ACBS 160D: Human and Animal Interrelationships

Term Paper Instructions
You will prepare a paper on an issue concerning human-animal relationships (see Schedule for due dates). This paper will be a “position” paper, in that you will develop alternative positions on the identified issue, taking into consideration different perspectives (e.g., from the perspective of a medical research, conservationist, ethicist, farmer, etc.) The Term Paper project will have 3 stages of development:
• Stage 1: Outline
You will first develop an outline. We recommend you meet and go over your outline with your TA, but this is optional. The outline will be graded and you will receive feedback.
• Stage 2: Term Paper version 1
The feedback on the outline will guide you to successfully write your Term Paper. Put in your best effort–write it as if it is your final version. This Term Paper v.1 will be graded and you will receive feedback.
• Stage 3: Term Paper version 2
You will be able to incorporate the feedback of Term Paper v.1 into a revised, rewritten paper. This revised Term Paper v.2 will be graded. If you receive an A (90-100%) on the v.1, you have the option of using that grade for your v.2 paper. (Simply submit a Word document to the Assignment folder in D2L saying “For Term Paper v.2 I wish to keep my same ‘A’ grade that I earned from Term Paper v.1”)

• Topic: select one of the topics (see Term Paper Topics provided in D2L)
• File Type: submit in MS Word or PDF file format
• Length: 7-10 text pages
o not including title page
o including references
o Important graphs or illustrations may be included (with proper citation) but will not be counted toward the text page length
• Format Specifics:
o double-spaced lines
o 12pt font
o 1 inch margins
o page numbers (bottom right) on all pages following the title page (NOT on title page)
o each section should begin with a heading (e.g., Introduction)
o bold 2 peer-reviewed references (see References section below with further explanation)

• Pro & Con Perspectives: Discuss the pro and con on the topic and provide different perspectives under each side of the question (see Term Paper Topics provided in D2L for an example topic with different perspectives.)

• References: provide at least 2 peer-reviewed articles that supports each position (1 for Pro and 1 for Con)
o Watch the video posted on “What is a peer-reviewed article?”
o Use the Library Tools (see top menu in D2L) to find resources, such as:
? Web of Science database
? Academic Search Complete
o Library Tools tab also has “Citation Style Guides” which shows the APA style citation we require. There you will find a handy website called the Online Writing Lab (OWL) which shows you the format for different kinds of references and how to do in-text citations: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/05/
o
o You need not analyzing the peer-reviewed articles. You are using the articles as support for one (or more) of the perspectives.
o You will probably use other sources of information such as magazine articles or websites. Make sure these are reliable sources. The reader should be confident that information and ideas can be trusted. You will list these in the references as well. But be sure to include at least 2 peer-reviewed articles for your paper.
o Indicate one reference for the “PRO” position by adding this note after the reference (in bold) “Note: This peer-reviewed reference was used for the PRO position.” Likewise, add a similar note for a peer-reviewed reference used for the “CON” perspective: “Note: This peer-reviewed reference was used for CON position.
o This allows the graders to verify that you have included a peer-reviewed article for each position.

• In-Text Citation:
o For citing your references in your paper, use in-text citations in APA format. See “Citation Style Guides” above. (Note: The entire paper is NOT in APA format, only the citation style and references format.)

• Plagiarism
o You may not use direct quotes or copy the text from a reference. You must paraphrase or summarize the idea from the reference. Plagiarism will not be tolerated!
o Originality reports showing >25% duplicate will not be graded (0 points earned). You will be required to submit a new version and points will be deducted for lateness.

• Paper Delivery: Turn-in the outline or paper to the Assignment folder in D2L by the due date/time (late papers will be penalized). Submissions must be in MS Word or PDF file format.

• Help: There are several sources of help for you— we encourage you to make use of
o Writing Skills Improvement Program (http://wsip.arizona.edu/)
o Think Tank tutoring services (http://thinktank.arizona.edu/)
o Your Teaching Assistant can also help (see “Who is my TA?” in D2L under Contents->Term Paper section)

Paper Outline
1. Title page
• Title of your paper
• Student Name
• Course/section (e.g. ACBS 160D section 1 @ 8am or ACBS 160D section 2 @ 9am )
• Your TA Name
• Date
• Optional: you may include a photo
• This page is not included in the page numbering

2. Introduction
• Attention grabber (e.g., shocking statistic, rhetorical question)
• Background about the topic
• THESIS statement –
? be clear and concise
? be consistent with or follow logically from the framing of the issue (that you provided in the background)
? gives a map of what you will do in the paper
? Example: In this paper I will present alternative position on the topic of animal use for medical research, considering a variety of perspectives, and concluding with a position on animal testing that seems most justifiable.

3. PRO: Perspectives in Favor
• Who are the general proponents of this perspective (see Term Paper Topics for examples of different perspectives)
• At least 1 peer-reviewed article supporting this perspective
• More than one peer-reviewed reference is fine (and in many cases will likely be the case)
• You may use other sources of information that express a perspective on the topic (e.g., books, magazine articles, websites). Please cite them according to APA style citations. However, these are not considered peer-reviewed.

4. CON: Perspectives Against (see PRO above)

5. Conclusion
• Discuss which position is more persuasive and why
• This is not simply your opinion on how you feel about the topic. You need to justify which position (or combination of the positions) is supported best.
• This is an exercise in critical thinking!

6. References
• Use APA style in-text citation (Note: The entire paper is NOT in APA format, only the citation style and references.)
• For each position in your paper you must have at least 1 peer-reviewed reference. To show this, please identify one reference for the “PRO” position by adding this note after the reference (in bold) “Note: This peer-reviewed reference was used for the PRO position.” Likewise, add a similar note for a peer-reviewed reference used for the “CON” perspective: “Note: This peer-reviewed reference was used for CON position.
• This allows the graders to verify that you have included a peer-reviewed article for each perspective.
NOTE:
Punctuality: If your outline is submitted late to the Assignment folder, points will be deducted:
• A bit late: If late under 1 hr then no points deducted (often this is caused by technical issues due last minute rush to upload documents)
• A little late: If late over 1hr but under 3 hrs then deduct 5pts
• Somewhat late: If late >3hrs hr but within 24hrs then deduct 10pts
• Very late: If late >24 hrs then deduct 15pts

Grading Rubric
Below is an overview of how your grade for the Outline and the Paper is broken down.

Grade Item Outline Paper
Punctuality (deductions) Deductions if late Deductions if late
File Type Verification Checked (.doc or .pdf) Checked (.doc or .pdf)
Originality Report Not Checked Checked (<25%)
Topic Verification Checked Checked

Format:
Organization Graded 8 pts Graded 4 pts
APA Style References Graded 8 pts Graded 4 pts
2 Bold Peer-Reviewed Graded 8 pts Graded 4 pts

Format (paper only):
Length Not Graded Graded 4 pts
Specifics Not Graded Graded 4 pts
APA Style In-Text Citations Not Graded Graded 4 pts

Introduction Graded 10 pts Graded 10 pts
Thesis Graded 5 pts Graded 5 pts
Quality of Research Graded 25 pts Graded 25 pts
Quality of References Graded 10 pts Graded 10 pts
Conclusion Graded 15 pts Graded 15 pts
Writing Mechanics Not Graded (free 11 pts) Graded 11 pts
TOTAL = 100 pts TOTAL = 100 pts
Following are the specific criteria for grading the paper. Some items may not be graded for the outline (as indicated in the table above):