PHIL 341 Glendale Positive vs Negative Effects of Social Media Question

This writing project includes a comprehensive application of the elements of critical reasoning that we are studying in this course. The main objective is to use the critical thinking strategies described in the course to analyze and evaluate contrasting arguments. You can preview the requirements for the final paper in the Week 8 assignment below.

This is not an opinion piece or persuasive essay. The goal is to present contrasting arguments using information from credible sources and to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of these positions using content from the course.

As you put this together, are you following the critical analysis process that we emphasize in critical reasoning? This means fairly considering all research equally before reaching a conclusion.

Your rough draft should include 1–2 paragraphs for each of the following elements:

1. Introduction: Identify the issue/topic. Provide the necessary background and important recent developments. Define key terms and concepts.
2. Arguments and Counterarguments: Summarize the best arguments on both sides of the issue. Include relevant research from credible sources used to support each conclusion.
3. Evaluation of Critical Thinking: Assess the strength of the arguments and the quality of thinking surrounding this issue.
   • Identify weaknesses in critical thinking such as fallacies, rhetorical devices, vague language, and cognitive biases. Provide specific examples of how these weaknesses appear in arguments, using terminology and definitions from the course
   • Evaluate the quality of scientific and anecdotal evidence using the standards of inductive and deductive reasoning described in the course. Consider the quality of causal relationship, analogies, generalizations, and/or moral reasoning.
4. Conclusion: Analyze the totality of research and offer a critical thinker’s response to the issue. Identify your own position and experience with the issue and explain how your thinking of the subject has evolved as a result of your analysis.

You must use a minimum of 5 research references in APA Style and include in-text citations in your paragraphs. Include a minimum of 3 academic peer-reviewed books or journal articles. Other sources may be used as supplemental sources, such as journalistic, government, web-based, or media sources. Sources should not include dictionaries, encyclopedias, or general information websites like Wikipedia. Consult your instructor regarding any source of which you unsure. Use the WCU Library as your best resource.  

This assignment is an essay assignment and should be written in narrative format. I do not want you to guess what is expected in this paper, I want you to demonstrate your skills that you have learned this term. To help guide you on what should be included, I have added the list of pre-approved topics below and an outline that indicates what information you should include in your paper. Follow the outline and you should be golden. Use the outline to structure your paper before you start writing it.  THIS ASSIGNMENT IS NOT AN OUTLINE, IT IS A 5-7 page ROUGH DRAFT ESSAY for your Final Signature Assignment due in Week 8.

Pre-Approved Topics

• Gender-neutral vs. gender designated bathrooms
• Sex Education in school vs no Sexual Education in schools
• Immigration reform to allow for immigrants vs. laws prohibiting immigrants from entering the US
• Taxpayer-funded health care vs. Private insurance
• Refugees seeking asylum
• Physician?assisted suicide should be legal vs. Physician?assisted suicide should be illegal (this is not about euthanasia)
• Gun laws are too lenient vs. Gun laws being too strict
• Marijuana legalization (specify medical vs. recreational use) vs. Marijuana being illegal
• Spanking to discipline children vs Spanking is child abuse
• Organic foods are healthier vs. Organic foods have no additional health benefits
• E?cigarettes vs. tobacco cigarettes
• Positive effects of social media vs Negative effective of social media
• Positive effects of vaccinations vs. Anti-vaccination logic
• Home Schooling vs School-based Education
• A college degree is essential in getting a good job vs. formal higher education is not necessary
• Animal testing should be banned vs. animal testing is beneficial and should be used
• GMOs are good vs. GMOs are bad
• Genetic editing should be illegal vs Genetic editing should be allowed
• Mandatory masks in public spaces vs No mask order

Here is an outline that will help you write your ROUGH DRAFT ESSAY. Each number is a new paragraph.  The underlined items will be your subheadings in your paper

Outline

1. APA Title Page
2. Introduction- Should be more that one paragraph due to the large amount of content below
   1. What topic are you investigating?
   2. Provide a short history or background that identifies the topic
   3. Explain why this is a topic of significance
   4. Explain any recent developments that affect this topic
   5. Define the key issues and terms that are important when debating this topic

       

3. Sides of the argument
   1. What is the claim? Paragraph
       
   2. What is the counter-argument? Paragraph
       
   3. Who is typically involved in the debate?

       

4. Rhetoric and Fallacies
   1. What rhetoric and fallacies are used with respect to this claim? You must have at least one for both sides
      1. Rhetoric/Fallacy 1:_______________________________________________
      2. Rhetoric/Fallacy 2:_______________________________________________
5. Cognitive Biases
6. What are the cognitive biases that are included in this argument? You must have at least one for both sides
   1. Cognitive Bias 1:_______________________________________________
   2. Cognitive Bias 2:_______________________________________________
7. Inductive vs Deductive Reasoning
   1. Is the argument based in Inductive reasoning (more open-ended and exploratory) or based in Deductive reasoning (narrow in nature and is concerned with testing or confirming hypotheses)
      1. Supporting information 1:_______________________________________________
8. Research
   1. Are there any scientific findings about this claim or is the argument anecdotal? What credible sources of information can be found regarding this topic?
      1. Example  1:_______________________________________________
      2. Example 2:_______________________________________________

          

9. Which side has a stronger argument?
   1. What are your conclusions about the topic?_________________________________
   2. What side has a better argument?
   3. What makes that side of the argument stronger and why?
   4. Did your stance change based on the research you did and the knowledge you obtained in this class
10. Conclusion/Summary
11. Reference Page
12. Include 5 References. These must be within the last 5 year and be credible sources of information.
    1. 3 sources must be scholarly and academic in nature, be peer reviewed journals or articles, include scientific findings, be government or state reports.
13. 2 sources may include Review articles, Editorials, opinion, commentary, and perspectives, Trade publication articles Technical reports, documentaries, Interviews or TED talks