Immigration Policy

Description

For your first paper assignment, you will write a paper in which you summarize, analyze, and evaluate written arguments on a topic of your choice. The written arguments should take a position on an issue of importance, meaning that it offers a stance on how a major problem or issue facing society today ought to be addressed.

Some important reminders to consider as you select the articles you will discuss in your paper:

The writings you choose must be argumentative in nature! The purpose of each of the pieces should be to explain why one position or stance is superior to others.
You do not need to agree with the position or stance presented in the articles! Ideally, you will locate articles that contain elements you DO agree with along with elements you DO NOT agree with.
The articles do not need to be from credible, reliable, scholarly sources. Because they are expressing an argument that you will be summarizing, analyzing, and evaluating, you are under no obligation to find something that seems to be “correct.” If it comes from an unreliable source, you’ll discuss that fact in your analysis and evaluation.
An additional point to keep in mind is that you will NOT express your viewpoint in this paper. Your task for this paper is simply to summarize, analyze, and evaluate the argumentation provided within the articles. You will NOT express your own viewpoint in this paper. You may strongly agree or disagree with some of the articles you choose to write about, but the purpose of this paper is not to tell us about that; the purpose of this paper is simply to summarize the claims and support provided, analyze the strength of those claims, and then evaluate whether the author has done an effective job of constructing the argument. You can strongly disagree with the conclusion drawn from a well-constructed argument, and you can strongly agree with the conclusion drawn from a poorly-constructed argument. You will NOT express your own viewpoint or position in this paper; you will simply summarize, analyze, and evaluate the argumentation in the pieces.

With that in mind, some possible topic choices are listed below. Please note that you are free to get more specific within the broader topic area. Ideally, all of your papers for the class will be connected so that you can use the material to put together your final research paper.
Try to avoid arguments that deal with describing or establishing what has already happened; instead, focus your attention on arguments regarding what should happen moving forward. If you would like to choose a topic not listed above, email me first for approval.