Essay 4 Prompt-For Review Only Become an Agent of ChangeBACKGROUND:
We have spent the semester learning about important social and racial issues, but learning about them is not enough. Now, we will do something about them.
For Writing Project 4, our last essay of the class, we will be working on a research paper about how to become an agent of change. We will research past change makers and their principles. We will use all of the information we have learned in the last 12 weeks to build our Agent of Change plan.
We are all committed to social change in our own ways. Your choice to pursue further education is in and of itself an act of social change. With it , you will have the tools to be able to make positive social change in your own community as you learn about the world around you and see where injustices remain. These areas of need can become your battle ground. What are they? Where are they? What needs to be changed/improved? How can you build a personal resolve to be part of that shift towards equality or social reform?
You can do so by:
Contributing to social change at home
Contributing to social change at your current employment
Contributing to social change in your community
Become a mentor to others around you
So, where do I begin? We can begin by looking at those who went before us.
PURPOSE:
The purpose of this assignment is to:
Compose college-level writing.
Participate in academic research
Respond to a topic with an original argument.
GOALS
This assignment will help students meet the following Student Learning Objectives, as stated on the course syllabus:
Synthesize researched material from multiple texts to create and support an argument in response to a prompt. Draw direct evidence from texts in support of claims and analyze how that evidence supports the claim.
Utilize the various phases in the writing process—prewriting, writing revision, and proofreading—to produce clear, articulate, well-supported, well-organized essays.
Avoid plagiarism by properly citing quoted, summarized, and paraphrased material using MLA format
PROMPT:
Your job for this essay will be to learn more about a person who has been a powerful agent of change for a cause you care about (in theory, the cause you wrote about in Essay 3). Once you have learned more about this person, you will work to consider how you might follow in that person’s footsteps, and become an agent of change for the same cause.
TASK:
Your essay should be 800 to 1000 words in length and follow this format:
Introduction: Introduce the idea of social change and being a change maker, introduce the cause, and include your thesis. In your thesis, state how you will plan to become an Agent of Change for your given topic. Sample Thesis: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s life embodied determination and strength as he tirelessly fought for African Americans’ Civil Rights. He argued that education should result not only in knowledge gained but also character developed, and given the current educational disparities in our school system, I plan to be an agent of change for students who live in less funded areas. I will use my education and voice to bring awareness to this issue in my home, work place, and community through social media and informal discussions.
Body paragraph 1: Pretend your readers have not read Essay 3 and remind them in one paragraph of the social justice issue you addressed and why/how it is a problem that needs change (you can use information directly from Essay 3). Sample TS for thesis above: Racial inequalities are still deeply rooted in our society and institutions.
Body paragraph 2: Introduce your change maker (someone who has/is fighting for change in that social issue). Explain his/her characteristics that make him/her a strong Agent of Change.Sample TS for thesis above: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s life embodied determination and strength as he tirelessly fought for African Americans’ Civil Rights.
Body paragraph 3: Detail the attributes necessary for being a change maker. Explain how you plan to embody those attributes for the cause.Sample TS for thesis above: With determination and honesty, I plan to be an agent of change for students who live in less funded areas. I will use my voice in social media and casual conversation to bring awareness to this issue to those around me.
Conclusion: End with a declaration of how you will be an Agent of Change in your home, community, work place, and/or community.Sample concluding statement for thesis above: As a social change agent, I plan to bring awareness to the issue of disparities in education. I can do this by voicing my opinion and sharing my expertise on this issue with others in my home, work place, and community through social media and informal discussions. Like Dr. King, I can use my voice and determination to bring about change and expect more from those around me.
REQUIREMENTS FOR THE ESSAY:
The introduction must use of the the introduction lead ins we learned in class.
The thesis must include a preview of the points to be made throughout the paper.
All paragraphs must have an arguable Point (topic sentence) that supports the thesis.
All paragraph must have 2 to 3 pieces of evidence (direct or paraphrased quotes) used to support your ideas. You can use some research you did for Essay 3, but you will also need to do more research on the person you have chosen to highlight specifically. Please look at Review: PIE Paragraphs.
All paragraphs need to include adequate analysis of the evidence. Please look at Review: The E in PIE (Explanation).
A conclusion
There needs to be seamless transitions (Links to an external site.) between paragraphs.
A detailed Works Cited page is required.
Please be sure your paper is in proper MLA format.
Step 1:Review your Essay 4 Prompt.Then, to start thinking about it, do al little bit of research on a change maker you admire. Please think about a person in history that has made positive changes on society. He/she has helped bring about peace, justice, rights, or a voice for those who could not speak for themselves. Here are some examples:Caesar Chavez, Latino Civil Rights Activist Dr. Martin Luther King, Civil Rights Activist Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Women’s RightsMalala Yousafzai, Pakistani Activist Here is a long list of Activists (Links to an external site.)to explore from the past. Here is a list of current Activists (Links to an external site.) to research. Please read on some of the choices and choose one that aligns with your concerns for the future. Choose only one to focus on for your paper. Step 2:Next, find 2 pieces of information/2 sources:These might be a newspaper article or scholarly article about the actual person (Agent of Change) from a reputable source. You can Google or the Cuyamaca Library. For example: News article (from a reputable source) on Person NPR Life Review of Cesar Chavez (Links to an external site.)Scholarly Article on Migrant Workers (Cause) Immigration Reform and Farm Labor Markets (Links to an external site.)Step 3:Part 1: Provide a MLA citation for the two articles you found, so I can look at them too 
Part 2: Think about some of the information you found on the person you chose, and respond to the questions below:What makes this person a strong agent of change? What tools did they use? What experiences did that person have that made him or her a great leader for their cause?Which characteristics made them well-suited for their activism?
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