I don’t understand this English question and need help to study.

Topic:

Should public school students be required to wear uniforms?

The three-part final project provides you with an opportunity to demonstrate various written skills learned throughout the course using a variety of communication modalities. The final project consists of the following three-parts:

• Argumentative Research Paper
• PowerPoint Presentation
• Letter or Brief Video

Throughout the duration of the course, you will participate in workshop discussions and submit assignments that assist you in building the skills necessary to complete this three-part final project.

Consult the Course Calendar for due dates.

INSTRUCTIONS

Part 1: Argumentative Research Paper

1. Select one of the suggested topic choices provided in Module 3 or submit a different topic idea to your mentor for approval.
2. Take a position on this controversial topic or offer a solution to a controversial problem.
3. Then, write a 4-page (1000 to 1100 words), double-spaced, argumentative research paper supporting your position. Keep in mind, your goal as a writer is to defend your claim through scholarly research and convince your reader that your position or solution is a logical and supported one.
4. Include at least five scholarly sources and proper in-text citations in APA or MLA format.
5. Your paper must include a Works Cited or References page and acknowledge all sources that you summarize, paraphrase, and/or quote within the paper.

Guidelines

Your argumentative research paper should include a cover page if you are using APA and proper headers if you are using MLA. The paper must include a minimum of five scholarly sources such as eBooks, books, journals, or webpages that end in .edu, .org, or .gov.

As you prepare this paper, ask yourself the following questions:

• Have I established the context and purpose of my paper?
• Have I clearly stated my thesis and established the central theme?
• Have I defined the scope of my thesis and determined key concepts?
• Have I selected information sources that relate to these concepts?
• Have I used a variety of search strategies and appropriate information sources to access information?
• Have I chosen sources based on multiple criteria such as relevance to the research question, currency, and authority?
• Is my content appropriate and relevant?
• Have I made reference to readings as appropriate?
• Have I communicated, organized, and synthesized information as appropriate?
• Is my paper organized logically? Does my writing display focus and structure?
• Have I correctly applied information use strategies concerning citations/references; choices among paraphrasing, summary, or quoting; use of information in the proper context; and choices about whether ideas are common knowledge or require attribution?
• Have I considered the ethical and legal restrictions on the use of published, confidential, and proprietary information?
• Have I fulfilled the length requirement for the writing assignment and sufficiently addressed assignment criteria?
• Have I properly documented sources of information?

Part 2: PowerPoint Presentation

Showing that you know and understand counterarguments to your position on a topic strengthens your argument in the eyes of your reader. It demonstrates that you have done your homework and considered all sides of an issue before establishing a position and offering a solution.

Guidelines

Imagine that you have been asked to present your argument at a conference on your paper’s chosen topic. Then, imagine a few scholars in the field who disagree with your claim are present in the audience. Additionally, during a question and answer session during the conference, consider two scholars countering your paper’s position. Let your readers know what their arguments are and work to convince the audience that your position is the stronger one or that your solution is the better one. Both sides will have merit, but help your audience understand why your claim is the more logical and reasonable one.

1. Create a PowerPoint presentation containing at least six slides that uses words, images, and narration.
2. Develop two of the strongest scholarly counterarguments against your paper’s claim (2 slides for each argument).
3. Convince the audience that their claims are weak, based on the research you conducted (2 slides). Do not demean the opposition, call them names, or directly attack their positions. If your argument is truly the stronger one, it should stand up against fairly presented academic research.

You’ll be recording a video showing your slides with a voiceover presenting the material. For assistance on how to create a presentation with narration, be sure to visit: Using Video Tools in Moodle. Use the Kaltura Capture tool section of the linked document to help with your presentation.

Part 3: Letter or Brief Video

Write a letter or record a brief video to your graduating self that answers the following questions:

What do you want to tell your future self about the writing process? What would you say about academic research writing and what you did you learn about writing an argumentative research paper from taking this course? What did you learn from constructing the final project?

Guidelines

• Your letter should be no less than half of a page and no more than one page. (Include some appropriate images in the letter that help the reader visualize what you learned.)

Instead of a letter, you may record 3-minute video to your future self that addresses the questions. However, you do not need to be on camera for this; instead, you may construct and narrate a presentation using words and images.