FINAL RESEARCH ESSAY INSTRUCTIONS SOC 585 MIGRATION, TRANSNATIONALISM AND THE CITY Forty-five percent (45%) of your grade (10% for the draft and 35% for the final version) will be based on a research essay due on January 15, 2017.* Please follow the guidelines below, and don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions. I answer most e-mails within 24 hours. You may come and see me for help during my office hours or e-mail me to make arrangements for another time that is convenient for you. In other words, there is no excuse for problems with this assignment! My schedule is very flexible and I enjoy meeting with students, so please take advantage of this fact! I have also posted some readings, under the Study Materials Page under “Learning Materials,” which will help you to think about how to pick a topic (“Picking a Research Topic” Turabian 1-3), how to do library research (Sociology Writing Group Ch. 4) and other general writing tips (Turabian Chapters 4-5, 6-8, and 11-13). There is also a citation guide from the American Sociological Association that you should follow for structuring your reference list and a file entitled “Acknowledging Sources” that will help you avoid “accidental” plagiarism. Finally, there is a file outlining the difference between analytical and descriptive writing. STRUCTURE: The assignment is very broad – you may choose any topic related to migration, transnationalism and the city, as long as you call upon some of the theory we have covered in the class. I will approve the topic and make sure that your research question is narrow enough to answer successfully in an essay of this length. The final essay should be approximately 10-14 pages (2.5 cm. margins, double-spaced, Times New Roman, 12-pt. font). The total word count should be between 3,000 – 4,000 words. TIMELINE: December 8, 2016 A draft (1,000+ word) preliminary draft, including a research question/problem, is due in the HOMEWORK VAULT. December 12, 2016 Peer-to-peer feedback due in the HOMEWORK VAULT. December 13, 2016 A short presentation in class about your progress (3-4 minutes maximum) January 7, 2017 FINAL ESSAY IS DUE FOR MASTERS STUDENTS SITTING FOR THE STATE EXAM. January 15, 2017 FINAL ESSAY IS DUE in the HOMEWORK VAULT by 23:59. LATE ESSAYS will be marked down by 2 points per day. *IMPORTANT NOTE: Students sitting for the State Master’s Exam MUST submit their essays by January 7, 2017. Guidelines for the DRAFT of the final paper IMPORTANT: The draft of the final paper is to be submitted by December 8 in the IS Study Materials-Homework Vaults-Drafts in a document called: Surname(s)_draft The draft is worth 10 points toward the final grade. LATE drafts (as well as final papers) will be marked down by 2 points per day. The draft should contain approximately 1,000-1,200 words. The draft of the final paper should consist of: - Introduction/background of the topic (what is already known about the subject? What is not known about the subject and hence you would like to write about? Are there conflicting views on the subject that you would like to discuss? Why do you consider it an important topic; why should the reader be interested in it?) - Research question or problem you want to address (list one key “how” or “why” question to be answered in the paper + max. 3 sub-questions developing the subject) - Theories, concepts, literature (what existing knowledge is relevant for your subject, what literature you are planning to use – you may list the key titles (these are not included in the 1,000-1,200 word count). - Hypothesis, main argument (what do you expect to find out, what do you want to argue) - Preliminary Outline of the paper (what topics you need to cover in order to answer your question) Guidelines for the peer-to-peer feedback on the draft of the final paper IMPORTANT: The peer-to-peer feedback is to be submitted by December 12 to IS Study Materials-Homework Vaults-Feedback in a document called: Surname(s)_feedback The peer-to-peer feedback is worth 5 points toward your final grade. By November 30, you will find the document “Peer-to-peer Feedback Pairs” in the IS Study Materials with working pairs - you will find out whose draft you should comment on. Prepare a short commentary on the draft of your colleague (300-400 words) and bring it to the class. The goal of the peer-to-peer feedback is to improve the quality of your papers. The peer-to-peer feedback should include: 1. Evaluation of the topic of the paper – Is the topic/aim of the paper clear enough? Is there a clear research question/problem articulated? 2. Evaluation of the theoretical background – Is the topic framed by adequate theoretical concepts? 3. Is the main argument/answer to the research question clearly outlined? 4. Potential strengths and weaknesses - What are the strengths of the draft? What are the weaknesses? What do you suggest to improve the quality of the paper?