of mental health and criminality in the prison system.