written work requirementsall written work must W r i t i n g
Course participants will complete and present the results of an approved Project. Projects may be completed individually of with a partner. For students that choose to work with a partner, projects will be graded based on what would be expected from the full participation of both partners. The project can take one of two forms: 1) framing, analyzing, and appraising one or more challenging decisions for a decision maker (or makers) outside the class, or 2) developing a tool or process to support decision making. If a tool or process is developed, it may be one of two types: 1) for application in a specific domain or to a specific class of decisions (examples: deciding whether to purchase a vacation timeshare property; deciding where to apply to graduate school, deciding chat car to buy), or 2) for general application in decision making (examples: a tool for eliciting values; a tool for creating and analyzing prospect tables). The project report should be 7 to 10 pages and conform to APA style.
In lieu of a project, a research paper may be accomplished as an individual effort. This must be an original paper closely related to some core course topic (see above). The research paper must conform to APA style. An excellent grade would be awarded for a 7 to10-page paper of sufficient quality for acceptance at a peer-reviewed conference or workshop. Content is more important than length. A paper of 5 to 7 pages could receive an above average grade if the writing is good, and the analysis is clearly related to the core concepts, tools and ideas of the course.
Grading. Please see the evaluation rubric associated with this assignment for specific details on how your submissions will be graded.
Written Work Requirements
All written work must be uploaded to Canvas on its respective due date. Late papers will not be accepted. All drafts and papers will be marked and returned electronically.
Please avoid plagiarism. The failure to identify another author’s words or ideas when they appear in your paper is plagiarism, and may result in your expulsion from both the class and your academic program. At a minimum, plagiarism will result in a grade of zero for the writing assignment
Course writing style. This course requires the use of APA version 6 style for all papers. You can learn more about it at:
http:// class=”screenreader-only”> (Links to an external site.)
and
https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/section/2/10/ (Links to an external site.)
You can also find this book in our library or purchase it online from Amazon: http:// class=”screenreader-only”> (Links to an external site.)
Editing. Use a spell-checker, and carefully proof-read all materials for correct format, style, grammar, and punctuation before submitting. Edit the manuscript for organization, clarity, and flow. Either do careful editing yourself or have someone else edit your manuscript before submitting it.
The Writing and Research Center. The Writing & Research Center at Sofia University is available to help you improve your critical thinking, scholarly writing, and communication skills. The center provides free one-on-one tutoring, writing workshops, ongoing writing support groups, style guide resources, and much more to help you improve your skills. Tutors assist students with everything from organization and flow of your content to compliance with APA/Sofia-style guidelines. While they primarily focus on scholarly writing, assistance is also available for other types of class assignments, such as reflection and reaction papers. For information about the WRC, contact them at Writing_Lab@sofia.edu.
Rubric
Writing (1)
| Criteria | Ratings | Pts | ||||
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This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeWriting and OrganizationOutstanding – Extremely well organized and clear; Well-defined and explicit topics, thoroughly related to specific examples of personal experiences with the course. Essentially free of errors in spelling, format, style, grammar, and punctuation. Adequate – Only minor weaknesses in organization and clarity; Topics are relatively clear, and mostly related to examples of personal experiences with the course. A few minor errors in spelling, format, style, grammar, and punctuation do not interfere with understanding or readability. Marginal – Weaknesses in organization and clarity; Topics are weakly defined, and/or not related to actual examples of personal experience with the course. Significant errors in spelling, format, style, grammar, and punctuation may compromise understanding and readability in relatively minor ways. Inadequate – Lacks organization and clarity; Topics are not clear, or unrelated to specific examples of personal experience with the course. Substantial errors in spelling, format, style, grammar, and punctuation substantially undermine understanding and readability. |
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15.0 pts |
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This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeContentOutstanding – Extremely well organized and clear; Well-defined and explicit topics, thoroughly related to specific examples of personal experiences with the course. Significant original insights effectively summarized and communicated, indicating substantial mastery and understanding of course concepts and tools, as well as extensions of course concepts. Insights are highly relevant to the class and potentially beneficial to the instructor and/or future students. Adequate – Topics are relatively clear, and mostly related to examples of personal experiences with the course. Topics are clearly related to the class, and insights presented reflect mastery and understanding of class concepts and tools. Marginal – Topics are weakly defined, and/or not clearly related to actual examples of personal experiences with the course. Discussion shows limited relationship to the class, and insights presented reflect familiarity with, but not mastery and thorough understanding of class concepts and tools. Inadequate – Topics are not clear, or unrelated to specific examples of personal experiences with the course. Relationship of discussion to the class may be only superficial, and insights presented do not reflect mastery or understanding of class concepts and tools. |
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45.0 pts |
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This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeComplianceOutstanding – Fully complies with all instructions given for the assignment, and reflects a thorough, effective completion of the assignment. Adequate – Complies with most instructions for the assignment, and reflects a solid effort to complete it correctly. Marginally Adequate – Fails to comply with significant parts of the instructions for the assignment, but reflects reasonable effort to complete the assignment. Inadequate – Submitted late, or, substantially fails to comply with instructions and procedures provided for the assignment. |
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15.0 pts |
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Total Points: 75.0 |
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