During the semester, you will complete one final essay on a topic of your choosing. The topic should fit into the content we are covering in this course (Social Construction of Nature, Overpopulation and Scarcity, Commodity Chains, Food and Waste Consumption, Environmental Health, Environmental Justice, Resource Extraction, Conservation, or Climate Change). The final essay assignment will be divided into five components worth a total of 410 points toward your final grade.
For the final essay, you are asked to write a 3000-3500 word paper that documents a topic and proposes a resolution to a place-based problem/challenge surrounding human uses of the environment. The goal is for you to address a real-world issue using the skills you have learned and perspectives you have gained in the course. You will propose a topic, write smaller components throughout the semester, receive feedback from your classmates and instructor, and submit a final paper at the end of the course. The goal of submitting pieces of your final paper throughout the course is designed to give you feedback and ultimately help you write a stronger final paper. The paper will be due at the end of the course.
Consider reading the Essay Tips [1] page for a list of things to consider while drafting your essay.
The instructor will remind students of upcoming dates for submitting essay components throughout the course.
Points for the final project will be distributed as follows:
Activity | Points |
---|---|
Topic/Thesis (Week 4) | 50 |
Bibliography (Week 7) | 50 |
Paper Outline (Week 10) | 50 |
Providing Feedback to Classmates
|
60
|
Final Essay Due (Week 12) | 200 |
Begin thinking about your final essay topic and thesis statement (these will be due in Week 4) .
Before Wednesday of week 4, please submit your Final Essay Topic/Thesis Statement. Your assignment should be submitted as a Word document or PDF file. Check the calendar for specific due dates.
NOTE:
If your submission is late, you will NOT be assigned anyone to peer review and you will miss out on the 20 available peer review points. Also, no one will review your work, so please be on time.
Peer Reviews:
After the Tuesday night due date has passed for your initial Topic/Thesis Statement, please return to the Final Essay Component: Topic/Thesis Statement assignment page in the Week 4 module in Canvas and click on the "Peer Review" link to see who you have been assigned to peer review.
Links
[1] https://www.e-education.psu.edu/geog430/266