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  • 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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Subject Cultural Integration Pages 5 Style APA

Answer

Current issues affecting Canadian Youth

Introduction

            Canada is popularly known as the most educated country in the world. One-third of the Canadian population is comprised of youths. Transitioning into adulthood in North America has its expectations of youth to contribute positively to the society. Canadian society views success as the ability to complete school, get employed, become financially stable, and get a good home and marriage. However, this system has some of its few challenges due to current mental health issues affecting the Indigenous youth. Social and cultural influences play a role too. In this paper, I will be discussing the current challenges that the Canadian youths face.

Current Youth Issue

Mental health is the leading current issue affecting 15 percent of Canadian youths at an average age of 19 years. With the constant pressure of making ends meet, mental health problems have been highly associated with other physical problems. In the opinion of Butler and Pang (2014), behavioral changes such as abuse of drugs, emotions, and beliefs including low self-esteem are the major causes of mental health disorders among the youth population. Anxiety disorders were found in 9 percent of Canadian youth in 2009. This number was elevated among the aboriginal Canadians and women. Butler and Pang (2014) attest to Attention-Deficit/Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD) being common in young males, affecting approximately 20 youths countrywide.

            On the other hand, eating disorders are common among young Canadian women.  1.1 percent of Canadian women aged between15 and 24 years were found to have either anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa. Also, self-harm which does not involve suicide has been reported with over 17,000 hospitalizations in a report by Butler and Pang (2014). There have been many cases of self-harm, including cutting and burning. Moreover, mood disorders among Aboriginal Canadians are common with a statistic of 6.3 percent.

Substance abuse is high among the youth population with the curiosity for experimentation. Most youth who end up abusing drugs such as cocaine, heroin, and amphetamine get easily addicted and become heavy users. A survey carried out showed 32 percent of youths were heavy drinkers, and were associated with poor school performance and truancy. 

            Statistics show that every year, about 3,500 Canadians die as a result of suicide. As such, suicide is considered the second cause of death, with the first being accidents. Butler and Pang (2014) highlight a study done by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health which concluded that 47 percent of Canadian youths between the ages of 12 to 24 years had thought about committing suicide at one point in their lives. The Canadian Federal government has created partnerships with the Aboriginal organizations by developing a National Aboriginal Youth Suicide Prevention Strategy to help minimize the high suicide rates among the aboriginal communities (Butler & Pang, 2014).

Social media has created a platform that tends to encourage cyberbullying. With 12 percent of young Canadians being affected by this form of bullying, it has resulted in depression and anxiety. The LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer) community are the most affected. They have been viewed as a sexual minority group. Severe cases of bullying contribute largely to suicide. In 2013, the federal government established the Stand Up to Bullying and Discrimination in Canadian Communities project to help reduce cases of bullying and suicide (Butler & Pang, 2014).

            With education being highly appreciated in the Canadian community, most youth are educated. However, there have been challenges arising from acquiring education (Mitchell and Lennox, 2020). This includes expensive tuition fees which has led many graduating students to have high debts. Statistics Canada states that currently, 50 percent of graduates are burdened with debts.  Young women are also getting more full-time jobs and better earnings compared to young men. Statistics Canada also states that 10.5 percent of Canadian youths were identified as homeless due to low-income wages.  

            The Canadian youth policy has created opportunities for youth to air out their concerns and come up with concrete solutions to the challenges they are facing. This involves creation of federal departments established for the youths to increase their participation in decision- and policy making. Due to the rapidly growing diverse population in Canada, the federal government is striving to create an equal distribution of resources without discrimination.

            The number of Indigenous youths in Canada has increased remarkably over the years. This has led to both health and social isolation. Lines et al. (2019) assert that Indigenous people are placed lower in health determinants as compared to non-indigenous people. These comparisons among the youth are observed in various health outcomes of obesity, suicide, and substance abuse. In the report of (Lines et al., 2019), the youth foreground the need to have numerous cultural activities to promote health care in physical activities, mental health advocacy, and social interactions.

 

 

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References

 

  • Barbara Mitchell, Rebecca Lennox (2020). “You Gotta Be able to PaY Your own way”: Canadian           news MediadisCourseand YounG adults’ subject-tivitiesof suCCessful adulating.

                https://journals.library.ualberta.ca/cjs/index.php/CJS/article/view/29640/21527

    Laurie-Ann Lines, Yellowknives Dene First Nation Wellness Division & Cynthia G. Jardine         (2019). Connection to the land as a youth-identified social determinant of Indigenous   Peoples’ health.

                https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12889-018-6383-8#Sec10

    Martha Butler and Merlissa Pang (2014). Current Issues in Mental Health in Canada: Child and    Youth Mental Health.

    https://lop.parl.ca/sites/PublicWebsite/default/en_CA/ResearchPublications/201413E#a5

     

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