Analyzing Media-Presented Issues in Nursing Practice

Purpose The purpose of this assignment is to: develop skills in analyzing media-presented issues related to the nursing profession and nursing practice; and explore the public perception of nurses and the nursing profession. To complete this assignment: focus on a current issue in nursing; and examine this issue in the context of written opinions expressed through three (3) separate types of media. Issues are often value laden; issues in health care and in nursing are no different. Concerns about the state of our health care system and the state of nursing in Canada have been discussed at length within the media, government, and nursing organizations. While it is often difficult to differentiate fact from fiction and opinion, public opinion is often influenced by what is written in the popular press or on the Internet. Assignment Expectations Find three articles on the same issue/topic. One of the articles must be from a popular periodical or media source, preferably something you may have at home (such as Macleans, Time, Reader’s Digest, or your local newspaper – either print based or online version) or CBC, CTV, or CNN online articles. Your second article must be from a scholarly periodical either print version [e.g. The Canadian Nurse] or retrieved from a database [e.g. AU Library, CINAHL, Medline, etc.]. The third article must be from a Web site that is not merely a Web version of a print source. The articles should represent a range of views; in other words, these articles should not all agree. The introduction includes a thesis that prepares your reader for the general topic the articles address, the issues they raise, and the position you will be taking. Summarize each article separately by stating in your own words the important information presented in each article and any arguments the authors make. Do not paraphrase the whole article; present the main points briefly—each summary should be one paragraph long, two at the most. When summarizing, it is not appropriate to dwell on extended examples (such as personal case histories or stories); you do not need to summarize complex statistical parts of a study. You should focus on the main ideas and issues discussed. You could briefly refer to any specific personal stories or statistical sections of the piece (using one or two sentences). Respond to the three articles by: comparing the authors’ credibility, documentation, and support for claims; evaluating any disagreements or agreements between the authors; and articulating your own position on their ideas or issues. This means more than just stating your opinion; you must also explain it. Describe how your personal and professional values influence your views on this issue. Document your sources using correct APA style. This paper adheres to a 6 page limit excluding reference and title pages. Assignments Expectations What is a Position Paper A position paper presents an arguable opinion about an issue. The goal of a position paper is to convince the audience that your opinion is valid and worth listening to. 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 address the counterclaims to show that you are well informed about both sides. Assignment #2 Writing a Position Paper Issue Criteria To take a side on a subject, you should first establish the arguability of a topic that interests you. Ask yourself the following questions to ensure that you will be able to present a strong argument: Is it a real issue, with genuine controversy and uncertainty? Can you distinctly identify two positions? Are you personally interested in advocating one of these positions? Is the issue narrow enough to be manageable? Analyzing an Issue and Developing 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. Listing out 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: Factual knowledge - Information that is verifiable and agreed upon by almost everyone. Statistical Inferences - Interpretation and examples of an accumulation of facts. Informed Opinion - Opinion developed through research and/or expertise of the claim. Personal Testimony - Personal experience related by a knowledgeable party. In considering your audience, ask yourself the following questions: Is your topic interesting? Can you manage the material within the specifications set by the tutor? Does your topic assert something specific and propose a plan of action? Do you have enough material to support an opinion? Organization Your introduction should lead up to a thesis that organizes the rest of your paper. There are three advantages to leading with the thesis: The audience knows where you stand. The thesis is located in the two strongest places, first and last. It is the most common form of academic argument used. Generic Sample Outline for a Position Paper Introduction Introduce the topic Provide background on the topic Assert the thesis [your view on the issue] Counter Argument Summarize the counterclaims Provide supporting information for counterclaims Refute the counterclaims Give evidence for argument Your Argument Assert point #1 of your claims Give your opinion Provide support Assert point #2 of your claims Give your opinion Provide support Assert point #3 of your claims Give your opinion Provide support Conclusion Restate your argument Provide a plan of action Assignment #3 What is a Literature Review? A literature review is an account of what has been published on a topic by accredited scholars and researchers. In writing the literature review, your purpose is to convey to your reader what knowledge and ideas have been established on a topic, and what their strengths and weaknesses are. As a piece of writing, the literature review must be defined by a guiding concept (e.g., your research objective, the problem or issue you are discussing, or your argumentative thesis). It is not just a descriptive list of the material available, or a set of summaries. Assignment #3 Writing a Literature Review A literature review is a piece of discursive prose, not a list describing or summarizing one piece of literature after another. It's usually a bad sign to see every paragraph beginning with the name of a researcher. Instead, organize the literature review into sections that present themes or identify trends, including relevant theory. You are not trying to list all the material published, but to synthesize and evaluate it according to the guiding concept of your thesis or research question. to identify gaps in the literature to avoid reinventing the wheel (at the very least this will save time and it can stop you from making the same mistakes as others) to carry on from where others have already reached (reviewing the field allows you to build on the platform of existing knowledge and ideas) to identify other people working in the same fields (a researcher network is a valuable resource) to increase your breadth of knowledge of your subject area to identify seminal works in your area to provide the intellectual context for your own work, enabling you to position your project relative to other work to identify opposing views to put your work into perspective to demonstrate that you can access previous work in an area to identify information and ideas that may be relevant to your project to identify methods that could be relevant to your project Framework for a Literature Review Introduction Define the topic, or issue to provide context for reviewing the literature. Identify trends, conflicts, or gaps in the literature. Describe your thesis and reason for reviewing the literature; Explain the criteria used in analyzing and comparing literature, and state the scope of the review. Body of Paper Group research studies and other types of literature according to a central theme or topic. For example: current mainstream versus alternative theoretical or ideological viewpoints, including differing theoretical assumptions, or other conflicts; definitions in use; current research studies; current discoveries about the topic; principal questions that are being asked; general conclusions that are being drawn; methodologies and methods in use; Discussion of Findings Organize your findings according to your thesis What were the most important points you learned? What is your position based on the findings of your review? Conclusion Summarize your major findings and identify gaps in the literature, maintaining the focus established in the introduction. Conclude by providing some insight into the relationship between the central topic of the literature review and the nursing profession. Originality The aim of these papers is for you to show that you understand the material and that you're able to think critically about it. To do this, your paper does have to show some independent thinking. But you should try to come up with your own arguments, or your own way of elaborating or criticizing or defending some issue we looked at in this course. Merely summarizing what the literature has said won't be enough.