l explore the theoretical terms and concepts learned in the class as they relate to your personal experiences.

Term Paper Order Description     write a 3-5 pages long paper (1000-1500 words, no exceptions) in which you will explore the theoretical terms and concepts learned in the class as they relate to your personal experiences. You will explore one of the topics listed below using your sociological imagination as we have talked about in the class using ONLY materials and knowledge from the textbook and our class meetings. That means you will write a critical analysis of your chosen topic, based on your own, and / or your family's experiences. In the paper you must use at least 10 specific concepts from the class (textbook or resources in our course) (OpenStax. 2015. Introduction to Sociology. Second Edition. Houston, TX: OpenStax College. See at: HYPERLINK "https://openstaxcollege.org/textbooks/introduction-to-sociology-2e" https://openstaxcollege.org/textbooks/introduction-to-sociology-2e.) Whenever you use a new concept that you have not discussed before, you need to bold it. You might also (in addition to bolding the font) list the concepts you covered in the beginning or at the end of the paper (yes, the list may be included in your word / page count). How do you know if something is a “concept”? Most of the important concepts are defined and bolded in the textbook – for example even the term “family” is a concept, or different types of families etc. You will probably use many more concepts than 10 as the nature of the topics dictates this. Listing and naming the concepts will help you in several ways but mainly to realize how sociology, sociological thinking, and sociological imagination are intertwined with life outside of the classroom (i.e., we are examining real life, not abstract concepts only), and it will help to keep you on your topic within the paper as it is too easy to get distracted by the flow of writing in a direction that might be worthy of your time but is not what the paper requires (in such cases it is best to save the additional material for future writing and exploration). Grading: In addition to not fulfilling minimum requirements, including the word count for the paper, I will take points off for multiple instances of grammatical errors, typos, and for papers that are too short or are submitted late (10% off for each day, or a part of day they are late). If you feel you need help with your style or grammar, please, utilize the help of the writing center – especially when I have noted on your prior papers you needed to do so. Please, do not forget to put your name on your paper and number your pages so I can refer to them in my comments if needed. Also, staple all your pages together since I am unable to grade pages that get lost, fall out etc. No, it is not possible to accept any papers after the class is over, or to grade papers not submitted in hard copy. Term papers may be graded before or after the end of the class, but always on time with regard to the submission of final grades by faculty. This is not a difficult paper to write, but it will require some time investment – definitely I do not think you can write it the last night before it is due and get a good grade. On the other hand, in my experience, most students enjoy writing this type of a paper because it enables them to connect their studies with their personal lives and to reflect on many things they perhaps were not aware of before in the process. The paper reflects your ability to use this material to show your original critical analysis of a topic and your ability to demonstrate your comprehensive sociological perspective. The paper requires you to examine sociologically your own experience and the experience of others. It is not a conventional research paper. If you simply submit a research paper, you will not receive a passing grade on the paper. This is also true if you deliver non-original work. Successful critical analysis papers just like this can be written using only the concepts, observations, and theories learned in the class and related to what you know. Most crucial is your openness to examining your own preconceptions, assumptions, stereotyping, and reactions to the subject matter. Your term paper for our course is worth 250 points or 25% of all of the course points. Formatting: Times New Roman, 12 point, double-spaced, with one inch margins on all sides. DUE DATES: Brunswick: November 17, 2017 Camden: November 20, 2017 (November 13, if you have prior travel arrangements for the 20th.) Early submission is encouraged although there is no implied promise papers would be graded early. E-mailed papers will not be accepted at any time. NO EXCEPTIONS. Topics: Socialization in the family Immigration (may include immigration history of your family) U.S. educational system Dating and marriage Economic stratification in the United States Deviance, crime, and social control Prejudice and discrimination Social movements Gender Aging and the elderly Work in the United States Social change Health and medicine Environment and society Urbanization Globalization Approximate structure of the paper: Introduction: This is my topic, this is why I picked it and why I want to explore it. Main body: Explanation of theoretical terms and concepts along with illustrations from real life (most important!!!). Narrative form, first person. Basically, what happened to you in life outside of the academia, and sociological analysis of the events. Conclusion: This is what my conclusion is on this topic, and this is what I learned by exploring it and writing about it. When you are lost while writing or do not know what else to write, try remembering the five approaches to sociology as we covered them in one of our first class meetings… (For comparison, these directions are 966 words, almost a whole paper-length…) HAPPY WRITING!