2021/2/14 Persuasive Essay DRAFT

https://canvas.uw.edu/courses/1434504/assignments/5883690 1/5

Persuasive Essay DRAFT

Due Monday by 11:59pm Points 20 Submitting a file upload File Types doc and docx

Submit Assignment

1. Assignment Submission Schedule
Draft Due: Monday, Feb. 15
Peer Review: Must be completed by Friday, Feb. 19th
Final Paper Due: Friday, Feb. 26th

It is very important that you submit something/a file (can be just a rough draft or an outline) by this deadline. Canvas will automatically
assign peer reviews for students who have a submission by this deadline. If you don’t meet this deadline, you will not be able to participate
in the peer review work (worth 20 points)

2. Assignment Details
The objective of this assignment is to write a 3-4 page persuasive essay that identifies an environmental issue of personal
concern and provides one or more solutions designed to address it. The persuasive essay is the basis of your group poster
assignment so you will work collaboratively with your poster group to develop an “umbrella” group poster theme and a narrower set of
interrelated individual research topics. This assignment includes both a rough draft, which will be peer-reviewed, and a final draft.

Each persuasive essay should include the following elements:

1. A comprehensive description of your issue that includes its geographic location(s), as well as its direct and indirect causes.
2. An evidence-based argument that supports why your issue merits attention and concern. Your argument should consider each of the

following dimensions of your issue: (1) social, (2) economic, and (3) environmental.
3. One or more solutions designed to address your issue (e.g., political, cultural, personal).

3. Structural Requirements
1. You must upload your paper as a word document.

2. Papers should be 3-4 pages in length, with 1.5 spacing, 1″ margins, Times New Roman font, and 12 pt font size. References
and images are not included in the 4-page limit.

3. Include introductory and concluding paragraphs that clearly identify the issue you are researching and the main points of your essay.

4. Essay should draw on at least five different published sources, two of which must be from scholarly peer-reviewed books or
journal articles.

5. Include 2-3 images that either explain the dimensions of your issue or support your arguments. Include image captions and
citations for each image. Images may be embedded in the texts where they are relevant, or they may be listed at the end of the paper.
Images will not count towards the written space requirement.

6. Essay should be well-written, spell-checked, proof-read, and concise.

7. All sources must be properly cited using APA Style both in the text and in a works cited section so that readers can find and
evaluate your sources. To review how to use APA Style in your work, consult an APA Style Guide or visit this web link:
https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/in_text_citations_the_basics.html

(https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/in_text_citations_the_basics.html)
Examples follow.

In text: According to Jones (1998), APA style is an easy citation format for first-time learners. APA style is the most commonly used
citation format (Jones, 1998).
In reference list:

https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/in_text_citations_the_basics.html

2021/2/14 Persuasive Essay DRAFT

https://canvas.uw.edu/courses/1434504/assignments/5883690 2/5

For a journal do this: Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year). Title of article. Title of Periodical, volume number(issue
number), pages
For a book do this: Author, A. A. (Year of publication). Title of work: Capital letter also for subtitle. Location: Publisher.
For a website do this: Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Date of publication or most recent update). Document or website title. Retrieved
from http://web address. NOTE: For journal articles that you read on a website, include only the journal information ( #1 on this list)

Use subheading “Works Cited” or “References” before your list of sources (so that this section will not be screened by SimCheck for
similarity report).

This document is full of helpful tips about writing a strong paper, proper ways to cite photos and references, and more!

You must upload your paper as a word document. If you do not have Microsoft Word, this program is free to UW students and can be
downloaded here: https://www.washington.edu/itconnect/wares/uware/microsoft/microsoft-office-365-proplus-for-uw-students/
(https://www.washington.edu/itconnect/wares/uware/microsoft/microsoft-office-365-proplus-for-uw-students/)

4. Academic Integrity and Plagiarism Detection
Check Academic Integrity page to make sure that your paper does not violate any plagiarism policies set by the University.

We use “SimCheck” by Turnitin to detect plagiarism in assignments. SimCheck is a web-based system that allows student papers to be
submitted and checked for plagiarism. SimCheck compares student papers with sources available on the Internet, select commercial article
databases, and papers submitted at UW or other institutions using Turnitin. This is also a tool for you. When you submit your paper online,
you will see your SimCheck”similarity score.” This score tells you how much of your paper is similar to other sources. If your score is more
than 10%, you may have used someone else’s words without properly citing them. You can use SimCheck to see why the score is
high – to see portions of your paper that may have been found somewhere else.

In order for SimCheck to correctly generate a similarity percentage report, please use the subheading “Works Cited” or “References”
before your list of sources, so that section will not be screened.

If you turn in a paper with a similarity score higher than 10% and want to correct it, email your TA immediately and let them know.
Then make the necessary changes and re-submit as soon as possible. If you do not correct the problem, you will be reported to the
committee on academic misconduct. You can read more about the software on the UW IT Connect webpage
(https://itconnect.uw.edu/learn/tools/canvas/canvas-help-for-instructors/assignments-grading/vericite/) .

You will be reported to the committee on academic misconduct for violations of academic integrity. If the committee finds you
guilty, you will receive a zero on the exam or have the opportunity to re-write the paper for up to 50% possible points.

5. Peer Review
Peer Review Instruction

Peer-review is required for this assignment and should be completed electronically using the review tool within canvas. You will be assigned
two papers to review once you turn your paper in.

Peer-reviewers must provide specific, directive feedback that covers all sections of the assignment rubric, including: Content, Brevity and
Organization, Spelling and Grammar, Images, and References.

In the final draft of your paper, please include a one paragraph response to the peer reviews you received. This response should indicate
what feedback from the peer-review process you found helpful, what suggestions you incorporated, and anything your reviewers suggested
that you did not change and why you didn’t make these changes.

6. Writing Resources
Odegaard undergraduate writing center: http://depts.washington.edu/owrc/signup.php (http://depts.washington.edu/owrc/signup.php)

CLUE Writing Center (at Mary Gates Hall): http://depts.washington.edu/aspuw/clue/home/
(http://depts.washington.edu/aspuw/clue/home/)

https://canvas.uw.edu/courses/1434504/files/71071962/download?wrap=1

https://www.washington.edu/itconnect/wares/uware/microsoft/microsoft-office-365-proplus-for-uw-students/

https://canvas.uw.edu/courses/1434504/pages/academic-integrity

https://itconnect.uw.edu/learn/tools/canvas/canvas-help-for-instructors/assignments-grading/vericite/

https://canvas.uw.edu/courses/1434504/assignments/5883689

http://depts.washington.edu/owrc/signup.php

http://depts.washington.edu/aspuw/clue/home/

2021/2/14 Persuasive Essay DRAFT

https://canvas.uw.edu/courses/1434504/assignments/5883690 3/5

Persuasive Essay Wi 2021

Many excellent resources are available at the Political Science Writing Center (http://depts.washington.edu/pswrite/forstudents.html) ,
including guidelines for thesis statements, paper structure and organization, grammar and punctuation, critical analysis, and peer editing.
While these resources are geared to social science courses, they will be helpful for most academic papers – including this one for ENVIR
100!

http://depts.washington.edu/pswrite/forstudents.html

2021/2/14 Persuasive Essay DRAFT

https://canvas.uw.edu/courses/1434504/assignments/5883690 4/5

Criteria Ratings Pts

50 pts

15 pts

15 pts
15 pts
15 pts

Content 50 pts
Clear description of
your issue, its causes,
and a solution or
solutions to address it

45 pts
Strong
work but a
few details
are
unclear.

40 pts
Addresses all three
components but one
component needs
substantial work.

30 pts
Fails to address all
three components OR
several other
substantial problems.

15 pts
Very little of
the content
requested is
described.

0 pts
Completely
off topic, no
attention to
assignment

Brevity and
structural
components

15 pts
Presents the most important information in 3-4 pages
with 1.5 spaced, 1″ margins

12 pts
A little long
or short

8 pts
Much too long
or short

0 pts
No attention to brevity and
structural requirements

Writing
quality

15 pts
The organization of paragraphs and
sentences within the paragraphs is
logical. There are few grammatical
errors. Writing flows naturally.

12 pts
Just shy of
outstanding! Pay
attention to details
in the work of
writing.

8 pts
Significant grammar or
organizational issues. Spend
more time in the drafting and
revision phases of writing.

4 pts
Difficult to
understand. The
writing challenges
obscure the main
points.

Images 15 pts
Great match for topic. Powerful
images add meaning. Images
include captions,citations, and
are referenced in the text.

12 pts
Good images but could be
stronger OR lacks captions
and/or citations and/or
reference in the text.

10 pts
Good images but could be
stronger AND lacks
captions and/or citations
and/or reference in the text.

8 pts
Images are a
questionable
fit to topic

0 pts
Images
don’t fit
topic at
all or
are not
included

References 15 pts
5+ sources of which 2+ are
peer reviewed, with in-text
citations and a references list
with correct formatting.

12 pts
5+ sources of which 2+ are peer
reviewed, with in-text citations and a
reference list. Formatting errors in
reference list and/or in-text citations.

10 pts
Lacks either in-text
citations or a
reference list or has
three or fewer
references.

6 pts
Two or
fewer
sources.

0 pts
Lacks
references

2021/2/14 Persuasive Essay DRAFT

https://canvas.uw.edu/courses/1434504/assignments/5883690 5/5

Total Points: 130

Criteria Ratings Pts

20 pts

Peer review 20 pts
Excellent peer review. Offered
specific, directive suggestions
for improvement in structure,
organization, grammar, and
readability.

15 pts
Good peer review. We hope to see more
comments focused on structure and
organization, but good job overall. It is clear
that another student’s work could be assisted
by your review.

10 pts
It is difficult to see
how the paper could
be improved by your
comments and
suggestions.

0 pts
Did not
participate
in peer
review

Ce Yin

Umbrella Topic:China and Afforestation. Persuasive Essay topic: China’s efforts on Afforestation in recent years.

Access World News Search Terms: “China afforestation”

Citation: Stünkel, L., & Tucker, J. (2020, August 13). China’s afforestation efforts: Not seeing the forest for the trees? https://isdp.eu/china-afforestation-efforts/.

Google Image Search Terms: China Afforestation

Photo Source (in references): Wang. (August 7th, 2018). Workers of the forest farm have taken the advantage of the current rainy season to promote ecological protection through afforestation. Xinhua.

Web of Science Search Terms: China Afforestation

Citation: Ahrends A, Hollingsworth PM, Beckscha¨fer P, Chen H, Zomer RJ, Zhang L, Wang M, Xu J. (2017). China’s fight to halt tree cover loss.