Writing Assignment Sociology 104 Spring 2024 ROUGH DRAFT: DUE in Discussion Sections

Writing Assignment

Sociology 104

Spring 2024

ROUGH DRAFT: DUE in Discussion Sections on April 11/12, 2023

FINAL DRAFT: DUE by 11:59 PM, Sunday, April 14th, 2024 on Canvas

GRADE: 70 Points (7% of your overall grade for the course)

PROMPT:

Write a 3-4 page (700-1000 words) paper in which you apply sociological concepts from class to current events. Concepts, current events, and sources are below.

Using 2 concepts from class, offer a sociological explanation of one of the current events listed on the last page using the articles provided.

In line with Core Goal 1, Outcome 1, students should select relevant, reliable information about society, use that information to construct their own reasoned judgments about the world, and critically examine common assumptions about how society works.

In line with Core Goal 4, Outcome 1, students should “investigate the diversity of human experience within the United States, considering, for example, age, culture, disability, ethnicity, gender, language, race, religion, sexual orientation, and social class, and appreciate the contributions of different social groups.”

First, you should summarize your chosen event using only one of the articles provided on the last page. Identify the major problem and describe, in your own words, the events that lead to the topic at hand. This portion of the assignment should take up no more than one page.

Second, start to think like a sociologist! Using 2 sociological concepts from class, try to explain why the event occurred and why the event is considered important to society from a sociological perspective. You should introduce and briefly define the concepts you are using according to the definitions provided in class and in assigned readings. Then apply them to your chosen topic. Use the source articles for information. DO NOT USE OUTSIDE SOURCES OTHER THAN WHAT IS PROVIDED.

ROUGH DRAFT INSTRUCTIONS:

You will be expected to review a draft of your paper in discussion sections
on April 11/12, 2024.

Bring a printed copy of your completed draft to your discussion for a peer review session on April 11/12. Your GTA will give you more specific details in your discussion sections.

FORMAT AND SUBMISSION:

Your paper must be typed in black 12 point Times New Roman font on a page with one-inch margins.

Length should be between 3 to 4 double-spaced pages (700-1000 words) not including a Works Cited page.

You must explicitly state the title of the article, the author, and BOTH concepts used in the introduction.

You must include in-text citations and a References page with citations from the readings and lectures!

Use ASA citation. For reference, go to:

https://lib.trinity.edu/citing-sources/asa-style-citations/

https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/asa_style/references_page_formatting.html

Or go to the Writing Center.

Here is the ASA citation format for lecture material:

In text citation: (Professor’s Last Name and Year).

For example: (Wright 2024).

Works cited page: Last Name, First Name. Year. “Title of Lecture.” 

For example: Wright, Lisa-Marie. 2024. “Gender Socialization.”

Excessive headings will not be counted toward page count (refer to word count requirements)

It must be saved in either rich text format (.rtf) or Microsoft Word format (.docx). Word is preferable.

When you have completed the final draft of your assignment, you will upload the .docx file through the Turnitin system on Canvas. DO NOT UPLOAD PDF, PAGES, OR TEXT FILES! You can find the submission link on the Writing Assignment page

The final draft is due via Canvas by 11:59pm on Sunday, April 14th, 2024. There will be five late points removed per each day that the assignment is not turned in.

USE OF AI:

No AI-generated text output can be submitted with the reading assignment. When you submit your assignment, Canvas will provide a plagiarism and AI report. This percentage score is the likelihood that you plagiarized or used AI. If you think the percentage is high and you did not use AI, please notify your GTA.

LIST OF POSSIBLE CONCEPTS*:

Durkheim-related: Consensus perspective; Social solidarity; Collective conscience; Collective effervescence; Anomie

Marx-related: Conflict perspective; Class stratification; Base and superstructure (Historical Materialism); Class conflict; Exploitation; Cultural hegemony

Bourdieu-related: Capital configuration and Capital conversion (the relationships among social capital, economic capital, and cultural capital)

Microsociology: Looking glass self; Symbolic interactionism; Impression management; Roles/Teams

Other Concepts from Reading and Lecture: Social structure and agency; Social construction; Privilege (SPECIFY race, gender, class, age ability); Structural/Institutional discrimination; Intersectionality; Gender and sexuality: Gender constructionism; Gender essentialism; Stalled revolution; Leisure gap; Gender ideology; Gender strategy; Hegemonic Masculinity/femininity; Gender socialization; Glass ceiling; Self-fulfilling prophecy; Gender identity (Genderqueer; Cisgender; Transgender; Intersex; Non-binary); Sexual desire; Sexual behavior; Sexual identity; Neoliberalism

CURRENT EVENTS AND SOURCES: 

You MUST choose one of the following six topics and use the source(s) linked below for information on the issue. Read the relevant article, then provide a sociological interpretation of the situation using concepts from class. PDF versions of the articles are also available on Canvas. 

Spring 2024 PAPER TOPIC ARTICLES:  

Demographic Changes Highlight Growing Retirement Challenges

https://www.forbes.com/sites/dandoonan/2024/01/30/demographic-changes-highlight-growing-retirement-challenges/?sh=5ced6d37610d

Women in Iceland Go on Strike Against Gender Inequality

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/23/world/europe/iceland-equality-strike.html?searchResultPosition=6

Confronted With Child Labor in the U.S., Companies Move to Crack Down

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/07/us/child-labor-us-companies.html

Making pregnancy safer for black women

https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/06/us/making-pregnancy-safer-for-black-women/index.html

Darmouth will again require SAT, ACT scores

https://www.npr.org/2024/02/05/1229223433/sat-act-diversity-dartmouth-college-admissions

Education Dept. Investigates Claims of Discrimination Against Palestinian Students at Harvard

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/07/us/harvard-palestinian-discrimination-complaint.html

Many Transgender Americans Face Stigma and Financial Hardship, Survey Finds

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/07/health/trangender-survey-harassment-poverty.html

Content note: This article references recent anti-LGBTQ bills and rhetoric and utilizes some graphic language. If you feel the need to discuss this material with me, please don’t hesitate to reach out. 

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