Write an argumentative research paper which should focus on a controversy related to your major or
intended field of study. The paper should be between 2,000 and 3,000 words, not including the bibliography.
The word count must be listed on the title page of the final draft. A final draft less than 2000 words in length
will result in automatic failure of the course
Student Research Requirements for this Course:
· You must use at least four credentialed sources in the argument of your paper. Papers for this class typically
have many more than four sources used in the paper, but students must have a strong core of research from
which to build their argument. These required four credentialed sources may also be referred to as “the core
four.” Failure to meet these requirements of the OLG v8.4:06/19 – 5 – ENG2205 Critical Thinking and
Writing Syllabus core four will result in an automatic failure of the course.
· “Credentials” are the author’s title, educational background, and professional or work experience that prove
the author is a respected expert within the field of study that your topic is related to. Journalists, no matter
how many awards in journalism they have won or years’ experience they have writing on a topic, are not
considered credentialed sources.
· The author’s credentials for any source that you want to have counted as a credentialed source must be
clearly stated on your annotated bibliography for a source to be considered credentialed. While four
credentialed sources meet minimum requirements, instructors provide feedback on strength and quality of
research at the rough draft stage to determine whether additional credentialed sources are needed to earn
higher than a C grade on the final paper.
· You are limited to the use of 12 sources maximum in this paper. Select only the best of the best to prove the
validity of your argument in this paper.
· At least one of your core four must object to your thesis. In other words, you want to find scholars within
the field of study who have a different view on your thesis. These sources will be necessary in both the
introduction and the body of the paper.
· A single author may be used no more than once in the core four.
· Because you are showing that you can do library research to find credentialed sources, the Bible, textbooks,
and class handouts do not count as credentialed sources (however, you may cite them in your paper upon
approval of the instructor).
· No more than one essay from one anthology may count toward the core four (however, you may cite as
many essays as you would like from a single anthology).