Issues Related to Immigration (causes of immigration or the crises from which people are fleeing, immigration policy, etc.)

you will be asked to write three papers in which you explore three aspects of the SAME crisis. In Essay 1 you will argue crisis (try to persuade your readers that X is a crisis). In Essay 2 you will explore the causes of the crisis. And in Essay 3 you will explore some solutions to the crisis. Each of your essays should include ONE paragraph that addresses how the crisis impacts the local community Birmingham, or the state of Alabama, if you live here. If you live in another city or state, then you should discuss the local impact there.

Audience: Your audience is the UAB community (students, faculty and staff, etc.).

Organization: Each of your essays should include an introduction and thesis, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Your thesis should be presented at the end of the intro paragraph. Each body paragraph should develop and be unified around a thesis point. You should discuss the local impact of the crisis in the paragraph before the conclusion. All major claims must be supported with research. We will cover essay organization in more detail in the topic and draft assignments.

External Sources: You are required to incorporate FIVE sources into each of your papers. At least ONE source in each of your papers should be an academic journal article. At least ONE source in each of your papers should pertain to the local impact of the crisis. See below for more information about source and documentation requirements, including MLA format.

Documentation: Any ideas, information, or quotes that you present in your essay must be cited using in-text citations that correspond to entries on your Works Cited page. All quotes must be set off with quotations marks. All ideas or info that comes from an external source must be put completely into your own words or quoted verbatim and set off with quotation marks.

Length: Each of your papers should be 4-5 pages long (not including the Works Cited page). The Works Cited page should be the last page of your essay, so if your essay is four pages long, then it should be Page 5. If your essay is five pages long, then it should be Page 6. It should not be a separate document.

Format: Font should be Times New Roman, 12 pt. Spacing should be double with no extra spaces above or below lines. Margins should be 1 inch on all sides. There s/b a pagination header at the top right of every page that looks like this: Last Name #. Do not include a cover page. The first page of your essay should contain a 4-line heading at the top left (your name, my name, EH 102, date), a pagination header at the top right, and the title of your essay. Do not put extra spacing above or below any of these items. Do not underline, italicize, bold, or put quotes around the title of your essay. You should, however, always punctuate the titles of published works both on your Works Cited page and in the body of your essay. Always make sure to put QUOTES around article titles and to ITALICIZE the titles of the works that contain them (journals, magazines, newspapers, websites, books).

Essay Title: The title of your essay should describe the focus of your argument; it should not say Essay 1 or simply state the topic (Opioid Epidemic). A descriptive title looks like this: 1. The Opioid Epidemic is Wreaking Havoc on America, 2. Origins and Ongoing Causes of the Opioid Epidemic in America, 3. Solutions to the U.S. Opioid Epidemic.

Choosing a Topic: You can come up with your own topic, or choose from the list Ive provided. Since you are going to be writing all three of your major papers on the same topic, you should choose a topic that interests you either one that you are already familiar with and care a lot about, or one that you are not familiar with but want to learn more about. When choosing your crisis, consider the following questions:

What daily concerns do you have, i.e., rising tuition costs, access to healthcare/medication, issues with addiction (self or loved ones), etc.?

What scares you in your daily life, i.e., gun violence, police brutality, sexual assault, etc.?

What scares you about the future, either your own, or that of your kids, i.e., climate change, antibiotic resistance (rise of superbugs), plastic pollution, etc.?

What makes you feel sad about the world, i.e., homelessness, cyber bullying and teen suicide, sex trafficking, etc.?

What makes you feel angry about the world, i.e., economic inequality, voter disenfranchisement, worker exploitation, etc.?

Obviously, many of these crises may make you feel all of the above concerned, scared, sad, AND angry, and may cross boundaries between the present and the future, and between the personal (you and your loved ones) and the public (your fellow Americans or humans). The point is to think through these questions to identify a crisis you will feel passionate about exploring in depth over the next few weeks. See the full list of topic choices for additional ideas. I started the list several years ago based on my own ideas, but each semester I have added additional ideas from students. If you have a new idea, feel free to propose it. If I approve it, then I will add it to the list. Note: I do not accept papers on abortion.

 

Source and Documentation Requirements:

 

You should primarily use the UAB libraries to find your sources, NOT Google or some other outside search engine. I recommend beginning with the Mervyn Sterne Library (MSL) local catalog and databases. Go to the MSL home page and Search Collections (Links to an external site.). If you are having trouble finding what you want, you can contact the reference librarian assigned to EH 102 for help, Victoria Dawkins (Links to an external site.). You can find additional information about how to use the Mervyn Sterne Library by clicking on the two library tabs listed on the left sidebar of our course homepage: UAB Libraries, and EH 102 Library Guide. Note: You can use the Mervyn Sterne Library website from home to search for and access your sources; most if not all of the sources you will need for your paper are available online through the MLS website.

 

Your sources should include one academic journal article (aka scholarly or peer-reviewed journal article). In addition to this, you may use articles from other kinds of journals, from magazines/periodicals, and from newspapers, and you may use books. You may also use material from government websites (.gov). You may use online versions of any of these types of sources; however, material from random websites is not allowed unless I approve it. (Email me for approval.) Keep in mind that .com is a for-profit website (in business to make money), .org is a nonprofit website, and .edu is affiliated with an educational institution (though it could be a student page, a faculty page, or a school sponsored page — so credibility will differ).

 

While you may consult them for general information particularly in the beginning stages of your research, Wikipedia and other reference works are not counted as primary sources. (However, if you use material from reference works in your essay you still need to cite it and list these sources on your Works Cited page.)

 

Opposing Viewpoints database: This database contains different types of sources, including “viewpoints” articles as well as news articles, academic journal articles, and articles from reference works. When looking at the viewpoints articles keep in mind that these are opinion pieces, and some are better supported by research than others.

 

For information about how to format in-text citations and the Works Cited page and entries, see the MLA section of Writer’s Reference (Directory to MLA in-text citation models and Directory to MLA works cited models). There is also a sample MLA research paper at the end of this section (MLA-5) which will show you exactly how the in-text citations and Works Cited page should look. You can also click here to see a sample WC page  Download You can also click here to see a sample WC page.