PLEASE NOTE THAT DUE TO TIME CONSTRAINTS YOU NEED TO SELECT A
TOPIC AS SOON AS POSSIBLE

Paper Length: 3 double spaced pages + Works Cited
(NOTE: Your Works Cited page must include at least three academically rigorous
sources relevant to your selected topic.  If you neglect to include a
Works Cited page or if you select unqualified sources, (someone’s blog,
Wikipedia, About.com, Ask.com or other general sources) then you will
automatically lose 20 points off of your final paper grade. 

For this paper you are
going to craft you own opinion and editorial assignment.  You must select
a topic that is current, controversial and relevant.  Since this is an
opinion/editorial piece you’re encouraged to not only state your opinion but
you’re also allowed to use first person pronouns such as I, me and my. 

In some respects this
will be the most challenging paper you write all year.  In order to be
eligible for full credit you MUST develop and present an argument in order to
providing background information on your topic.  If you only write an
expository paper but neglect to include a well-developed and well-crafted
argument then you will score poorly for this paper. 

Make sure your
introductory paragraph is catchy.  Use the last paragraph to bring your
argument to a close. 

Identify 3 or 4 points
that support and defend your argument and formulate paragraphs around each
point. 

Avoid logical fallacies,
or incorrect judgments based upon faulty data and arguments. 

You are expected to
incorporate commentary and specific details.

I expect your paper to
be well-organized and free of any grammatical errors.

Between now and the due
date of this assignment we will do the following:

1) 
Class time to discuss various parts of the paper

2) 
Review of fallacies to avoid

3)  Assigned
readings from your textbook which focus on opinion/editorial writing

4) 
Additional handouts to supplement how to write an argumentation paper.

5) 
Structures of arguments

6) 
Crucial components of a well-developed argument