Political Science Essay

Lost Assignments: It is your responsibility to have other copies of your paper.
Essay expectations: See info document.

PAPER MUST HAVE A THESIS STATEMENT

Essay questions/ thesis statements

Choose one as the core argument of your paper (you may take the reverse of each).

1/ Canada should consider a different electoral system at the federal level.

2/ The separatist movement in Quebec is still powerful and remains a threat to Canadian unity.

3/ Canadian Medicare is threatened by a weak federal role in health care.

4/ Courts in Canada are too activist and are usurping the powers of elected legislatures in Canada.

CITATIONS:
a/ Always cite direct quotes.

b/ Always cite words you have reorganized form a source.

c/ Always cite statistics right away (on every sentence line – not just at the end of a paragraph of statistics).

d/Try to cite major theories which are clearly not your own.

When in doubt, cite – but do not cite every line of your paper.
INFO

ESSAY INSTRUCTIONS

1/ OVERVIEW

Thesis statement - one line which clearly sets out the argument. Take a stand! Do not write a discussion paper looking at all the angles. All thesis statements must be of the type where the statement can be proven or refuted.


Be scientific – try to be as detached, value-neutral and objective as possible. Do not get emotionally attached to your essay. Always use academic language and terms. Political science is not journalism. We are not trying to entertain our readers but to inform and educate them.


2/ STRUCTURE


Introduction (first paragraph)

- half – 1 page double spaced
- come to thesis statement quickly (first 3 or 4 lines)
- avoid prose (‘flowery’ or colloquial writing) throughout the paper
- outline the major points (at least 3) which support your thesis statement
- do not elaborate on the points here
- avoid quotations

Body of paper (many thematically organized paragraphs)

- (whatever length assigned)
- use statistics, quotations and other support material (always cite these)
- on average, you should have 3 citations per page in the body of the essay
- do not discuss anything which weakens your thesis statement (refute any counterarguments)
- avoid going off on tangents (focus on your major points)

Conclusion (last paragraph)

- half – 1 page double spaced
- should not be identical but should be a reiteration of your introduction
- sum up: say that you have proven your thesis statement


3/ CITATIONS


a/ Always cite direct quotes.

b/ Always cite words you have reorganized form a source.

c/ Always cite statistics right away (on every sentence line – not just at the end of a paragraph of statistics).

d/Try to cite major theories which are clearly not your own.

When in doubt, cite – but do not cite every line of your paper.

If a quote is shorter than 30 words, use quotation marks around it. Cite it.

Example:

“There are three main bodies of writings on subsidiarity, all of which try to clarify the idea” (Jonasson, 2000).

If a quote is longer than 30 words, centre the quote on every line, indent on both sides (do not double space) and do not use quotation marks. Cite it.

Example:

In essence, the Group of 22 advocate that Canada should adopt a subsidiarity which is largely "bottom-up":
The principle of subsidiarity states that decision-making should be as
close as possible to citizens. Government powers should be assigned
to the lowest level where they can be effectively exercised. Although
this principle embodies a decentralist thrust, it also provides
justification for moving jurisdictions upwards when there are
important cross-border spillovers.[1]

The above paragraph shows that the authors recognize the "decentralist" face of subsidiarity but they see it mainly as a grass-roots, "bottom-up" principle.

Do not use single marks unless you are emphasizing a word or phrase (eg. a slogan).

In general, the minimum number of citations you should have is 3X the page numbers (double-spaced). Make sure that you have citations in the right places though.

You may use footnote or endnote or bracket style.


4/ BIBLIOGRAPHY

Use a proper referencing style of your choice (eg. MLA, APA etc.). All sources should have: author, title, publisher, place published, date and page no. Net sources must have Web address.

Only put sources in the bibliography which you have cited in the paper.

You should have at least 4 academic sources for a first year level paper, 6 for a 2nd level and 8 for 3rd and 4th level.

Academic sources are books, textbooks, journal articles and data sites written/complied by political scientists. Political journalistic sources are not considered academic but many are good to use as sources. Of course, you are encouraged to use some non-academic sources when appropriate (it is up to you how many).

5/ PAGE LENGTH

Whatever assigned in the outline.
You may go over page limits or citation limits (within reason); it is always better to go over than under.

The page limit does not include the bibliography (you must have this), a title page (you do not have to have a title page) or endnote pages (if using endnotes).