INSTRUCTIONS
Draft of Introduction and Literature Review
Follow the directions below for the completion of the introduction and literature review draft
assignment. If you have questions, please email your professor for assistance.
Purpose: The purpose of this assignment is to begin drafting your academic argumentative
research paper.
Topic: Social Media: Helpful or Harmful
Description: In this assignment, you will first write your literature review; then, you will write
your introduction. The following details are requirements of the assignment:
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•
•
•
Introduction (9-12 well-developed sentences/approximately 350 words). You may want
to review the included "Example Introduction and Literature Review (with comments)."
The following components must be included in the introduction (in the following order).
o Sentence 1: Introduce the general topic
o Sentence 2: Pro side (general)
o Sentence 3: Con side (general)
o Sentence 4: Narrow the scope (1)
o Sentence 5: Examples of the narrowed topic
o Sentence 6: Narrow the scope (2)
o Sentence 7: Specific controversy
o Sentence 8: Pro side (specific)
o Sentence 9: Con side (specific)
o Sentence 10: The thesis
Literature Review (800-900 words). You may want to review the included "Example
Introduction and Literature Review (with comments).”
o Literature review preface: This paragraph acts as a guide to what the reader can
expect in the literature review.
o Literature review body: This section includes three to four body paragraphs that
discuss the history, terminology, and both sides of the controversy (pro and con).
o Literature review conclusion: The conclusion signals that the literature review is
ending, but it also acts as a kind of preface for the body of the paper by restating
the thesis statement and establishing your argument once again.
Demonstrate how to summarize and paraphrase source materials.
Demonstrate the avoidance of plagiarism through proper use of APA citations and
references for all paraphrased and quoted material.
Note: The conclusion is not presented in the example; however, the literature review conclusion
is a requirement of the assignment.
1
Top of page, plain
number on right of
header
Full title of the paper with the
major words beginning with a
capital letter
Safety First: Open Carry Firearms on Higher Education Campuses in Arizona
Student Name
Name of the institution
will always be
“Columbia Southern
University.”
Student’s first and last
name
Columbia Southern University
EH 1020 English Composition II
Instructor Name
Due Date
Unit IV Color Key:
•
•
•
•
Blue: APA document formatting
Red: Example common mistakes in APA style
Brown: Paragraph number and label
Green: Sentence-level number and
explanation
Please note that the margins are a little wider than standard on
this example paper so as to make room for the comment bubbles.
Full title presented again at the top of the page.
2
Safety First: Open Carry Firearms on Higher Education Campuses in Arizona
Para 1:
Introductio
n
Sentence 1
(S1): Amanda
introduces
the main
topic (gun
control) in a
generalized
manner; this
sentence also
introduces
the con side
of the
controversy.
Much has been made in the past few years about gun restrictions in the U.S.
Proponents of gun regulation are in a constant state of lobbying for state and federal bills
that restrict access to firearms, whether that takes the form of more extensive background
checks on potential gun owners or longer waiting periods before guns may be sold to
individuals. On the other side, the National Rifle Association (NRA) and other likeminded individuals advocate for looser restrictions on the sale and carrying of firearms.
For these supporters of pro-gun legislation, owning and carrying guns is a fundamental
S5: Specific
examples
from the
news. Note
that these are
examples of
school
shootings
with which
most people
are familiar.
This grounds
the project to
what is at
stake in
making
arguments
about this
topic.
S7: In this
sentence, the
writer
introduces
the specific
topic of the
project: the
controversy
around
SB1474.
right—even a civil right. While this national debate continues to loom over the hot topic
of guns, there are breaking news stories, especially within the last few months, that bring
this fundamental debate to the threshold of our nations’ colleges, high schools, even
elementary schools. Seung-Hui Cho’s massacre at Virginia Tech (April 16, 2007) is
perhaps one of the more infamous school shootings, but there are others that are perhaps
more difficult to remember, like the deaths of 27 killed at Sandy Hook Elementary
School in Newton, Connecticut (December 14, 2012) (CNN, 2015). Shootings like these
in educational settings have drawn attention from both anti-gun proponents and pro-gun
lobbyists, and the State of Arizona is no exception to this firestorm. The Arizona State
legislature has proposed SB 1474, a gun bill that will allow students and faculty to carry
guns on the campus grounds of its three state-funded universities. Supporters of the bill
claim that Arizona is an open carry state, and those rights should not be restricted simply
because the carrier crosses the border of a college campus. Those against the bill assert
that guns have no place in education and that those who support the bill are only after
their own election-year agendas. While the Second Amendment should be upheld, the
S2 & S3:
Follows S1
by
introducing
the position
of the pro
side; again,
Amanda is
general,
focusing on
the larger
controversy.
S4: Amanda
begins to
narrow the
scope of the
project by
pointing
towards a
specific
debate within
the
controversy
of gun
control: gun
control in
educational
settings.
S6: Amanda
again
narrows the
scope of the
project by
moving from
gun control
in
educational
settings to
this debate
as it takes
place in a
specific
location:
Arizona.
S8 & 9:
Following the
same order
from above
(con first,
then pro),
Amanda
presents the
sides of the
controversy
by
introducing
each specific
position.
3
S10: Amanda
presents her
thesis
statement.
She responds
to the
controversy
by crafting a
thesis
statement
that
simultaneousl
y agrees and
disagrees.
educational learning environment should be protected; therefore, SB 1474 is a
detrimental and dangerous bill that has the potential to change the university campus
culture in Arizona state universities.
Para 2: Preface of the
Literature Review
The Literature Review
First-level heading: All major sections of the paper will
be first-level, including The literature Review, Body, and
Conclusion. You may choose to mark the Introduction,
but it is typically not done because the title of the
paper stands for the heading level. Note that the title is
centered and bold with title-case capitalization.
In order to better understanding the origins of SB1474 and the controversy that
surrounds it, the history of gun violence in school settings must be taken into account;
This is a
second-level
heading. It is
left-hand
justified and
bold. All
major words
are
capitalized.
This tells the
reader that
this next
section is a
division of
the first-level
heading that
is directly
above.
therefore, a brief look at some of the events of the past few decades is presented. Further,
this review will examine in greater detail the positions of the two sides of the
controversy, beginning with the pro-SB1474 side, which is in favor of allowing open
carry on all Arizona state-funded campuses. Then the position of those against SB1474
will be presented; again, this con side is arguing for Arizona campuses to remain as they
are now: a place without firearms.
A Brief Look at Gun Violence in Schools
Para 3: Brief
History
This citation
is in APA. It
shows the
authors and
year of
publication.
This
sentence is a
paraphrase
of Gibbs and
Roche. The
reader can
look at the
references
page to find
the original
document.
Amanda has made a mistake: Only
the ampersand (&) should be used in
a parenthetical citation.
The topic of gun control in educational environments exploded in 1999 when Eric
Harris and Dylan Klebold walked into a virtually unknown high school in Littleton, CO,
and killed twelve students and one teacher (Gibbs and Roche, 1999). Questions of how
such events could occur and concerns about the violence of which teens and young adults
are capable became the concern of pressured administrators and horrified parents in big
cities and small towns alike. A string of school gun-centered violence followed over the
next few years. Perhaps most striking though was the way in which this one incident
changed the culture of America: clear backpacks, more metal detectors, and (of course)
Note how
Amanda
prefaces the
LR by giving
the reader an
idea of what
will be
included. You
might also
note that the
paragraph is
written in
passive voice
so that she
can avoid
using
personal
pronouns
such as “I.”
4
fear. Cloud (1999) points out some of the extreme, “zero tolerance” actions taken by
schools shortly following the Columbine shootings:
This quotation is called a
“block.” If a quotation is
over 40 words long, then
you must “block” it by
removing the quotation
marks and indenting the
entire quotation ½” from
the left-hand margin. If
this quotation would
have been from a print
text, then the page
number would have been
included at the end of
the sentence, but it was
an electronic source.
A seven-year-old boy in Cahokia, Ill., is suspended for having a nail clipper at
school. A 10th-grader at Surry County High School in Virginia is booted for
having blue-dyed hair. A Minnesota high school nixes a yearbook photo of an
Army enlistee in the senior class because it shows her sitting atop a cannon
outside a Veterans of Foreign Wars post.
Here is another
way to include a
parenthetical
citation. Amanda
has incorporated
the author’s
name into the
sentence. Note
that the year of
publication is
presented after
the author, but
there is no
citation at the
end of the
sentence
because the
information is
already
presented at the
beginning.
Far from the exception, these actions considered these many years later seem
unreasonable, even in a post-9/11 world filled with uncertainty.
The Argument for Open Carry Everywhere in Arizona
Para 4: Pro
side
There are three second-level headings in the
LR. Headings help you and the reader to see
the organization of your paper.
However, in Arizona, the newly proposed SB 1474 would not seek to disarm
students; on the contrary, the bill would allow students the right to concealed carry on
Amanda
presents a
closer look at
the pro side
before the con
side. Note that
she is not
engaging with
the
arguments,
only
presenting
them as fairly
as she can.
The LR is
about the
arguments of
others.
Amanda
knows she will
be able to
make her own
arguments in
the Body of
the paper.
state-funded university campuses. Proponents of the bill assert that such a measure is
long over due. According to an NRA poster that were taped to message boards all over
The University of Arizona campus, “[s]elf-defense is one of the most fundamental rights
of every human being.” Further, the poster states that the NRA has worked diligently
over the past 25 years to expand the right of open carry: the NRA has been “working for
passage of fair Right-to-Carry laws, expansion of carry reciprocity between the states and
the elimination of many ‘no-carry’ zones that only affect the law-abiding.” For the NRA,
one of the major private-public backers of the SB 1474, the restriction of concealed carry
on college campuses is an infringement on these basic rights. The flyer goes on to state
the following:
5
Those who oppose campus carry [of firearms] argue that educational institutions
should be treated differently, based on emotional claims that places of higher
learning are somehow exempt from real-world violence. But the truth is, despite
current prohibitions on legally carrying on campuses, crimes already occur on
campus, and the right to self- defense from those violent acts should be respected.
(NRA, 2012)
The NRA is correct. In fact, given the number of school-related shootings in the past few
months alone, it would seem that a student’s chances of being shot on campus seem
greater than if that same student were walking the streets of the community. From larger
cities to small towns, it seems that the size of the community does not matter: the
violence of a shooting can occur anywhere. However, even with this fact floating in the
backs of students’ minds, students must still attend classes and while it would seem
obvious that lawmakers on both sides want student safety, they just see the means to that
safety from different sides of the same coin.
The Case for Campuses as Unique
Para 5: Con
side
This citation is correct. Amanda did not have to include
the author’s first name, but it is fine to do so the first
time that the author’s name is mentioned.
Eugene Sander (2012), the Interim President of the University of Arizona,
released the following statement about SB 1474: “I have been a gun owner for all my
Amanda
has made a
mistake.
The actual
year of the
publication
is 2012. Be
careful
about
editing for
errors like
this in your
own paper.
adult life, and am fully supportive of the right to own a gun. However, having faculty,
staff or students bringing weapons into classrooms and other campus activities will do
nothing to make our campus safer.” While Sander does not go into detail about what this
newly proposed bill does have to do with, he makes his case on the basis that 50,000
students, staff, and faculty attend the campus daily, along with over 20,000 visitors
annually. For Sander (2015), the educational environment is a “unique atmosphere that is
Amanda has
made a
mistake. Each
time an
author is
included, the
year of
publication
must follow.
So this
should read
as follows:
“While Sander
(2012)…”
6
dependent on open and vigorous debate. Introducing guns into classrooms would
dramatically and negatively impact the ability to engage in constructive dialogue.” In
other words, even if the NRA does not believe that the university is a unique atmosphere,
as Sander and others do, then there is still a possibility that introducing the right to carry
concealed weapons on campus might lead to a change to the very culture of the
university.
Para 6: LR
Conclusion
While Arizona lawmakers continue to debate the merits of SB1474, the public
debate grows, as this issue concerns both public safety and citizens’ rights. Because the
three state universities in Arizona are publicly funded, the debate about allowing open
carry is very much a concern held by the communities in which these universities reside.
S3: Amanda
summarizes
the two main
arguments of
the pro side,
which favors
the passing
of SB1474.
Those who are in favor of the change to an open carry status on university campuses wish
(a) for the open carry laws of the State of Arizona to be extended to all areas, which
S1 & 2:
Amanda creates
a topic
sentence that
encapsulates
the concern of
the
controversy,
and she
includes a
second
sentence to
increase
understanding.
includes all publicly funding institutions, such as the universities, and (b) for the open
carry of firearms to act as a deterrent to gun-related violence on college campuses. For
those who are against the passing of SB1474, many of whom occupy the space of the
university as professors, students, or administrators, the question of allowing the open
carry of firearms is no actual question at all: there is simply no need to involve weapons
S4: Amanda
summarizes the
main argument
of the con side,
those who are
against the
passing of
SB1474
in a space that is meant for open dialogue and debate. In as much as the Second
Amendment should be observed and upheld in the fashion adopted by the State of
Arizona in the form of open carry, the university setting is unique in that concerns about
open and free expression should be at the forefront—essentially making this bill a
potentially dangerous one that should be reconsidered or withdrawn completely.
S5: Amanda
reiterates her
own position by
reasserting her
thesis
statement. Note
that the thesis
statement is
slightly different
than the
original at the
end of the
Introduction
paragraph.
An APA list of references should be
labeled “References,” not “Works Cited”
or “Bibliograph.”
References
Titles in APA are presented in
sentence-case capitalization,
meaning that only the first word
or any proper noun should
begin with a capital letter.
7
CNN Library. (2015, October 19). 28 deadliest mass shootings in U.S. history fast facts.
The last name
is presented
first; then the
first name and
middle (if
present) are
included as
initials. An
ampersand
(&) is used for
more than
one author.
CNN. http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/16/us/20-deadliest-mass-shootings-in-u-shistory-fast-facts/
Cloud, J. (1999, November 28). The Columbine effect. Time.
http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,35098,00.html
Gibbs, N. & Roche, T. (1999, December 20). The Columbine tapes. Time.
http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,992873,00.html
Amanda has
made a
mistake. Only
the “A” in
Arizona
should be
capitalized in
this title.
National Rifle Association. (2012). Arizona Self-Defense on Campus [Flyer]. NRA:
Author.
Sander, Eugene. (2012, March 20). UA President opposes campus guns bill. KGUN-TV.
Amanda has made
a mistake by
including the full
name of the author
here.
http://www.kgun9.com
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