Name______Period______
H US History Wilson
United States History Research Paper
You will be writing a persuasive position paper related to one of the research questions listed below. After randomly choosing a topic, you and a partner will determine which side of the issue you will defend. Thus, there will be two people writing about each topic, from opposing perspectives.
1. Did immigrants to the United States between the years 1900-1929 arrive in an equal “land of
opportunity”?
2. Was the achievement of suffrage –via passage of the 19th Amendment– the most significant
achievement for women?
3. Were Woodrow Wilson’s “14 Points” a success or failure?
4. Did Franklin Roosevelt consolidate too much power as President during the Great Depression
and WWII?
5. Does Herbert Hoover deserve the blame he received for his handling of the Great Depression?
6. Should the United States have done more to prevent and/or end the Holocaust?
7. Did President Harry Truman make the correct decision to use atomic weapons against Japan in
1945?
8. Was the United States government justified in its actions to “root out” communists and/or
communist sympathizers within our borders during the Cold War?
9. Who was more responsible for starting the Cold War –Harry Truman or Josef Stalin?
10. Is affirmative action an appropriate strategy in the struggle to eliminate discrimination in
hiring practices (employment) and education?
11. How confident are you in the accuracy of the official report of the Warren Commission
-declaring Lee Harvey Oswald the “lone killer”– in the assassination of President John Kennedy?
12. Was the television the most significant American technological contribution of the 20th
century?
13. Did the counterculture movement of the 1950s and 1960s have any significant, lasting effect?
14. Were the liberal policies of Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare good for America?
15. Should the United States have gone to war in Vietnam?
16. Has history judged President Richard Nixon fairly?
17. Who was more responsible for ending the Cold War –Ronald Reagan or Mikhail Gorbachev?
18. Was the creation of the Guantanamo Bay military prison in Cuba an appropriate strategy in
fighting the War on Terror?
19. Was President George W. Bush justified in invading Iraq in 2003?
20. Is the United States a declining world power?
Once you have written a paper that uses evidence to support your thesis, you must also develop a concession argument that counters your thesis. The point here is to show that you have considered alternative arguments that answer your research question. However, you must then explain why your argument is still the strongest.
Paper Requirements:
· Double Spaced, 12 Font/Times New Roman, 1 inch margins
· 5 pages of content- There is a deduction for significantly more or less than this amount.
· Title Page: Title, name, course, date and teacher name
· Bibliography (MLA Format) including in-text citations: You must access and cite at least five sources.
· Concession Statement/Argument
· Submit the paper to www.turnitin.com; also, submit a hard copy to the teacher on the due date.
Schedule and Due Dates
Thesis Paragraph Friday, February 26th
Bibliography *(must be initialed by librarian)* Friday, February 26th
Rough Draft Friday, March 4th
Final Paper Friday, March 11th
Creating an Introductory Paragraph
Any good introductory paragraph has three parts: a Grabber, Background Information and a Thesis Statement/Essay Map.
1. Grabber
The introductory paragraph should begin with a sentence that grabs the reader’s attention and interest. A grabber sentence may be a(n):
Quote
Startling statement
Question
Statement of general interest
Anecdote (a brief story)
Statistics
Definition
2. Background Information
Some information to identify what your paper is about, such as a broad description of your topic and its significance. This is your framework within which you will make your argument.
3. Thesis Statement/Essay Map
A good thesis is a one or two sentence statement that takes a position about an issue or an event. It is a debatable statement of opinion; a concise and specific statement of your argument. A thesis statement will often answer the question “So What? Who Cares? Why is this important?”
The essay map follows your thesis statement and states the major reasons (3) for your argument. Each reason will be expanded to create the body of your paper. The essay map is a summary of your evidence or logic.
How to develop a thesis statement/essay map:
· Do some preliminary reading about your topic. You cannot develop a thesis unless you know something about the topic.
· Your thesis should answer your research question.
· Try this pre-thesis/essay map activity to help develop your thesis:
Complete the following statements:
a. Dear Reader: I want to convince you that…
b. The main reasons why you should believe me are…
c. You should care about my thesis because…
Rough Draft Peer Edit Worksheet
Name on Paper: Name of Peer Editor:
Basic Format______
Is the essay typed, double-spaced, 12 point Times Font? Y N
Is the essay divided into six sections including Y N
Intro., Supp. #1, Supp. #2, Supp. #3, Concession, and Conclusion with
no extra spaces between paragraphs? Y N
Is the paper 5 pages in length? Y N
Introduction______
Does it contain an effective grabber? Y N
Does it provide a concise background/framework for the thesis? Y N
Does it contain an effective thesis statement that takes a clear position? Y N
Does it contain an essay map that states the major supporting arguments? Y N
Support #1______
Does support # 1 reflect the essay map’s organization? Y N
Does the first support contain specific and persuasive information to
back up reason #1? Y N
Is the first support fully developed? Y N
Support #2______
Does support # 2 reflect the essay map’s organization? Y N
Does the second support contain specific and persuasive information to
back up reason #2? Y N
Is the second support fully developed? Y N
Support #3______
Does support # 3 reflect the essay map’s organization? Y N
Does the third support contain specific and persuasive information to
back up reason #3? Y N
Is the third support fully developed? Y N
Concession Paragraph______
Is the concession paragraph at least 5 sentences in length? Y N
Does the concession consider and dismiss an opposing argument? Y N
Conclusion______
Is the conclusion paragraph at least 5 sentences in length? Y N
Does the conclusion sum up the main points of the argument in an
effective way? Y N
Citations______
The essay contains correctly cited quotes and paraphrases. Y N
The quotes help make the author’s points. Y N
The Bibliography page is in the correct format. Y N
Details______
There are little to no spelling mistakes. Y N
There are little to no punctuation mistakes. Y N
There are little to no grammar mistakes. Y N
The same verb tense is maintained throughout. Y N
There are at least 3 different arguments to support the thesis. Y N
The writing style makes for an easily understandable paper. Y N
Form______
Circle the words I, me, mine, you, your, we, our, ours, and us if they appear anywhere in the draft other than inside quoted passages. Direct the author to ELIMINATE THEM!!!
Grading:
Basic Format /out of 10 points
Introduction /out of 10 points
Support #1 /out of 10 points
Support #2 /out of 10 points
Support #3 /out of 10 points
Concession /out of 10 points
Conclusion /out of 10 points
Citations /out of 10 points
Details /out of 10 points
Form /out of 10 points
GRADE = _____ / out of 100
Additional constructive comments: