For this assignment, you will conduct in-depth research and prepare a written analysis of a significant event, era, community, personality, organization, or issue in African-Canadian history or current events. Be  sure to choose your topic early in the semester so you will have plenty of time for research. You must submit your topic for approval by the first class in Week 10.  I have listed some possible topics on another page.

You may prepare either a regular typed term paper or a PowerPoint show or website suitable for viewing in a public space such as a library, city hall, or other public or private institution (for instance at Seneca, a neighbourhood school, a community centre, a church hall, etc.)

If you choose a website or PowerPoint presentation, it should include a strong visual component (legible font for text, photos, maps, drawings, graphs, as appropriate) and an attractive professional layout. The content should be appropriate for the place where it is designed to be viewed. For instance, an elementary school display would differ in its complexity and content from a college display. Teachers of elementary/secondary school children should be provided with an accompanying information package containing, at the least, a bibliography on your topic, and perhaps a game, or exercise for their students to complete, based on your display. If you wish to have your show/web site publicly displayed, you should contact the organization to determine their needs and regulations.

This Research Assignment differs from the Profile assignment you completed earlier this term. The profile was basically a factual presentation about an individual or organization.  The Research Assignment will add the elements of analysis and interpretation. It requires you to establish a viewpoint (or thesis) on your chosen topic and to support your thesis with facts and opinions gathered from a variety of credible sources (books, journal articles, films, your own interviews and questionnaires, etc.). Therefore, your paper must express some original thinking which has developed from your exploration and analysis of the data and ideas of other scholars and, in cases of original research, of your own data.

Since this is a "research" paper, you must consult several sources of information on your chosen subject. Visit the Seneca and community libraries and various community organizations to research books; articles in journals, magazines, and newspapers; films; videotapes; and audiotapes. Be sure to consult the extensive collection of African-Canadian materials at the Toronto Public Library or, if you live outside the city, the collections at other libraries such as the Markham Public Libraries, the Brampton Public Library, the Caledon Public Library, the Ajax Public Library, the Richmond Hill Public Library, or the Pickering Public Library.

To help you locate relevant material, I have  created an extensive web-page bibliography. As well, you may find some helpful information on the Internet.  However, you may NOT rely entirely on Internet web pages. (Note that much valuable material is available via the Seneca Library internet site in journals and newspapers. These sources of information constitute acceptable 'non-website' sources.) For your convenience, I have listed some links to African-Canadian sites for you on another page.

The process of preparing a research paper takes time and involves:

• selecting a topic
• using the library and other sources to locate relevant information on your chosen topic
• compiling a working bibliography
• developing a thesis and taking relevant research notes
• avoiding plagiarism by noting all sources
• preparing an outline
• writing and revising the paper
• assembling the final bibliography, the "Works Cited" list

• The "Seneca College Library MLA Style Guide" and my MLA guidelines for preparing manuscripts,
• Seneca's "Guide to Integrating Quotations (MLA Style)"  and my guidelines for integrating quotations in your tem papers, and
• My web page on  writing persuasive term papers and the Thompson/Gale web page "How to Write a Term Paper"
• Guidelines for conducting interviews: http://www.managementhelp.org/evaluatn/intrview.htm and http://saulcarliner.home.att.net/id/interview.htm .

To help you review your research paper, I have prepared a Research Paper Revision Checklist.
To help you review your public display, I have prepared a Public Display Revision Checklist.

Cheating and Plagiarism:
Cheating refers to  acts such as copying any part of another person's work and submitting it as your own or using other prohibited materials or methods to complete an assignment. Plagiarism is the act of copying any part of another author's words or ideas and presenting them as your own, either paraphrased or copied word for word. Be sure to use your own words to present your ideas; if you use other people's words, place them in quotation marks. In any case, whenever you are borrowing someone else's ideas or data, (whether paraphrased or quoted), be sure to acknowledge the source (using an accepted format such as the MLA or APA system for citing sources). (For more information, please consult Seneca's and my pages on preparing a bibliography and on quoting passages.)

Cheating and plagiarism constitute prohibited behaviour and will be penalized in accordance with college policy:

9.3 Penalties
The penalty for a first offence of cheating or plagiarism is a grade of "0" on the work in which the offence occurred, and will result in a comment being placed on the transcript by the Academic Honesty Committee. The penalty for the second offence of cheating or plagiarism is an "F" in the course where the offence occurred, a second comment on the transcript and suspension from the College for a time period determined by the Academic Honesty Committee, normally for a minimum of three (3) semesters. When a student returns to the College, he/she will be placed on Academic Honesty Probation. Any further violation of the Academic Honesty policy will result in College initiated mandatory withdrawal for academic purposes.

The student has the right to appeal the decision of the Academic Honesty Committee, consistent with Academic Policy. Evidence will be kept on file. The procedure for dealing with both Cheating and Plagiarism is found in Appendix E.

It is every student’s responsibility to familiarize him/herself with the proper procedure for avoiding cheating and plagiarism through the various resources beyond the Academic Policy such as the Student Handbook, and the Learning Commons website at http://library.senecacollege.ca/Academic_Honesty/index.html.

Students may seek assistance from Student Services in understanding the policy and procedures for Academic Honesty.