Essay Assignment: Writing an Argumentative Paper on Sexual Assault on University Campuses

Objective of the Essay

Students will be required to write a six-page essay 1500 words double-spaced (6 pages of text) in APA format].  Students will choose from one of two subject areas provided by the instructor.  For each subject area the instructor has provided several relevant articles that students are required to use when writing their essays. Remember, you don’t have to use all the articles, but you should include research material from a minimum of three articles. [No other articles should be used in forming your argument unless you receive the instructor’s approval to add any other articles.

1.From these articles, students will form a research or issue question.

2.Students will form a response to that research question based on the information and research presented in the articles. 

3.This response takes the shape of an argumentative paper guided by a strong thesis statement – often explained in one or two sentences at the end of your introduction.

4.Students will write an argument (either following the Classical Argument format or Rogerian Argument format) in support of the thesis statement. The information and knowledge contained within the articles will provide the reasons/evidence to be used in support of student thesis statements.“

      The following is a checklist to help guide you through what is required for your essay submission. Please review this list prior to submitting your paper.

?    An appropriate and specific title
?    A title page in APA format
?    an introduction that contains background information on your topic with introductory citation material and a thesis statement
?    balanced body paragraphs that include reasons in support of the thesis statement with appropriate supporting detail from the source articles
?    no more than one quotation per paragraph
?    discussion of opposing views either right after the introduction or just before the conclusion (where they occur depends on whether you are using a classical form of argument or a Rogerian form of argument
?    in-text citations
?    grammatically correct sentences
?    a conclusion
?    proper APA format in paper format, in-text citations and References List

Title:  Is your title informative? Titles usually reflect the thesis statement of your paper assignment or its research question (with a degree of specificity).

Format:  includes proper APA format, citing of sources, proper use of quotation marks, etc.

Grammar:  includes proper punctuation, paragraph structure, subject/verb agreement, noun/pronoun agreement, use of apostrophes, spelling, etc. Organization of Analysis: Structure of Analysis: General statements to specific statements, introduction and conclusion. Use of Evidence from the articles: Backing up of ideas and statements with reference to examples from the texts - discussion of examples and how and why they support your interpretation of the text.  Quality of Arguments/Analysis: How well student ideas are expressed, relevance to interpretation, etc. Assignment Requirements: Does the student’s writing meet the requirements of the assignment particulars.

Sexual Assault on University Campuses: A Fight for Justice

The issue of sexual assault on university campuses and how it is dealt with by universities is a growing problem within North America. Sexual assault is a common experience among women aged 15 to 24 It is claimed that 1 in 5 college women is the victim of sexual assault or attempted sexual assault (Gray Less than 10 percent of these sexual assault incidents are reported to the police (Browne, 2014, p. 69) because the victims are “unsure whether what they had experienced was a crime and whether harm was intended” (Gray, 2014, p. 23). Research states that universities are underreporting cases of on-campus sexual assault, taking too long to investigate allegations and refusing to properly support victims (Browne, 2014 p. 68). Universities should improve their response to sexual assault on campuses by introducing policies and practices such as training faculty and students on how to handle sexual assault, offering services to students that deal specifically with sexual assault, and abiding by government regulations to accurately report numbers of sexual misconduct cases.

According to Gray sexual assault includes rape along with other forms of non-consensual sexual touching, such as forced kissing or unwanted groping of sexual body parts  The first step in implementing a comprehensive university policy on sexual assault is educating all students and faculty on the terms and definitions of sexual assault. When the entire campus community is aware of what exactly sexual assault entails, and how severe of a problem it is mandatory training workshops should take place These workshops would provide all students with realistic bystander strategies that can be used to prevent sexual assault from happening Most importantly, there would be education