The unlikely fate of a term paper

This paper deals with one of the most difficult and enduring issues in higher education: cheating. Predictably, the mass media emphasizes its more sensational aspects such as cheating scandals at military academies and commercial term paper mills. Available academic studies, however, document that classroom dishonesty is hardly an isolated phenomenon. Yet, public and campus concern shifts rapidly from indignation to inattention, leaving the problem much as it was.

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Guide for Parents on Writing Their Child's First Term Paper: A Letter

The English Journal ◽

10.2307/817891 ◽

1986 ◽

Vol 75 (2) ◽

pp. 62

Author(s):

Nancy T. Ganyard

Keyword(s):

Term Paper

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Writing Across the Semester: A Non-Standard Term Paper That Encourages Critical Data Analysis in the Upper-Division Chemistry Classroom

Journal of Chemical Education ◽

10.1021/ed085p1392 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 85 (10) ◽

pp. 1392 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

Jennifer Whiles Lillig

Keyword(s):

Data Analysis ◽

Critical Data ◽

Term Paper ◽

Standard Term

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Describing the Development of a Developmental Psychologist: An Alternative Term Paper Assignment

Teaching of Psychology ◽

10.1207/s15328023top1601_5 ◽

1989 ◽

Vol 16 (1) ◽

pp. 18-20 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Kathleen M. Galotti

Keyword(s):

Critical Thinking ◽

Developmental Psychology ◽

Academic Career ◽

Student Reaction ◽

Research Areas ◽

Primary Literature ◽

Term Paper

Each student taking a sophomore/junior level course in developmental psychology is asked to choose a different developmental psychologist and to read as much of that person's published work as is feasible. Students are encouraged to select articles that range over different research areas and different years of publications. They then write a paper describing the target psychologist's work, focusing on the question, “How has this person's work developed?” The assignment in intended to address a number of goals, including the following: (a) to acquaint students with primary literature in developmental psychology, (b) to provoke critical thinking about the concept of development, and (c) to recognize that the progress of an academic career is seldom linear or preordained. Student reaction and implementation suggestions me discussed.

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Term Paper Counseling: A Unique Way of Collection Development

Collection Building ◽

10.1108/eb023325 ◽

1993 ◽

Vol 12 (1/2) ◽

pp. 24-26

Author(s):

Joyce C. Wright

Keyword(s):

Collection Development ◽

Term Paper

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Teaching Through Informal Debate

News for Teachers of Political Science ◽

10.1017/s0197901900004396 ◽

1983 ◽

Vol 39 ◽

pp. 1-3

Author(s):

William C. Spracher

Keyword(s):

The United States ◽

Institutional Constraints ◽

Student Interest ◽

United States Military Academy ◽

Political Systems ◽

Military Academy ◽

Politics And Government ◽

Term Paper ◽

Paper Format ◽

Core Course

In the Summer 1982 issue of NEWS, W. Rick Johnson in an article entitled "Some Strategies for Teaching Students Critical Thinking" delved into a subject which has often bedeviled those of us who have ever taught political science to undergraduates. Like Johnson, I found that the basic exam/term paper format is inadequate and needs to be expanded upon to excite the average student about politics and get him thinking critically and independently.Between 1979 and 1982, I taught five semesters of a core course in politics and government to second year cadets at the United States Military Academy (USMA), four of which were for regular course students and one at a more advanced level. The other semester I taught an elective in comparative political systems and an evening colloquium series on intelligence and public policy. At that institution I found I needed to search for an even more effective tool to spark student interest due to a couple of institutional constraints not faced by instructors at civilian colleges. First of all, only recently has West Point begun to institute a major's program.

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Questioning the Conventional Wisdom and Critiquing Unconventional Perspectives in Abnormal Psychology: A Written Exercise

Teaching of Psychology ◽

10.1207/s15328023top1904_9 ◽

1992 ◽

Vol 19 (4) ◽

pp. 230-232 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Dana D. Anderson

Keyword(s):

Critical Thinking ◽

Historical Perspective ◽

Conventional Wisdom ◽

Controversial Issues ◽

Abnormal Psychology ◽

Approach To Learning ◽

Active Approach ◽

Term Paper ◽

Psychology Course

This article describes a teaching exercise used in an undergraduate abnormal psychology course to strengthen students' critical-thinking abilities. Students complete a term paper critiquing a book that is itself a critique of the conventional wisdom in the field. Several books representing a variety of unconventional perspectives are available. The exercise aims at increasing students' historical perspective on the field and at confronting them with controversial issues. It also requires students to engage in an active dialogue with their instructor about an issue raised by the book. This dialogue culminates in the students defining a clear personal position on that issue. The exercise is consistent with an active approach to learning.

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