Assignment: Thesis-Driven Essay

900-1100 words

• Formal tone (eg. no contractions or slang)
• Concision (e.g. not overly wordy, no repetition)
• Active/passive to avoid personal pronouns.
• Tentative (hedging) language
• Foregrounded LOs: #thesis, #organization, #evidencebased, #composition, #sourcequality, #professionalism

Write a well-supported, well-organized, thesis-driven argumentative essay exploring the complexities of personal identity.

• Your essay can focus on one specific aspect of personal identity and demonstrate how it is more complex than it initially appears, OR you can take a broader view and look at personal identity in general and why it is complex.
• To strengthen your argument, incorporate at least ONE example from your life and consider multiple perspectives.
• You should consult with at least five credible sources. These may include pre-class readings as well as texts sourced by you.
• Possible areas of focus may include academic identity, national identity, religious identity, gender identity, generational identity, hobbies, family relationships, psychological identity, political identity, and more.
• While you can draw upon your experiences or family, you must maintain a persuasive stance throughout your essay
• DO NOT:-** Quote big chunks of text**: paraphrase others’ arguments when possible; quote minimally.
  • **Collaborate with others – **this is an individual assignment. Even if other students are from your country, your family and experiences are unique. You can discuss the project with others and ask for feedback, but you must write your own paper.
  • **Use ChatGPT. **The ideas and text must be your own – or cited from legitimate sources.
  • Fail to hand in the different components of the assignment. -** Start at the last minute!**

  Footnote requirement:

  • Add footnotes to draw attention to your most prominent LOs applications (especially those mentioned in the “LOs to be graded” section below).
  • In the footnote text (at the bottom of the page), provide the hashtag of the LO and at least a 2-3 sentence explanation of your application. Help the professor understand precisely why this constitutes a robust application.
  • Remember: the use of #thesis should be within the paper itself; the footnote is merely there to show how you believe you applied it well in the text. For each LO, footnote what you believe your strongest application of the LO is.
  • Footnote text does not count towards the target length of the assignment, and all applications of the (not just those that are footnoted) will count towards your grade.
  • Including footnotes is an important part of reflecting on your learning. It should be an occasion for #professionalism. Help the professor understand exactly why this constitutes a strong application. For samples of effective annotations, refer to the footnotes that go along with each LO example (in Why/Use of pre-class readings) written in square brackets.

  Use APA7 conventions for formatting the essay and annotated bibliography:

  • The text and the reference list should be double-spaced.
  • Use Times New Roman, size 12.
  • Each paragraph should be indented.
  • Reference list entries must have a hanging indent.
  • References should be organized alphabetically.

  Assignment Information

  900-1100 words. Please indicate the word count (not including footnotes or references) at the end of the body of your essay.Weight:24%

  LEARNING OUTCOMES ADDED

  • Composition: Communicate with a clear and precise style.
  • Thesis: Write a clear declarative sentence that takes a firm position on the topic under consideration and serves to organize the rest of the work.
  • Organization: Effectively organize communications.
  • EvidenceBased: Identify and appropriately structure the information needed to support an argument effectively.
  • SourceQuality: Distinguish between categories and types of information to determine source quality.
  • Professionalism: Ensure that your communication follows established guidelines and use a careful editing process.