Research project and Power point

KG 605 Ethics and Leadership: an Interdisciplinary Perspective

GUIDE TO WRITING A POSITION PAPER

Below is a guide to assist you with creating your position paper for the final project (Gardasil case study

position paper) for the Ethics and Leadership class.

A position paper presents one side of an arguable opinion about an issue. The goal of a position paper is

to convince the audience that your opinion is valid and defensible. Ideas that you are considering need

to be carefully examined in choosing a topic, developing your argument, and organizing your paper. It is

very important to ensure that you are addressing all sides of the issue and presenting it in a manner that

is easy for your audience to understand. Your job is to take one side of the argument and persuade your

audience that you have well-founded knowledge of the topic being presented. It is important to support

your argument with evidence to ensure the validity of your claims, as well as to refute the counterclaims

to show that you are well informed about both sides.

Step 1: How should I analyze the issue and develop an argument?

Once your topic is selected, you should do some research on the subject matter. While you may already

have an opinion on your topic and an idea about which side of the argument you want to take, you need

to ensure that your position is well supported. This means that you will need to do some research on the

topic. Listing the pro and con sides of the topic will help you examine your ability to support your

counterclaims, along with a list of supporting evidence for both sides. Supporting evidence includes the

following:

Directories, encyclopedias, handbooks, in-depth studies, books, government reports,

Government web sites, scholarly articles, academic journals, newspapers, magazines,

government agencies and, institute reports, and web sites (note that Wikipedia is not a

reliable or acceptable source!!)

Many of these sources can be located online through a library catalogue and electronic databases, or on

the Web. You may be able to retrieve the actual information electronically or you may have to visit a

library to find the information in print. You do not have to use all of the above supporting evidence in

your papers. This is simply a list of the various options available to you.

Step 2: Consider your audience and determine your viewpoint

Once you have made your pro and con lists, compare the information side by side. Considering your

audience, as well as your own viewpoint, choose the position you will take.

Considering your audience does not mean “playing up” to the professor. To convince a particular person

that your own views are sound, you have to consider his or her way of thinking. If you are writing a

paper for a sociology professor obviously your analysis would be different from what it would be if you

were writing for an economics professor. You will have to make specific decisions about the background

information you should supply, and the details you need to convince that particular reader.

In determining your viewpoint, ask yourself the following:

•Can you manage the material within the specifications set by the instructor?

•Does your topic assert something specific, prove it, and where applicable, propose a plan of action?

•Do you have enough material or proof to support your opinion?

Organization of your Position Paper

Sample Outline

I. Introduction

___A. Introduce the topic

___B. Provide background on the topic to explain why it is important

___C. Assert the thesis (your view of the issue). More on thesis statements can be found below.

Your introduction has a dual purpose: to indicate both the topic and your approach to it (your thesis

statement), and to arouse your reader’s interest in what you have to say. One effective way of

introducing a topic is to place it in context – to supply a kind of backdrop that will put it in perspective.

You should discuss the area into which your topic fits, and then gradually lead into your specific field of

discussion (re: your thesis statement).

II. Counter Argument

___A. Summarize the counterclaims

___B. Provide supporting information for counterclaims

___C. Refute the counterclaims

___D. Give evidence for argument

You can generate counterarguments by asking yourself what someone who disagrees with you might

say about each of the points you've made or about your position as a whole. Once you have thought up

some counterarguments, consider how you will respond to them--will you concede that your opponent

has a point but explain why your audience should nonetheless accept your argument? Will you reject

the counterargument and explain why it is mistaken? Either way, you will want to leave your reader with

a sense that your argument is stronger than opposing arguments.

When you are summarizing opposing arguments, be charitable. Present each argument fairly and

objectively, rather than trying to make it look foolish. You want to show that you have seriously

considered the many sides of the issue, and that you are not simply attacking or mocking your

opponents.

It is usually better to consider one or two serious counterarguments in some depth, rather than to give a

long but superficial list of many different counterarguments and replies.

Be sure that your reply is consistent with your original argument. If considering a counterargument

changes your position, you will need to go back and revise your original argument accordingly.

III. Your Argument

___A. Assert point #1 of your claims

_____1. Give your educated and informed opinion

_____2. Provide support/proof using more than one source (preferably three)

___B. Assert point #2 of your claims

_____1. Give your educated and informed opinion

_____2. Provide support/proof using more than one source (preferably three)

___C. Assert point #3 of your claims

_____1. Give your educated and informed opinion

_____2. Provide support/proof using more than one source (preferably three)

You may have more than 3 overall points to your argument, but you should not have fewer.

IV. Conclusion

___A. Restate your argument

___B. Provide a plan of action but do not introduce new information

The simplest and most basic conclusion is one that restates the thesis in different words and then

discusses its implications.

Your Thesis Statement:

A thesis is a one-sentence statement about your topic. It's an assertion about your topic, something you

claim to be true. Notice that a topic alone makes no such claim; it merely defines an area to be covered.

To make your topic into a thesis statement, you need to make a claim about it, make it into a sentence.

Look back over your materials--brainstorms, investigative notes, etc.--and think about what you believe

to be true. Think about what your readers want or need to know. Then write a sentence, preferably at

this point, a simple one, stating what will be the central idea of your paper.

Here is an example:

- Original Subject: an important issue in my major field

- Focused Topic: media technology education for communication majors

- Thesis: Theories of media technology deserve a more prominent place in this University’s

Communication program

Or if your investigations led you to a different belief:

- Thesis: Communication majors at this University receive a solid background in theories of media

technology

It's always good to have a thesis you can believe in.

Notice, though, that a sentence stating an obvious and indisputable truth won't work as a thesis such as

“This University has a Communication major”.

This is a complete sentence, and it asserts something to be true, but it is a statement of fact. A good

thesis demands some proof. Your job is to show your reader that your thesis is true.

The objective is to logically and persuasively support your thesis in the body of your essay. A thesis is the

evolutionary result of a thinking process, not a miraculous creation. Formulating a thesis is not the first

thing you do after reading the essay assignment. Deciding on a thesis does not come first. Before you

can come up with an argument on any topic, you have to collect and organize evidence, look for possible

relationships between known facts (such as surprising contrasts or similarities), and think about the

beneath-the-surface significance of these relationships. After this initial exploration of the question at

hand, you can formulate a "working thesis," an argument that you think will make sense of the evidence

but that may need adjustment along the way. In other words, do not show up at your TAs office hours

expecting them to help you figure out your thesis statement and/or help organize your paper unless you

have already done some research.

Writing with style and clarity

Many students make the mistake of thinking that the content of their paper is all that matters. Although

the content is important, it will not mean much if the reader can’t understand what you are trying to

say. You may have some great ideas in your paper but if you cannot effectively communicate them, you

will not receive a very good mark. Keep the following in mind when writing your paper:

Diction

Diction refers to the choice of words for the expression of ideas; the construction, disposition, and

application of words in your essay, with regard to clearness, accuracy, variety, etc.; mode of expression;

and language. There is often a tendency for students to use fancy words and extravagant images in

hopes that it will make them sound more intelligent when in fact the result is a confusing mess.

Although this approach can sometimes be effective, it is advisable that you choose clear words and be

as precise in the expression of your ideas as possible.

Paragraphs

Creating clear paragraphs is essential. Paragraphs come in so many sizes and patterns that no single

formula could possibly cover them all. The two basic principles to remember are these:

1) A paragraph is a means of developing and framing an idea or impression. As a general rule, you

should address only one major idea per paragraph.

2) The divisions between paragraphs aren’t random, but indicate a shift in focus. In other words you

must carefully and clearly organize the order of your paragraphs so that they are logically positioned

throughout your paper. Transitions will help you with this.

Transitions

In academic writing your goal is to convey information clearly and concisely, if not to convert the reader

to your way of thinking. Transitions help you to achieve these goals by establishing logical connections

between sentences, paragraphs, and sections of your papers. In other words, transitions tell readers

what to do with the information you present them. Whether single words, quick phrases or full

sentences, they function as signs for readers that tell them how to think about, organize, and react to

old and new ideas as they read through what you have written.

Transitions signal relationships between ideas. Basically, transitions provide the reader with directions

for how to piece together your ideas into a logically coherent argument. They are words with particular

meanings that tell the reader to think and react in a particular way to your ideas. In providing the reader

with these important cues, transitions help readers understand the logic of how your ideas fit together.

Here are some examples of transition expressions: also, in the same way, just as ... so too, likewise,

similarly

Plagiarism and academic honesty

Plagiarism is a form of stealing; as with other offences against the law, ignorance is no excuse. The way

to avoid plagiarism is to give credit where credit is due. If you are using someone else’s idea,

acknowledge it, even if you have changed the wording or just summarized the main points.

To avoid plagiarism, you must give credit whenever you use

•another person's idea, opinion, or theory;

•any facts, statistics, graphs, drawings--any pieces of information--that are not common knowledge;

•quotations of another person's actual spoken or written words; or

•paraphrase of another person's spoken or written words.

For more information on King Graduate School’s policies regarding academic honesty, please refer to

your course outline, to the KGS catalog or consult King Graduate School Administration. Remember that

ignorance is no excuse.

SOURCES

The information included in this document “Guide to Writing a Position Paper” was adapted from the

following sources:

Guilford, C.(2001). Occasions for Argumentative Essays. Writing Argumentative Essays. Retrieved August

26, 2002 from the World Wide Web: http://www.powa.org/argufrms.htm Previously adapted from:

Hairston, M. (1982) A Contemporary Rhetoric (3rd ed.). Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

Northey, M. (1993). Making Sense: a student’s guide to research, writing, and style (3rd ed.). Toronto:

Oxford University Press.

UHWO Writing Center (1998) Writing a Position Paper. Retrieved August 26, 2002 from the World Wide

Web: http://homepages.uhwo.hawaii.edu/~writing/position.htm

UNC-CH Writing Center (2000). Constructing Thesis Statements. August 26, 2002 from the World Wide

Web: http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/thesis.html

UNC-CH Writing Center (2000). Effective Academic Writing: The Argument. Writing Center Handouts.

Retrieved August 26, 2002 from the World Wide Web:

http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/argument.html