Overview
Assignment: The research paper is designed to allow students the freedom to explore a topic of
relevance to the government or politics of the Middle East which is of interest to them. The paper will consist of 5-6 pages (double space of actual writing, NOT including cover page, abstract or bibliography)
The topic is already chosen by me. Please write the essay on this: The topic I would love to research is Cultural Identity In the Middle East. The specific research question I will answer is: How has war and displacement affected the cultural identity of refugees from Syria, Iraq, Yemen, etc? This not only contributes to my understanding of the Middle East but adds to it because my parents are immigrants from Iraq. I know how this affects my community, but researching more will help me understand how this affects other Middle Easterns. This topic will help me dig deeper to understand how Middle Eastern cultural identity is affected by war and displacement.
please do not write the paper too complex or use crazy words. It does not need to sound super professional.
For sources, you can use Google Scholar, Congressional Research Service Reports (online), think tanks, books, primary sources, etc. Just no Wikipedia nor blogs, social media, works of journalism.
Paper Formatting and Details:
Length of Paper: 5-6 Page double space pages
Must Include: Title page (This does not count as one of the 5-6 pages)
Professionalization: Edit your papers, include page numbers, and provide headers.
References: THREE scholarly/government sources only (books, scholarly journals, reports by
think tanks, reports by government agencies or departments). You may use news articles, but they will not count towards the three scholarly/government sources requirements. If you are using speeches from government elected officials rely on their campaign or government webpage for citations.
Rubric:
I. Introduction (15%): identify the topic, research question, and have a clear thesis of
what your paper will be arguing.
II. The argument (40%): Construct the argument. Don’t just tell me the argument but show
it! In other words, what examples support your arguments? What are the arguments
relevant to the research paper? Are there competing arguments explaining an event, a
political outcome, why a specific policy is justifiable or not? And include citations!!
(You may cite using APA, Chicago, MLA) prefer MLA
III. Organization (20%): Is the paper structured in a way that there is clear road map for
the reader (e.g. headers and tells the reader how the paper will develop).
IV. Logistics (10%): Paper has an abstract, cover page, three scholarly sources, 12-point
font, 1-inch margins.
V. Conclusion (15%): The conclusion reiterates the key points, arguments, and
summarizes the overall paper.
VI. FIVE Written pages minimum (not including bibliography, cover page, abstract).