1
AP English III Synthesis Research Paper Assignment
General requirements:
This paper requires you to find two sources and turn in a copy of your two sources and a propose works cited page on4/22.
A hard copy of the final 3-4 page typed paper will be due at the beginning of your class period on 5/2
You must submit an electronic copy of the final paper to turnitin.com by 7:15 a.m. on 5/2 even if you are not on campus this day.If you are off campus, you can turn in the hard copy on the day you return. Your turnitin.com paper must be identical to your hard copy and include the works cited page.
You must sign a copy of the AHS academic honesty contract before you submit your paper.
Your paper should not include a cover page, as per MLA format. It must include a works cited page; your paper will not be scored without a works cited.The bibliography page does not count as one of your minimum three pages in length. Papers must meet a 1” margin on all sides of the page as per MLA format to be counted in the minimum length. Your paper must strictly adhere to MLA format; You must use 11 or 12 point Times New Roman font or Calibri font. Use only one space after periods. The hardcopy should be printed in black; please do not print papers in other colors!
Late paper policy:
Papers that are 1 minute late through one day late lose 20 points off their grade. In other words, if you would have scored a 95 according to the rubric, you will score a 75 if your paper is one day late.Papers that are two days late lose 40 points.Papers that are three days late lose 60 points. Papers will not be accepted for points after the third day of lateness. Lateness will be determined by the time-signature of your electronic submission to turnitin.com.
Emergency situations such as funerals or hospital stays may require documentation.Computer malfunctions of any kind will not be considered valid reasons for extensions of due dates. Make sure you contact a neighbor or family relative now in case you need access to a back up computer/internet system to complete this assignment by the due date. Do not rely on school computers or printers. Faculty members are not allowed, by school district policy, to print student papers or allow students to print from flash-drives that might infect school computers. Please do not ask your teachers to print papers for you!
Plagiarism:
A paper will receive a grade of zero if it is plagiarized in any way. Plagiarism is defined in the MLA Handbook as : “Forms of plagiarism include the failure to give appropriate acknowledgment when repeating or paraphrasing another’s wording, when taking a particularly apt phrase, and when paraphrasing another’s argument, or presenting another’s line of thinking” as your own (71).
In the event of a plagiarized paper, your parents, principal, and counselor will be notified, and the paper will receive a zero. You must sign and submit an AHS academic honesty contract to me before your paper can be graded.In the case duplicate papers are submitted to turnitin.com both students will be considered to have committed plagiarism.
Make sure that you guard your paper closely when working with other students. They might steal your paper!
Notes on writing the paper:
As you know from your experience writing for the synthesis prompt, good academic research paper writing requires you to “converse” with sources or to enter the academic conversation with your own arguments.
Your argument should be central to the paper.Feel free to both agree and respectfully disagree with sources. If you find any argumentative fallacies (see website) in any of the arguments of your sources, you may utilize them to build your own case. You may have sources “converse” with each other as well as with you.
Your argument should be both qualified and nuanced. Avoid taking an extreme stance on an issue since most issues worthy of a synthesis research paper are complicated. You should always include concessions in your argument; students do not have the ethos to be considered authorities on a subject. Students should always adopt a clear stance, but a respectful tone towards sources created through carefully chosen diction.
Document your sources within the paper as per the MLA format. It is best to cite the author of the source within the introduction to the quote. Such as:
David Gelernter asserts that, “our skill-free children are overwhelmed by information even without the internet”, suggesting that access to the internet in the classroom is detrimental to students with poor academic skills and therefore internet access should be limited for remedial students within the instructional environment.
In the event that you do not use the author’s name in the introduction, you would need to cite the source as follows:
Some authorities have countered, “our skill-free children are overwhelmed by information even without the internet”, suggesting that access to the internet in the classroom is detrimental to students with poor academic skills and therefore internet access should be limited for remedial students within the instructional environment (Gelernter 103).
The author’s name and page number where the quote appears should appear in parenthesis before the period at the end of the sentence containing the sourced material. If no page number is known you will not have a page number.In cases of paraphrasing, make sure you cite the source clearly! It is best to use direct quotes where possible.
Structure of your synthesis research paper assignment:
In class, you will be asked to choose from one of several synthesis research prompts. Your teacher will provide you with four sources formatted similarly to the synthesis prompt on the AP examon the website.You will be required to research in order to find two additional sources which you will use in conjunction with your other sources to write your paper.
You must use both of your sources and three of the four of the given sources, for a total of five sources, to write the paper—although you may have more than five!
Requirements for your TWO researched sources:
You must have one visual source which will be either a satirical political cartoon or a graph or chart showing some relevant information pertaining to your prompt. You must include the MLA citation in the source box and an italicized statement that offers a clue about the author’s ethos under the source box.
Your second source must be an excerpt from an article, book, or speech pertaining to the issue of your prompt.You will need to identify the key thesis in the article. You will then cut and paste one-half page’s worth of content from the argument, including the central thesis, into a Word document that looks just like the format of the AP synthesis sources.You must use eleven or twelve point Times New Roman font or Calibri for this.Realize that we want you to practice cutting the source down; therefore, shrinking the source and cramming the whole article on the page is not the point of the exercise. Again, you must include the MLA citation in the source box and an italicized statement that offers a clue about the author’s ethos under the source box. This blank source form is posted on the website.Any quotes used from this source in your paper must be contained in the excerpt you provided to us on the source form. In other words, do not use material from this argument in the writing to your paper that we have not seen. As with good in-class responses, try to limit yourself to six to ten words in a single quoted sentence, hooking the quote to your analysis of it. Quotes should be surrounded by your ideas, letting you contextualize these voices into your argument!
*Note, once you have turned in the sources and we have graded them, you are married to these sources and they can not be changed or substituted. If you do not take the time to find quality sources, you may not have sufficient resources to write a good paper. Pick sources that you need to make certain points about your writing. This may mean that you need to write an informal outline before you research.
If you discuss it with your instructor prior to submitting the final paper, you may be authorized to add a seventh source, but you must use the two sources you submit for the formative grade as noted above.
You must provide MLA formatted documentation for your sources just as they appear in the boxes above the sources on the AP synthesis question. There are several websites that contain information on MLA formatting of source documentation. While we will go over the general way in which MLA documentation of sources work in class, we will not provide extensive training on MLA formatting that pertains to all specific cases. When in doubt, check with us after you have attempted to find the correct format for your source documentation in the MLA handbook.You will type this citation information into the blank text box of the source form.
Both sources must be obtained from scholarly sources. *No encyclopedias may be used.*You need to make sure you select sources with strong persuasive voices. Avoid contemporary political pundits or any source that is politically biased in an overt way. Look for rational, well-reasoned arguments that are qualified, nuanced, and contain concessions presented as sympathetic summaries. Like the AP exam, logos should be the primary rhetorical persuasion used in the article you choose.
You must write one italicized statement establishing the author’s ethos under the source box on the sources you turn in to us just like the sources on the synthesis question of the AP exam. Additionally, you may need a sentence of summary if you have heavily cut the length of your argument. See your sources for examples of how these italicized statements function.
Suggested Resources for your two sources:
The Houston ChronicleThe New York TimesThe Washington PostThe Wall Street Journal
Vanity FairTimeThe EconomistJSTOR (database)
MLA Bibliography (database)Opposing View Points (database)
Political Satire *try doing a google image search for your topic to find a good visual source*
SynthesisQuestion Topics: Note you must print your chosen topic question and sources from the website—but here’s a general idea to get you started thinking about what you’d like to select. To find the AHS English III website go through the AHS website, search under staff sites for Sample, Julie, then click on the English III Advanced Placement link. Scroll down to the section labeled documents for use in the 4th Quarter and browse through the topics and print your chosen topic. Here’s the link if you wish to type is directly into your browser: this page so you’ll be able to return when you need these; we recommend you print a hard copy form in case the AHS website becomes unavailable when you are writing your paper.
1. Sports Salaries: To what extentare professional athletes overpaid? (Cliffs AP 3rd ed)
2. Title IX: *note Title IX is a law that required an equal number of women’s athletic scholarships with men’s* To what extent has Title IX allowed for more equality in the world of sports? (Cliffs AP 3rd ed)
3. Advertising: To what extent are the effects of advertising on modern America harmful? (2007 Form A)
4. The Penny: Should the U.S. eliminate the penny from its currency? (2008 Form A)
5. New for 2016:Cell Phones in Schools: Cell phones have changed the way we live.What are the key issues to effective cell phone use in schools? (Gunnar)
6. New for 2016: Sports in Public schools: What are the most important considerations schools and communities face when developing sports and physical education programs in schools? (Gunnar)
7: New for 2016: The Obesity Debate: Americans, including children, are becoming increasingly over-weight and obese on the whole. What role, if any, should the government play in attempting to solve this problem? (Gunnar)