See attached
Overview
The final project for this course is the creation of a
white paper and a
presentation.
As the final step in your journey toward your bachelor of arts in anthropology, you will complete a capstone that integrates the knowledge and skills you have developed throughout your program by creating a publication-worthy white paper and professional presentation. The white paper and presentation will address a real-world problem of your choice within the field of anthropology. You will identify the problem, analyze applicable research, apply relevant anthropological theories, and provide evidence-based recommendations.
Anthropology is a science born out of mid-nineteenth-century upper-class society and colonial ideals, but the field of anthropology has never been more relevant than it is today, given the advent of a global economy and advances in communication technologies. What used to be a picture-laden article about an exotic, so called primitive culture in
National Geographic magazine now has the potential to go viral shortly after this culture is discovered. Now more than ever as a society, there is a need to be aware of the vast diversity of human cultures, and how to navigate these differences respectfully. As an anthropologist, you will apply anthropological theory and methods to analyze today’s human-related issues, and share the results of your research with your peers and the general public alike. You will play a part in working toward a better tomorrow.
Evaluation of Capstone: This capstone will be assessed somewhat differently than other courses you have taken at Southern New Hampshire University. There are two separate components which will be submitted at different times during the course. However, these components operate together to make up the whole capstone experience and
are not assessed separately. You will be evaluated on both components as a unit in determining whether you have demonstrated proficiency in each outcome. Your instructor will guide you through this process, keeping a running narrative of your strengths and weaknesses in relation to the outcomes as you progress through the class. Your work is expected to meet the highest professional standards.
The project is divided into
three milestones, which will be submitted at various points throughout the course to scaffold learning and ensure quality final submissions. These milestones will be submitted in
Modules Two, Four, and Five. The final submission for the Capstone Component One and Capstone Component Two sections of the final project are due in Module Seven.
In this assignment, you will demonstrate your mastery of the following course outcomes:
· Evaluate diverse cultural behaviors and social interactions for their role in the complex interrelationships between individuals, cultures, social institutions, organizations, and the environment
· Apply anthropological theories, concepts, and methodologies to complex contemporary and historical cultural issues for a broader understanding of human societies
· Demonstrate professional ethics and responsibilities for the collection and dissemination of anthropological knowledge to promote the value of human diversity
· Develop feasible anthropological research questions for designing implementation-worthy project proposals
· Analyze anthropological research and data for assessing how human groups construct the cultural realities in which they live
· Assess similarities and differences among cultures for developing culturally relevant perspectives that challenge ethnocentric notions and practices
Prompt
In keeping with the program’s multidisciplinary, applied approach to human-centered research questions and issues, your white paper and presentation will address a practical and existing real-world problem within anthropology or your concentration (if enrolled in a concentration). You will clearly and comprehensively state the problem, review applicable literature, discuss ethical implications or limitations, and summarize your research results. As it is the responsibility of all scientist to share their results, you will also need to present your project to the general public in the form of a presentation.
You will have two different audiences for your white paper and presentation. You will create your white paper as if you are planning to present it to a group of anthropologists at a professional conference with an audience of your peers in anthropology. Your audience for the presentation, on the other hand, will be the general public. These are the people who are potentially impacted by your researched real-world problem, so you must ensure you are able to translate the anthropological research into terms the general public can understand, in a clear and concise manner.
Capstone Component One: White Paper
For the first of two capstone components, you will develop a comprehensive, professional white paper addressing a real-world problem involving human populations in the realm of anthropology or your specific concentration within the anthropology program. Your white paper should be 10 to 14 pages in length, not including visual aids and references. In creating a document worthy of presenting to a group of anthropologists in the field, your white paper will integrate the knowledge and skills you have acquired through your previous coursework in anthropology. Your white paper should include the following sections:
I.
Statement of Purpose: This section sets the stage for the white paper. You will state the
problem you have selected and provide necessary background information. You should provide
specifics around the location of the problem and the populations and resources involved. Depending on your concentration (if you have one) and selected problem, you might utilize maps or other visual aids to help the reader understand the focus of your research. In general, include all information you think is necessary to establish a comprehensive analysis and foundation for understanding your chosen topic.
II.
Research Question: In this section, you will develop an anthropological research question based on your selected problem. Ensure this research question is
viable and feasible, as you will need adequate sources to conduct a comprehensive analysis of the identified problem. You will also explain the
relationship and value of the research question to your specific concentration (if applicable), as well as the field of anthropology as a whole.
III.
Application of Theory: In this section, you will apply anthropological theory to explain the presence of yourselected problem, the various factors contributing to the problem, and its social and cultural implications. You will also explain how you will apply anthropological theory to ethically analyze the selected problem with its potentially complex and diverse components.
IV.
Literature Review: This section is an analysis of the research that pertains to your selected problem. Ensure you use credible and reliable sources. You will analyze the strengths and weaknesses of the chosen literature and discuss how the research is situated within these publications. You will also show the successes and failures in past research projects and demonstrate how your research fits into the bigger picture of this topic.
V.
Conclusion: In this section, you will summarize your research and provide evidence-based recommendations to address the specific problem. Your conclusion section should include the following items:
A. Justify the appropriateness and projected success of your recommendations, based on your previous research. Ensure you address how your recommendations are sensitive to the diverse populations that may be impacted.
B. Honestly evaluate the potential contribution of your research to the field specific to your concentration (if applicable), as well as the potential future direction of the research in the field of anthropology as a whole.
C. Address any ethical implications related to the collection or dissemination of your research and suggesting future actions to resolve these concerns, while also considering other applicable issues—such as those related to public safety, cultural sensitivity, or resource management— and potential ways to resolve these issues.
Citations/Reference List: Your final project should follow professional industry standards and include all necessary elements that one would find in a professional white paper. It should include a title page, abstract, table of contents, main body, conclusion, formal reference list, and appendices, if applicable. The information should be cited according to the rules of the latest American Psychological Association (APA) manual. You may include illustrations, photographs, maps, graphs, charts, and other non-textual materials, as needed, to support the underpinning research (though all of the latter should be placed in an appendix or appendices if used).
Capstone Component Two: Presentation
For the second component of your capstone, you will create a presentation for the general public impacted by the selected problem. You will summarize the white paper and provide recommendations for the problem, justifying your recommendations with your previous research. Ensure that as you are creating this article, you do so with your audience in mind. As a scientist, academic, and professional, it is your responsibility to share your results with diverse audiences. Often, anthropologists present research to audiences who do not have an anthropological context of the topic. It is then the responsibility of the anthropologist to present the anthropological material in a manner that is accessible to the audience. This presentation will give you a taste of the real-world expectations for the field.
Since you will not actually deliver this presentation in person, you must create a self-sustaining presentation with speaker notes or audio included. The presentation should adhere to the principles of an effective presentation. All of your sources should be cited properly, and the presentation should be 10 to 14 slides in length.
Citations/Reference List: Your final project should be a presentation of professional quality. The information should be cited according to the rules of the latest American Psychological Association (APA) manual.
What to Submit
This rubric will be applied to both components as a whole, and no component will be assessed on its own. The “Possible Indicators of Success” are examples for you and the instructor of the types of concepts to look for to demonstrate proficiency. They are neither exhaustive, nor proscriptive, and should be used as guides for illustrating how your capstone embodies the outcome.
The white paper should be 10 to 14 pages in length (in addition to the title page, table of contents, reference pages, and visual aids). It should use 12-point Times New Roman font, double spacing, and one-inch margins. The document will include a title page, abstract, table of contents, main body, conclusion, formal reference list, and appendices, if applicable. Information in the white paper should be cited according to the rules of the latest APA manual. You may include illustrations, photographs, maps, graphs, charts, and other non-textual materials as needed to support the research, though all of the latter should be placed in an appendix or appendices, if used.
The presentation should be of professional quality and include speaker notes or a transcript. Information should be cited according to the rules of the latest APA publication manual. The presentation should be 10 to 14 slides (in addition to a cover slide and a references slide).
