Crime in School and Economics of Social Issues Research Paper/Presentation Assignment Each student will describe a social issue in a particular location (country, state, or city), provide an economic analysis of that issue, and give recommendations on economic policies to address their issue.
In the paper, you will describe the social issue with economic data and the concepts you have learned in class. For instance, if you were studying housing in New York City, you could share some information on the cost of renting an apartment and the number of apartments available. You could show in an economic model how rent control could affect the housing market, and compare that policy to alternatives such as a free market for housing or subsidized housing for low-income families. The presentation will be an opportunity to communicate and discuss the key points from the paper (in PowerPoint).
Paper
The paper should be short (at most 4 double spaced pages, including any graphs/tables). The paper should make a clear argument (have a thesis) about the economic forces driving the social issue you are examining and what policies should be implemented to address them. This argument should be supported by economic analysis (at least one graph!). Note that you will need to do some research with outside sources to describe the social issue. Sources must be cited (any format (e.g. MLA, APA, or Chicago Author-Date is fine)) and plagiarism will not be tolerated.
See paper grading rubric, below, for more information on grading.
Paper grading rubric (out of 24 points; 20% of class grade)
Points 1 2 3 4
Course connection It is obvious that the author has not retained any information from the course. The author has retained some information from the course, but does not fully understand its meaning or context and cannot clearly convey it to others. The author has retained most information from the course, but there are slight errors in concepts or explanations. The author directly and clearly communicates the main question or issue. The author has retained nearly all of the knowledge presented in class and is able to synthesize this knowledge and relate it to a new context.
Argument No attempt is made to articulate an argument. The author attempts but fails, to make an argument. An argument is present, but the reader must reconstruct it from the text. The paper contains a clear argument—i.e., lets the reader know exactly what the author is trying to communicate.
Evidence Either no evidence is provided, or there are numerous factual mistakes, omissions or oversimplification.
Not enough evidence is provided to support the author’s argument, or evidence is incomplete, incorrect, or oversimplified.
Provides necessary evidence to convince the reader of most aspects of the main argument but not all. The importance of some evidence presented may not clear. Provides compelling and accurate evidence that convinces the reader to accept the main argument.
The importance/relevance of all pieces of evidence is clearly stated.
Graphics (or Tables) Student uses superfluous graphics or no graphics Student occasionally uses graphics that rarely support text. Student’s graphics relate to text. Student’s graphics explain and reinforce text and are well-presented.
Mechanics Student’s paper has four or more spelling errors and/or grammatical errors. Paper has three misspellings and/or grammatical errors. Paper has no more than two misspellings and/or grammatical errors. Paper has no misspellings or grammatical errors.
Crime in School and Economics of Social Issues Citations
MLA, APA or Chicago Author-Date is fine No attempt is made to cite evidence. Some pieces are unreferenced or inaccurately referenced, and there are problems with completeness and format of citations. All evidence is cited in footnotes or endnotes, but there are some minor problems with completeness or format of some citations. All evidence is properly cited in footnotes or endnotes.
