Group Rough Draft and Final Project (30%)
Getting Started
If you’re reading this, you have a peer group. If you are unsure about how to access your group, the easiest way is to use the navigation menu in this Canvas course and select Discussions, Group Project, and then People (pictured below).
In the group discussion, I will post a Google Docs link with editor access (pictured below). If you use Microsoft Word, make sure when you paste it into Google Docs the formatting isn’t altered.
You will write a biography of a historical figure with your group. There are two submissions: the group rough draft and the group final project. You can find the rough draft and final project instructions in Assignments. They are also provided in this document. Note the differences between the Rough Draft and the Final Project.
*No part of your grade is based on anyone other than yourself. If a member does not participate or provide their rough draft prior to the deadline, it does not affect you in any way.
Rough Draft Requirements
Your paper will include a group cover page, a centered, emboldened title, a chapter for each group member, and a citations page. Each chapter should contain at least 4 paragraphs and use a primary and secondary source quotation. After you integrate the quotation, make sure to
cite it properly. You can use footnotes (Turabian style) or in-text citations (MLA and APA style). Whatever style you choose, your paper must include either a Bibliography (Turabian), Works Cited (MLA), or References (APA) page that conforms to their citation guidelines. All submissions must be in 12-point, Times New Roman font, left-aligned, double-spaced, first-line indented (.5”), and black color.
· Cover Page for Group Document
·
Cover page for Turabian style
· Use numbers next to your names to indicate which chapter is yours. For example: Ryan Ross (3), Bryan Bross (1), Brian Ross (2)
· Centered, Emboldened, Specific Title for each group member above your chapter
· Chapter for each group member (4 paragraphs of 5 to 8 sentences each)
· Citations (1 primary source and 1 scholarly secondary source with properly formatted quotations with footnotes and a properly formatted group bibliography page)
·
Citation guide for Turabian style
·
Bibliography page for Turabian style
Primary sources include newspapers, letters, and speeches written at the time. The secondary sources must be academic books or journal articles about the person. For example, if Thomas Jefferson were selected, a primary source would be a newspaper published in 1796. A scholarly secondary source would be Thomas Kidd’s
Thomas Jefferson: A Biography of Spirit and Flesh (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2022). Do not use websites, such as Encyclopedia Britannica, webpage entries from government sites, such as the National Park Service and Library of Congress, or news articles and media outlets, such as CNN, USA Today, New York Times, etc.
Student Chapters
Organize your chapter around a specific aspect of the subject’s life. This will help you organize your writing around a topic. The chapter should attempt to tell the reader who the person was, when they lived, what they did, and why they were important. You need to add a direct quotation from a primary source and a scholarly secondary source. When integrating quotations from primary and scholarly secondary sources, provide an analysis of the quote. Provide some historical context in your chapters. What was going on in the state and country during this time? Were they influenced by what was going on during this period?
There should be an
emboldened, centered title for each member’s chapter, not each paragraph. For example, if you are writing about Thomas Jefferson’s adolescence and using a letter about the death of his father to describe how difficult things were for him during this period, you might write
Jefferson, Lost without His Father or something similar. Be creative with your title.
I encourage students to collaborate with their group members using Google Docs. Remember to save your work to avoid accidental deletion of content. I recommend starting the assignment early should questions/issues arise. You can submit the assignment as soon as it’s complete.
Additional Resources:
Cover page for Turabian style
Citation guide for Turabian style
Final Project Requirements
Your final project is a continuation of your Group Rough Draft. Your final submission must address any feedback from the Rough Draft submission.
Project Requirements
· Submissions must be in 12-point, Times New Roman font, left-aligned, double-spaced, first-line indented, black color, and 750 words.
· A cover or title page according to
Turabian style.
· Canvas supported file types are .doc, .docx, and .pdf. Unfortunately, .pages is not supported at the moment, but we’re working on it.
· A clear thesis statement or main idea for each chapter. Examples: Jeanette Rankin was a central figure in securing voting rights for women. Richard Nixon made Americans more distrustful and suspicious of government than any president before him. Your primary and secondary source quotations should support your thesis/main idea.
· Appropriate grammar, punctuation, spelling, and word usage (750 words for each member of the group). See Welcome Module in Canvas for a link to receive your free Grammarly subscription at PBSC and FAU.
· Each chapter should have a centered, emboldened title related to the member’s thesis/main idea. For example, if you have 6 members, there should be 6 chapters. You are graded only on your chapter and entries to the works cited/references page. No member’s lack of participation has any bearing on your grade.
· The chapters should each use (1) primary source and (1) secondary source quotation. All quotations should be properly footnoted. Do not use websites, such as Encyclopedia Britannica, or webpage entries from government sites, such as the National Park Service and Library of Congress.
· Your paper should include a properly formatted Bibliography page at the end of the group project including all the sources used in the collaborative document. Separate Primary Sources and Secondary Sources. (These pages/words do not count toward each member’s 750 words.)
Primary and Scholarly Secondary Sources
Primary sources include newspapers, letters, and other documents written during the person’s life. Scholarly secondary sources include books published by university presses and reputable publishers (Norton, Simon & Schuster, Eerdmans, etc.) and articles published in academic journals written about the person. For example, if you selected Thomas Jefferson as the historical figure, a primary source would be one of
his letters and a secondary source would be
Thomas Kidd’s Thomas Jefferson: A Biography of Spirit and Flesh (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2022).
Chapter Information
Each chapter should be organized around a question or theme, not just when they lived and why they’re important. For example, instead of writing “MLK gave the “I Have a Dream” speech,” you might write as follows that King’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech showcased his skill as an orator. Much of the speech was improvised and unplanned.” You can write about any part of their life. Organize your paper around a question or theme to keep your writing focused.
When integrating quotations from primary and secondary sources, provide an analysis of the quote. For example, tell the reader what the quotation illustrates or reveals about them and explain why you are using it in your section. Provide some historical context in your chapter. What was going on in the state and country during this time? Were they influenced by what was happening during this period?
There should be a centered, emboldened title communicating something specific about each chapter. Avoid general titles, such as Work, Life, Career, Achievements, Introduction, Conclusion, etc. For example, if you selected Thomas Jefferson as the historical figure and you were writing a chapter about his teenage years using a letter about the death of his father to describe how difficult things were for him during this period, you might write
Jefferson’s Adolescence: Lost without His Father or something similar. Be creative with your title and with your writing.
Reminders and Recommendations
Remember to save your work to avoid accidental deletion of content. I recommend starting the assignment early, should questions/issues arise. You can submit the assignment as soon as it’s complete. If you receive a zero on the project, you will need to consult with your group, revise it based on the feedback, and resubmit prior to the deadline in Canvas. Feedback is a big part of the assignment, so expect to do at least one revision before receiving your final grade on the group project.
Outcome
Upon completion of the group project, you will have satisfied most of the writing requirements for the course by using a clear thesis or central idea and adequate evidence to support the thesis/idea. You will have demonstrated an awareness of the conventions of standard written English, such as grammar, punctuation, spelling, and word usage, and used clear and logical organization. In short, you will fulfill nearly all significant writing requirements for the course.
Additionally, this group project is tied to our learning outcomes. Specifically, this project focuses on “the impact of socioeconomic change” and “the interaction of groups divided by class, race, ethnicity, religion, gender, and region” as well as “landmark legislation and landmark executive actions and their impact on law and society.”
