• QUESTION

  Youth Cultures – Opinion Editorial Piece 

  EDITORIAL PIECE ASSIGNMENT AND GRADING GUIDELINES

   

   

  Students will write a formal op-ed piece targeted toward a leading national news outlet such as the Globe and Mail or the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC). The op-ed will be in response to a current issue that is related to youth cultures in Canada. The piece should range between 750 and 800 words. The op-ed piece must incorporate an application of sociological theory and research, and it must in some way include an international perspective. More detailed information will be provided on the course website.

   

  Guidelines and Tips

   

  Students are advised to respond to an issue that is contemporary and relevant to YOUTH CULTURE in CANADA, given how we have defined YOUTH, CULTURE, and YOUTH CULTURES in this course so far. Students will be graded on whether they choose an issue that is current and is Canadian, and so the most important thing here is to ensure that you are not responding to an historical event or engaging in an editorial piece that is historical in nature. It is also important to avoid an issue with no connection to Canada. This most importantly becomes an issue not if the issues is itself dated, but rather if the author does not demonstrate in the piece HOW and WHY the issues relevant to people in Canada today. There is no specific date, and it need not be an event that arises this semester or other the next two weeks. It also does not need to be a specific event. Nevertheless, it should be an “issue” or matter or concern that you can make a case in your editorial is significantly affecting individuals in Canada today.

  Being a formal op-ed piece, it is important that your article articulates a clear OPINION. Students will be graded on how effectively they articulate a STRONG OPINION. Part of this grade will relate to how well students draw on the advice provided on Quercus via the U of T and Harvard guidelines, to develop and articulate their STRONG OPINIONS.  This is one of the few cases where you are allowed to formulate an OPINION that you hold. You can even use the language or terminology of “In my opinion…” because in this case the editor and your audience do expect that what you are sharing in your article is an “opinion” rather than just an objective argument. Strong papers will be those that, as per the advice provided by U of T’s media room, articulate a STRONG and BOLD argument, and/or an argument that may be viewed by some (though not all) as being CONTROVERSIAL.

  Students will next be graded on how well they substantiate their arguments with EVIDENCE. Once again, part of this grade will be based on how well students use the advice provided by Harvard and U OF T on Quercus. In this respect, op-ep pieces are comparable to an essay. While you are arguing an OPINION, and one that is likely PERSONAL to you, the strength of your piece is still largely based on how well the opinion is backed up with EVIDENCE.

  Evidence that you can draw on includes quantitative data (i.e. statistics), qualitative data (including direct quotations), historical material, documentary evidence, and anything else gathered from primary or secondary sources etc. The quality of your sources matters here just like it does in a term paper, and you will evaluated on the quality of your sources. For example, strive to draw on sources from peer reviewed articles, scholarly books, reliable data sources like Statistics Canada and JurisStat, government and legal documents, policy briefs written by reputable think tanks like CIGI and NGOs like Human Rights Watch, and very reputable news outlets (avoid web blogs and Wikipedia). Also, your article will be evaluated on how well it LINKS AND CONNECTS evidence to arguments. This is much like a term paper. The difference is that, while, you have to make sure you are acknowledging your sources (this is a must for academic honesty purposes), you are not expected to cite using any formal citation method. You also do not need a bibliography page. See the examples provided online for strategies on how to acknowledge the sources of your evidence.

  As per the advice provided by U of T, you will want to ensure that there is a strong THESIS in your opinion editorial piece, and that the thesis is then strongly linked to and/or developed by the arguments and evidence that you present throughout the rest of the opinion piece. The thesis will be evaluated in this paper. Thesis writing for an op-ed is like that of a paper, however, you want to also strive to articulate your thesis in a way that is bold, and strong, and if appropriate, even controversial.

  What is also important here, is that you ensure that you are following the instructions and incorporating both THEORY and RESEARCH that is sociological. This can be any theory or research you’ve covered in any course (not just this one) that involves social interaction and social relations (i.e. can be anthropological, political, economical, philosophical, etc.). While you want to define, explain, and acknowledge the theories’ authors or origins, and indicate their names, the challenge in effectively incorporating theory is doing so in a way that is brief and succinct (avoiding less important details that are not going to be of interest to the reader and editor),and effectively USES or APPLIES the theory to your argument in order to make it stronger, clearer, more compelling and/or bolder.

  Students will be graded on how effectively they structure and organise their piece. In particular, grading will take into account how well the Harvard and U of T guidelines have been taken into consideration. Students are encouraged to focus closely on U of T’s advice regarding introductions and conclusions.

  Spelling and grammar and general mechanics will be graded in this piece. You want to ensure that your paper is as polished and free of mechanical errors as possible. Editors typically copy-edit pieces, but it is still strongly advised that when submitting an article for publication, that it has been edited and revised numerous times and by at least one other person to ensure for clarity and precision.

   

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