Why can’t Canadians compete with lower labour cost countries such as India and China?
Economic Term Paper & Topics
Please read these directions carefully as students will be penalized for not following directions.
PURPOSE AND GENERAL DIRECTIONS
ECON-1019 has a required research paper as part of the evaluation process. The purpose is two fold — first, to demonstrate a student’s ability to synthesize
the economic principles taught in the course and apply them to current real world situation and second, to fulfill key Employability Skills requirements found in the CIS, fundamentally, the ability to research, communicate and synthesize one’s thoughts.
On the first purpose, students will discuss through the content of the paper, some of the relevant issues of economics that were learned in class and which
are demonstrated in real-world situations. In so doing, students will be required to describe the events and to explicitly demonstrate how it is a relevant example. This will be graded in the “Connections” column of the rubric.
The second purpose is for the student to demonstrate their ability to write at a level consistent with post-secondary education an academic argumentative
paper. This part of the paper will generate the most marks for the assignment and will be graded on; Content (25%), Organization (20%) and Style (10%). The foundation of the rubric is the standard WRIT rubric with minor variations to fit the needs of this course.
The essay will be assigned during Week 4, the topics of which the students will pick from a list of available topics or from an individual choice with
professor’s approval. It is the intention, but not necessary, that students pick topics that are consistent with their area of study – for example, HR
students would pick topics that are relevant to HR.
The essay shall be between 1600-1800 words in length and is worth 25% toward the student’s final grade – 5% penalty for each 100 words either over or under the target length.
EVALUATION:
Refer to the details of the Term Paper Rubric for evaluation of the paper and to the detailed comments of “Elements of a good paper” found below in this
document. Students should consult with your instructor prior to beginning the paper should you have any questions on the grading format.
Papers must be original work to this term – students cannot use previously written papers for this course or use any paper from any other course, whether
current or past. Papers submitted IN WHOLE OR IN PART to any previous course, including ECON-1019, will not be accepted and will be deemed plagiarized if
submitted as original work for this term. Plagiarism of other’s work, or using work other than what is assigned for this course in this term, will be
considered an Academic Offence and will be given a zero for the work and will be dealt with according to the guidelines under the Academic Policies . If you
are unsure of your rights and responsibilities, please refer to the Academic Policies found on the Fanshawe College website. There will be no opportunity for
re-writes.
FORMAT
The following format MUST be followed – any element not followed will be deducted 1% per element on the “Instructions” column on the Term Paper rubric.
- Paper must be submitted in either .doc or .pdf formats. Other formats deemed “not submitted”
- Title page with course name and section, student’s name, professor’s name
- Paper must be stapled in the top left corner, without a report cover such as a plastic cover
- The report must be printed in BLACK, on 20lb bond paper (typical photocopy quality paper)
- Paper must be written in 12 pt, Times New Roman font, double spaced
- Paragraphs either indented or double spaced in between paragraphs
- Research must follow APA referencing style
- Paper MUST be written in 3rd person format
- Two versions of paper (FOL online e-copy AND hard copy) must be included in order to be deemed submitted
VERY IMPORTANT: Students will be required to submit TWO copies of their work ON TIME and at the correct location. One will be the FOL designated dropbox, which is solely used for detection of plagiarized or copied work.
A hard copy of the work shall also be submitted into the physical dropbox, located directly outside the door of the Business Faculty Boardroom (B2025). It will be emptied at any point beyond the due date, and it cannot be assumed to be on-time simply because it hasn’t been emptied. It must be in the physical dropbox AND the FOL dropbox by the due date/time.
CITATIONS
Students are to follow the proper APA format for citations and “Works Cited” or “Bibliography” listings. All “facts” such as numbers, percentages, lists, theories, etc. that are not your own MUST be properly cited. For ease of preparation, it is suggested that students write their paper using a version of MS-Word that provides “References” tabs that will automatically format and organize your citations as you write. If you are unsure how to use this tool,
either YouTube or Google directions. Your paper must not have at least 15% and no more that 30% similarity when analyzed by Turnitin.com. The minimum of 15% ensures that the student has completed one of the primary objectives of this assignment – that it be a research paper. Papers above 40% will not be graded , this is because
the student has essentially used the words of others to speak for themselves. Part of research and citation use is learning to find information that supports or refutes your arguments and explaining in your own words the relevance of why other’s views are relevant to your interpretations.
ELEMENTS OF A GOOD PAPER:
Examples of good papers are posted on FOL.
- Good papers are also written solely in the 3rd person format and do not include personal experiences or anecdotal evidence.
- Good papers also are void of colloquial or slang language.
- Good papers utilize a thesaurus to vary the use of common words (such as “huge”, “nowadays”, etc.) for a more interesting and convincing read.
- Good papers are proof read in advance – usually by a trusted individual of the writer.
- Good papers are not necessarily written quickly, but all are thoughtfully considered by the writer before they are written.
- Good papers are enjoyable to read and are richly rewarded.
Content (25%): The content element of the rubric will be based upon the student’s ability to support their thesis through three or four strong arguments. The bulk of the score will be based upon the student’s ability to support their thesis, not necessarily that the support is air-tight and correct. Noting that this course in an introductory economics course, students may argue their points very well , but may be fundamentally incorrect. Arguing well will be worth
most of the marks – it should be fundamentally correct, but not necessarily absolutely correct.
Organization: (20%): This section shall follow the fundamentals of the WRIT rubric. The paper shall be organized properly, with the major supporting thesis being argued first, the least relevant being last. The paper must have an introductory paragraph, with a brief summary of what are the key argument points. Students are to number their argument points in the introductory . paragraph The body of the paper will detail the each of the arguments in order.
Students must number and start each argument by clearly stating what the argument is in either the first sentence of the opening paragraph or as heading title. Each of the following paragraphs should have an introductory sentence, a concluding sentence and a body of sentences supporting the one point it is written about. The first sentence should be the foundation sentence that supports the key argument. The second sentence supports the first.
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