SOC100: Introduction to Sociology I
Professor McIvor
INDEPENDENT DEBATE RESEARCH PAPER INSTRUCTIONS
Table of Contents
I. General Assignment Details: ................................................................................................................................. 3
Due dates: ............................................................................................................................................................. 3
Submitting your paper: ......................................................................................................................................... 3
Plagiarism: ..........................................................................................................................................................................3
Re-Submission Opportunity: ................................................................................................................................. 4
II. Specific Paper Topic Details: ................................................................................................................................. 4
Paper Topic #1: Does Gen-Z have a more difficult university experience than prior generations in Canada? . 4
Topic Description: ...............................................................................................................................................................4
Body Paragraphs: ...............................................................................................................................................................5
Paper Topic #2: Canada should implement universal mental health care?........................................................ 5
Topic Description: ...............................................................................................................................................................5
Body Paragraphs: ...............................................................................................................................................................6
Paper Topic #3: Social media apps do more harm to society than good? .......................................................... 7
Topic Description: ...............................................................................................................................................................7
Body Paragraphs: ...............................................................................................................................................................7
III. Paper Formatting & Requirements ..................................................................................................................... 8
III. Assignment Advice .............................................................................................................................................. 9
IV. Assignment Structure ........................................................................................................................................ 10
IV. Paper Frequently Asked Questions by Section................................................................................................. 10
Choosing Sources FAQ ........................................................................................................................................ 10
1) What's the oldest publication you can have for a source? (e.g. are sources from the 1900s OK?) ..........................11
2) Regarding the minimum of eight sources does anyone know if there is any website/resource that can help us to
find specific/desired research/sources? ..........................................................................................................................11
3) Results from Google Scholar are usually not very specific to the phrase entered, and more so seem to be related
to keywords. Is there a technique to help solve this? ....................................................................................................11
4) For this assignment, it is stated that we need 8 sources for our evidence. Is it okay if many of our sources come
from the same website or course if it has a variety of research studies on different topics? .......................................11
5) Is it alright if some studies/sources are not from Canada? ........................................................................................11
5b) What would be the best way to evaluate if a source is relevant to Canada? ..........................................................11
6) Is it okay to use review articles (that are also peer-reviewed) as some of the sources? Or only primary articles? .12
Paper Structure FAQ ........................................................................................................................................... 12
1) I think it was recommended to do two paragraphs on the supporting side of the issue and then two paragraphs
on the opposing side, but can we reverse that (do two on the opposing side, then two on the supporting side)? ....13
2) I think it was recommended to do two paragraphs on one side of the issue and then two paragraphs on the other
side, but can we alternate arguments instead? ..............................................................................................................13
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3) Can the paper be less than 3.5 pages long? ................................................................................................................13
4) Can the paper be longer than 3.5 pages? ....................................................................................................................13
5) Does the 3.5 pages limit include the cover page and the page for references? ........................................................13
Title Page FAQ ..................................................................................................................................................... 13
1) What do I need to do to have a good title? .................................................................................................................13
2) When writing the plagiarism acknowledgment sentence on the front cover page, do we need to write it exactly
as it is given on the debate paper template? Would that be considered plagiarism? ..................................................14
4 Argument (2 For, 2 Against) Paragraphs FAQ ................................................................................................ 14
1) When making the two arguments in our paper for each side, is it best to have three supporting facts for each
argument? How many facts are recommended to support each argument? ................................................................14
2) In our paragraphs presenting the arguments for and against, should we write things like "The argument is that",
or "Many argue that", or should we just present the argument straightforwardly? ....................................................14
Policy/Judgement Paragraph FAQ ..................................................................................................................... 15
1) How specific do we need to get with describing the policy we think should be implemented? ..............................15
In-Text Citations FAQ .......................................................................................................................................... 15
1) If the website I'm citing does not have an author, how would I do the in-text citation? .........................................16
2) When do I need to use quotation marks? ...................................................................................................................16
3) How do I use in-text citations properly? .....................................................................................................................16
4) Can you explain the ASA citation style to me?............................................................................................................17
5) Do I need to use the most recent ASA edition? Can I use an older edition? ..............................................................17
6) Do I need to cite lectures? How do I cite lectures? .....................................................................................................17
Works Cited FAQ ................................................................................................................................................. 17
1) The debate assignment instructions say you must have at least eight sources and don't need to cite all of them if
you don't use their ideas. But the assignment template says you should have at least eight references cited on the
works cited page. Should we cite at least eight sources even if we don't use their ideas to show that we researched
them? Or should we mention only the sources that contribute to our paper? How would you know that we
researched at least eight sources if we didn't cite them all? ..........................................................................................17
2) We just have to cite the sources we used right we don't need to do a whole annotated bibliography type thing
for them? ..........................................................................................................................................................................17
3) Can you explain the ASA citation style to me?............................................................................................................17
4) Do I need to use the most recent ASA edition? Can I use an older edition? ..............................................................18
5) How do I cite generative AI in ASA style? ....................................................................................................................18
6) Do I need to cite lectures? How do I cite lectures? .....................................................................................................18
Drug Legalization Debate Paper FAQ .....................................................................Error! Bookmark not defined.
1) In the instruction of the second essay "Should all drug be legal.", it mentions that we cannot discuss specific
drugs separately. However, can we use specific drug as examples to support our thesis? For example, one of my
thesis is that drug legalization can increase the government's tax revenues, and I want to use cannabis data as an
example to prove it. Is that okay? ...................................................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.


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I. General Assignment Details:

Worth: 25% of your final grade

Due dates:
Topic Due Date
Grace Period
End Date
Does Gen-Z have a more difficult university experience
than prior generations in Canada?
Fri, Sept.27th
(11:59pm)
Friday, Oct.4th
(11:59pm)
Canada should implement universal mental health care?
Friday, Oct.4th
(11:59pm)
Friday, Oct.11th
(11:59pm)
Social media apps do more harm to society than good?
Fri, Nov.22nd
(11:59pm)
Fri, Nov.29th
(11:59pm)


Submitting your paper:

• Students MUST submit an e-copy of the paper on Quercus.
o To do so, on the course’s Quercus homepage click “Assignments” and you will see the
folder to submit your assignment for each of the paper topics/deadlines (please note: the
topic of your paper must match the deadline topic, it is NOT possible to mix and match
topics and deadlines).

• Papers must be in word or pdf format, if your paper is in a pages format it won’t be readable in
Quercus. NO hard copy of your paper is required.

• Please note that a student is responsible for submitting a readable document. NO
ACCOMODATIONS WILL BE GIVEN FOR a submitted file that is corrupted, un-
openable, or contains only symbols.

• Students are responsible for submitting a document. NO ACCOMODATIONS WILL BE
GIVEN FOR a file that you intended to submit but ultimately did not submit. It is up to
you to check and make sure that your document was actually uploaded.

Plagiarism:

• Please Note: We check all papers for plagiarism THOROUGHLY. Any instances of plagiarism
whether intentional or not will result in a paper automatically being given a grade of 0 and the
incident will be reported to the University’s academic integrity office. Please consult the course
writing guide for what constitutes plagiarism.

o When you submit your paper to Quercus, it will be screened through the plagiarism
detection tool TurnItIn. TurnItIn is the University’s plagiarism detection tool, and it
conducts a review of textual similarity and plagiarism. In submitting your essay, you
agree to allow it to be included as source documents in the tool’s reference database,
where it will be used solely for the purpose of detecting plagiarism. The terms that apply
to the University’s use of this tool are described on the Centre for Teaching Support &
Innovation web site (https://uoft.me/pdt-faq).

o PLEASE NOTE: Your % similarity score is not used as a tool to determine plagiarism,
instead we look for actual plagiarism (e.g. having identical citations are NOT a problem,
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similarities where quotation marks are used are NOT a problem, similarities with no
quotations of 5 or more words IS plagiarism and only those occurrences are penalized).

o It is NOT ok to have ChatGPT or other AI write any part of your paper for you. This is
plagiarism and will result at minimum in a score of 0 for your debate paper section of the
course as well as it being reported to the university’s academic integrity office. We have
run every prompt for the debate papers through Chat GPT as well as other AI. We have
also taken time to edit the prompt in various ways to solicit different results from Chat
GPT and other AI. Finally, we have also then taken all of the responses we have received
from AI in the prior step and run it through every paraphrasing tool we could find. Those
results were also uploaded to UofT’s plagiarism software, which means we will detect
when people use such a system to write their paper. ChatGPT is fine to use as an aide
when writing the paper, similar to google, but everything must be put in your own words.

Re-Submission Opportunity:
• You are only required to submit one debate paper and you can submit for whichever of the
papers/due dates appeals to you most.

• However, we offer the option of submitting up to two papers to try and improve your grade, but
to do this you MUST submit your first paper for Debate #1 or #2 and the second paper MUST be
for debate #3 (if you submit for debate paper #1 you will NOT get your grade in time to know if
you want to re-submit by debate #2). No other combination of re-submitting papers is permitted.

• If you submit two papers, we will use the HIGHER of the two paper grades in all cases.

• The option to submit a second paper is provided so that you have the opportunity to reach the
grade you desire in the course. If you are unhappy with your first paper grade, you can learn
from the feedback and try again for another debate. Please note though, the second paper you
submit must be a NEW paper on the third debate topic, editing and re-submitting your prior
paper will result in the edited re-submission not being graded.


II. Specific Paper Topic Details:

Paper Topic #1: Does Gen-Z have a more difficult university experience than prior
generations in Canada?

Topic Description:
• This paper will explore the unique challenges faced by Generation Z (born approximately between
1997 and 2012) in the context of higher education in Canada, comparing their university
experience to that of previous generations, including Millennials and Generation X. Your analysis
can focus on several key factors that may contribute to a more or less difficult experience for Gen-
Z, the factors can include but are not limited to:
o Economic Pressures: Rising tuition fees, student debt, and the cost of living compared to
previous generations.
o Technological Changes: The impact of digital learning, social media, and constant
connectivity on academic performance, mental health, and social interaction.
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o Mental Health: Increased awareness and prevalence of mental health issues such as
anxiety and depression, and the availability of support services compared to earlier
generations.
o Cultural and Social Shifts: Shifting societal norms like grade inflation in high school,
greater diversity and inclusivity on campus, as well as the pressures related to social
justice activism.
o Changing University Equity Programs: The relatively recent implementation of
accessibility services, accommodated testing services, mental health services, and more.
o Job Market Realities: How evolving job market demands, internships, and the perceived
value of a university degree have changed over time and affect student stress and
preparedness for the workforce.
• By considering these factors, your paper will aim to assess whether the university experience for
Gen-Z is more demanding and complex than that of prior generations, whether these challenges
are simply different but not necessarily more difficult, or potentially whether prior generations
actually had a harder experience than Gen-Z.

Body Paragraphs:
o Make your best two arguments for why Gen-Z has a harder university experience.
▪ You should do research to come up with all arguments for why Gen-Z has a harder
university experience, then from these you want to consider counter-arguments, logical
consistency, and empirical support for each argument to decide on the best two
arguments for this side of the debate.
o Make two arguments for why Gen-Z has NOT had a harder university experience.
▪ You should do research to come up with all arguments for why Gen-Z has NOT had a
harder university experience, then from these you want to consider counter-arguments,
logical consistency, and empirical support for each argument to decide on the best two
arguments for this side of the debate.
o In your judgement paragraph, state what conclusion you think the research on the topic
leads to. The three possible conclusions are:
1. the university experience for Gen-Z is more demanding than that of prior
generations,
2. the university experience for Gen-Z is different but not more demanding than
that of prior generations,
3. the university experience for Gen-Z is less demanding than that of prior
generations.
▪ After you state your conclusion, argue what the Canadian government and/or
Universities should do to improve university for the current generation of
university students. Or if you conclude that Gen-Z has an equally difficult or less
difficult experience then argue why no changes are needed.
▪ Please note that you only have one paragraph, so we do not expect a ton of
detail on the policies you propose. Please also note that the effectiveness of
your policy proposals should be supported by empirical evidence.

Paper Topic #2: Canada should implement universal mental health care?

Topic Description:
• This paper will critically examine the question of whether Canada should implement a universal
mental health care system, integrating mental health services into the broader public health care
system. The paper can analyse things like the current state of mental health care in Canada, the
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gaps in access to services, the cost of implementing universal mental health care, the idea of
whether governments or individuals are responsible for one’s mental health, and the potential
benefits and challenges of making mental health care universally available. Some ideas for
factors you could consider are:
o Current Mental Health Care System: Overview of how mental health care is currently
provided in Canada, including public and private services, and the disparities in access
due to cost, geography, and availability of services.
o Economic Impacts: The potential financial costs and benefits of implementing universal
mental health care, including its effects on the overall health care budget, the workforce,
and society at large.
o Social Justice and Equity: Analyzing the moral and ethical implications of making mental
health care universally accessible, particularly for marginalized groups such as Indigenous
communities, low-income individuals, and rural populations.
o Public Health Benefits: Exploring the potential for improved public health outcomes,
including reduced rates of suicide, addiction, homelessness, and chronic illness, if mental
health care were universally provided.
o Comparative Analysis: Examining countries that have successfully integrated mental
health into their universal health care systems, such as the United Kingdom and Australia,
and what lessons can be learned from these models.
o Challenges and Criticisms: Potential obstacles to implementing universal mental health
care, including funding challenges, the strain on existing health care infrastructure, and
concerns about the quality and timeliness of care.
• Your paper should weigh the ethical, economic, and social dimensions of this issue, critically
considering both the potential advantages and drawbacks of universal mental health care in the
Canadian context. By engaging with scholarly sources, policy reports, and case studies, students
will develop a well-rounded argument for and against the implementation of such a system,
grounded in sociological theory and evidence.

Body Paragraphs:
o Make two arguments for why Canada should implement universal mental health care.
▪ You should do research to come up with all arguments for why Canada should
implement mental health care, then from these you want to consider counter-
arguments, logical consistency, and empirical support for each argument to decide
on the best two arguments for this side of the debate.
o Make two arguments for why Canada should NOT implement universal mental health
care.
▪ You should do research to come up with all arguments for why Canada should
NOT implement mental health care, then from these you want to consider
counter-arguments, logical consistency, and empirical support for each argument
to decide on the best two arguments for this side of the debate.
o In your judgement paragraph, state what conclusion you think the research on the topic
leads to. The two possible conclusions are:
1. Canada should implement universal mental health care
2. Canada should NOT implement universal mental health care.
▪ After you state your conclusion, argue what Canadian governments should do to
improve the mental health of its citizens. Or if you conclude that it is not a
government’s responsibility than argue why no changes are needed.
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▪ Please note that you only have one paragraph, so we do not expect a ton of
detail on the policies you propose. Please also note that the effectiveness of
your policy proposals should be supported by empirical evidence.


Paper Topic #3: Social media apps do more harm to society than good?

Topic Description:
• This paper will explore the sociological impacts of social media apps, critically evaluating
whether they cause more harm than benefit to individuals and society as a whole. The paper will
analyze the complex ways in which platforms like Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and Twitter
influence social behavior, relationships, mental health, and societal structures. Some areas you
could focus on include:
o Mental Health: Examining the relationship between social media use and mental health
issues such as anxiety, depression, and body image concerns, particularly among young
people.
o Social Relationships: Analyzing whether social media apps enhance or weaken social
connections, focusing on issues like loneliness, cyberbullying, and the impact on real-
world social interactions.
o Misinformation and Polarization: Investigating how social media platforms contribute to
the spread of misinformation, fake news, and the polarization of political and social
beliefs.
o Cultural Shifts: Exploring how social media apps shape cultural norms, values, and
behaviors, including trends related to self-presentation, consumerism, and social activism.
o Addiction and Attention Span: Assessing the addictive nature of social media and its
effects on users' attention spans, productivity, and cognitive functioning.
o Positive Contributions: Considering the positive aspects of social media, including the
democratization of information, the ability to build supportive online communities, and
the role of social media in social and political movements like #MeToo and Black Lives
Matter.
• Your paper should critically evaluate both the positive and negative aspects of social media apps
using empirical research, case studies, and theoretical perspectives You need to develop strong
arguments for the idea that the societal harms of social media outweigh its benefits, as well as
arguments that social medias positive contributions outweigh its harms.

Body Paragraphs:
o Make two arguments for why social media apps do more harm than good.
▪ You should do research to come up with all arguments for why social media apps
do more harm than good, then from these you want to consider counter-
arguments, logical consistency, and empirical support for each argument to decide
on the best two arguments for this side of the debate.
o Make two arguments for why social media apps do NOT do more harm than good.
▪ You should do research to come up with all arguments for why social media apps
do NOT do more harm than good, then from these you want to consider counter-
arguments, logical consistency, and empirical support for each argument to decide
on the best two arguments for this side of the debate.
o In your judgement paragraph, state what conclusion you think the research on the topic
leads to. The three possible conclusions are:
1. Social media apps do more harm than good in society.
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2. Social media apps do equal harm and good in society.
3. Social media apps do more good than harm in society.
▪ After you state your conclusion, argue what Canadian governments should do to
limit or stop the negative effects of social media, or what they should do to
promote and boost the positive effects of social media.
▪ Please note that you only have one paragraph, so we do not expect a ton of
detail on the policies you propose. Please also note that the effectiveness of
your policy proposals should be supported by empirical evidence.
III. Paper Formatting & Requirements

• Your paper MUST be 3.5 pages double-spaced (not including the title page and works cited
page).
o Do your best to gauge where half a page is (most word processers have a ruler on the
side that can help here). You are allowed to be one sentence over half a page but any
more and points will be deducted because TA’s will not read anything after the page
limit; it is important to be able to be concise and respect page limits and TA’s are only
paid to read 3.5 pages.
• You MUST use 12 point Times New Roman Font and “Normal” or 1 inch margins.1

• You MUST have a cover page stating your Title, Name, Course, Professor, and date of
submission. This page should also include a sentence stating that you understand what
plagiarism is and have used citations when borrowing the ideas or words of others. And another
sentence acknowledging that the minimum penalty for plagiarism is a grade of 0 on the
assignment. (see Assignment template)
• You MUST use page numbers.
• You MUST include a works cited page.
• You must use the ASA (American Sociological Association) citation style.2
• You MUST use a minimum of EIGHT sources.
o That is, you must look at eight sources that DO NOT INCLUDE my lecture slides, the
assignment instructions, or materials I have assigned to you for AM quizzes (you can use
and cite these, they just don’t count towards the 8 sources required). In other words, you
must find and consider at least eight other valid sources of information that are not part of
this course.
o I will allow any source that has undergone any type of review process. For example,
academic articles, journal articles, books, magazine and/or newspaper articles,
documentaries, videos of news reports, official reports from government organizations,
and other similar sources are all acceptable. Personal blog posts or other unedited sources
of information are not. PLEASE NOTE: You have the responsibility to judge the validity
of your source’s information ad will be assessed on this judgement (see tutorial #2 for
help). There are bad sources that fit within the type I allow and good sources that do not.

1 If in doubt about whether your margins are normal, in Microsoft word select the “Layout” tab at the top then select margins
(1st option on the left) and normal.
2 Please see: https://www.asanet.org/wp-content/uploads/savvy/documents/teaching/pdfs/Quick_Tips_for_ASA_Style.pdf as
well as: https://sociology.fas.harvard.edu/files/sociology/files/asastyleguide.pdf
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Use your judgement and try to make good decisions. If you have questions about a
source, you are ALWAYS welcome at my office hours. PLEASE NOTE THOUGH:
sources you cite MUST make arguments based on empirical evidence and not based on
opinions, values, or other non-empirical evidence.3 Essentially this means that the source
must use data like statistics or have done an empirical study such as academic journal
articles. Sources will be checked and graded, you can see tutorial #2 slides for the class
discussion on what constitutes a good source.
o You DO NOT need to cite all 8 sources within the paper text, it is entirely possible to
review sources and not use their ideas. Just remember that if you do use a source’s ideas
then you need to include it as an in-text citation.
• This assignment is an exercise in critical thinking, the goal is to research and consider both sides
of a debate, and to really think about it to determine which side you fall on.
• PLEASE BE ADVISED: I have posted an Assignment Template that you can use for your
assignment. It has the correct margins and other technical specifications. This is to make life
easier for you and to take out the guesswork of whether something is formatted correctly. You
are NOT required to use this exact template, it’s just to show you what the paper should
generally look like.
III. Assignment Advice

• For your assignment, you need to look at both sides of the debate in question equally. Imagine
you are a lawyer for each side and make two arguments for each side; in other words, it’s your
job to make the BEST possible arguments for each side regardless of what you personally
believe. Lastly, take on the role of a judge when determining your position (i.e., base your
conclusion/policy judgement on the facts of your research versus just what you personally
believe). In other words, state your policy recommendation and the justifications for it
professionally and without the use of personal pronouns. This isn’t about what your personally
believe, this is about the conclusion that an unbiased analysis of the facts leads you to.
• All good papers regardless of structure have some key elements:
1. Critical Analysis:
▪ Good papers and analyses do not just accept information like that presented in a
documentary or in an article at face value, they research it further to get the view of a
few different sources and use critical analysis to dissect it and form their own opinion.
2. A Thesis:
▪ All good papers have a point. In other words, papers are written with a purpose (and
the reason for your paper should not be simply that I assigned you to write one!).
Your paper should have a point, it should have an argument that you want to make
clear to whoever reads it, this is your thesis and everything in your paper should be
included only because it contributes to that thesis: in other words, if something you
want to say in the paper does not add to your thesis then do not include it. Your thesis
for this assignment should take the form of stating what your policy conclusion is and
why. Don’t be mysterious either, state this directly in the intro.

3 https://research.com/research/what-is-empirical-research
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IV. Assignment Structure

• Please note that we went over the paper structure in tutorial #1 (please review those slides). The
expected structure of your paper is as follows:

Introduction
(1 paragraph, half a page)
State the issue, state it’s importance, outline the two arguments
you will present on the first side of the debate, outline the two
arguments for the other side of the debate, then state your thesis
(which is your final judgement and your policy
recommendation or reason why no policy changes are needed).
Argument 1
(roughly 1 paragraph, half a page)
Make your first main argument for the For side of the debate.
Argument 2
(roughly 1 paragraph, half a page)
Make your second main argument for the For side of the
debate.
• Each argument should be INDEPENDENT of the other
arguments, they can build off each other but must be
there own unique arguments for each one.
Argument 3
(roughly 1 paragraph, half a page)
Make your first main argument for opposite or Against side of
the debate.
• Each argument should be INDEPENDENT of the other
arguments, these are not counter-arguments to the two
previous arguments you wrote about.
Argument 4
(roughly 1 paragraph, half a page)
Make your second main argument for opposite or Against side
of the debate.
• Each argument should be INDEPENDENT of the other
arguments, these are not counter-arguments to the two
previous arguments you wrote about.
Your Analysis/Perspective
(roughly 1 paragraph, half a page
is expected but you can do two
paragraphs if you need)
Give your judgement on the policies that should be implement
related to the debate (see paper topics section for judgement
options for each debate). State which side of the debate you
find more convincing and why. In other words, a good chunk of
this paragraph should be dedicated to evaluating the arguments
you made for each side of the debate, then describe why that
evaluation led to the policy proposals you decided on. The
challenge here is to do it without using first-person pronouns.
Conclusion
(Roughly 1 paragraph, half a
page)
Tie everything together and state the main points/arguments of
your paper for the reader. Tell them what they should take away
from your paper, i.e. the main message or argument. Remember
this is a summary, nothing new should be included here.

IV. Paper Frequently Asked Questions by Section


Choosing Sources FAQ
• Please remember that we dedicated an entire tutorial to this (see tutorial #2 slides).
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1) What's the oldest publication you can have for a source? (e.g. are sources from the 1900s OK?)

o Generally, the more recent the source the better (because older articles have a greater risk
of no longer being relevant) . There's no hard or fast rule, it's just about having information
that isn't outdated or irrelevant - so if you find something super relevant and useful that's
more than 20 years old (say from 1995), you can use it. Tutorial #2 went over source years as
well so you can see what we covered there.

2) Regarding the minimum of eight sources does anyone know if there is any website/resource that
can help us to find specific/desired research/sources?

o www.scholar.google.com is very helpful for finding journal articles. As is the library website:
https://onesearch.library.utoronto.ca/, you'll note that the library website has a "Chat with
us" button as well if you need further help.

3) Results from Google Scholar are usually not very specific to the phrase entered, and more so seem
to be related to keywords. Is there a technique to help solve this?
o The UC Santa Cruz Library has a helpful website with tips for searching google scholar:
https://guides.library.ucsc.edu/c.php?g=745384&p=5361954

4) For this assignment, it is stated that we need 8 sources for our evidence. Is it okay if many of our
sources come from the same website or course if it has a variety of research studies on different
topics?
o Generally speaking, you do want a diverse set of sources (for example, all 8 sources being
from the same website gives the impression that the research done was very limited in
scope and that's not good). So it's ok if some of the citations are from the same source. For
example, two different statistics from the United Nations or Statistics Canada, but otherwise
you should try to bring in diverse sources.
o Finally, please see the tutorial #2 slides for information on choosing sources/which sources
are most reliable.

5) Is it alright if some studies/sources are not from Canada?
o Yes, it's OK if some studies are not from Canada. It's quite common to use studies from other
countries when doing academic research, the only qualification when using foreign studies is
that you must evaluate whether the findings would be relevant to Canada. For example, a
study on voting behavior in China would not be very relevant to Canada given the significant
difference in political systems. However, a study on how social media use affects teen
mental health from China would have relevance to Canada despite cultural and other
differences because the process (social media effects on teens) is generally the same.

5b) What would be the best way to evaluate if a source is relevant to Canada?

▪ Ultimately, this will be based on your critical analysis/evaluation of that question. Some
helpful tips/questions though are:
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o Consider how different the countries are culturally, linguistically, politically,
economically, and so on. the more different a country is from Canada, the more you
should be careful using studies from that country to make decisions/assumptions
about Canada.
o As another example, generally countries at different economic development stages
are not compared against each other (e.g. comparing wealthy countries to non-
wealthy countries).
o As a final example, studies from say the US, UK, & Australia are generally accepted
quite easily as relevant to Canada (cultural similarities, English speaking, similar
political systems, similar economic development level, etc.). On the other hand,
studies from say China, Russia, India, Turkey, etc. are seen as much less likely to be
relevant to Canada given the greater differences economically, culturally,
linguistically, politically, and so on.
o The above tip depends on what the study in question is on though. If it's about
social media use and mental health, then smartphones are going to be quite similar
across countries and the social media apps used are generally the same between
countries too so that means a study from one country is likely relevant to others. If
it was a study about nationalism or patriotism, then the differences between
nations likely means a study from a different country is less relevant.
o One way to get around this problem is to cite more than one study from different
countries. For example, if you can't find a Canadian study on how social media
affects mental health, you could cite a US and a UK study that has those findings--
this essentially shows the reader that this finding is true in different country
contexts so that makes it even more likely it would also be true in say Canada.
o The key here is that it's going to come down to your decision/analysis. Googling a
question like "how relevant is a study from India to Canada" can also help answer
these kinds of questions.

6) Is it okay to use review articles (that are also peer-reviewed) as some of the sources? Or only
primary articles?

Yes review articles that discuss a journal article and that are in academic journals are good sources.
7) How old can a peer-reviewed source be before it's considered to be less valid? For example,
would a peer-reviewed from 1999 be less valid than a peer-reviewed source from 2012?

There's no exact rule for when a source is too old, and it will depend on the research. Newer articles
can generally be considered more valid though, so yes an article from 1999 would generally be
considered less valid than an article from 2012.


Paper Structure FAQ

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1) I think it was recommended to do two paragraphs on the supporting side of the issue and then
two paragraphs on the opposing side, but can we reverse that (do two on the opposing side, then
two on the supporting side)?
o Yes, that is 100% fine.

2) I think it was recommended to do two paragraphs on one side of the issue and then two
paragraphs on the other side, but can we alternate arguments instead?
Basically, can we do this:
Supporting Paragraph 1
Supporting paragraph 2
Opposing Paragraph 1
Opposing Paragraph 2
However, would it be okay to alternate these? Like this:
Supporting Paragraph 1
Opposing Paragraph 1
Supporting Paragraph 2
Opposing Paragraph 2
Also, a related question, should the paragraphs be totally independent of one another? Or can
one paragraph respond to the argument in another paragraph?
o No, you should not use an alternating structure and your paragraphs should not be
responding to one another - we're looking for a structure with empirical evidence for each of
the four paragraphs, not one where your paragraphs are an argument and then a counter-
argument.

3) Can the paper be less than 3.5 pages long?
o There is no rule against the paper being shorter. We evaluate the quality of arguments when
grading though, and usually the more detail the better there (I say usually because
sometimes longer is not better and argument quality is about much more than just length).
So yes, it's fine but usually, it's a good idea to use the full space provided.

4) Can the paper be longer than 3.5 pages?
o No, everyone must have the same page limit (to have more space would be unfair, and TA’s
are paid for a 3.5 page paper only and will stop reading after 3.5 pages. The ruler function
can show you where the half-point mark of the page is and we will allow ONLY a one
sentence grace.

5) Does the 3.5 pages limit include the cover page and the page for references?
o No, the cover page and works cited do NOT count as part of the 3.5 pages.


Title Page FAQ

1) What do I need to do to have a good title?
o We do not grade titles so you can title your paper whatever you want as long as it makes
sense (i.e. the title shouldn't be something absurd and unrelated to the paper like 'Dogs
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Can't Fly'). It is 100% fine to have the title be the question prompt from t he instructions or
anything similar.

2) When writing the plagiarism acknowledgment sentence on the front cover page, do we need to
write it exactly as it is given on the debate paper template? Would that be considered plagiarism?
o Yes, it should be written exactly as is. It is fine to plagiarize in this case because it's just a
declaration statement that we expect all students to make and to make using the statement
provided.

Introduction Paragraph FAQ

1) I’m confused about what my thesis should be?
o Your thesis is your final judgement on the debate (see the discussion of each paper topic at
the start of this document for the possible judgements associated with each topic) and
either the policy/policies you’re recommending OR the reason why no policy changes are
needed.
o For example, in a debate on whether inheritance (i.e. children inheriting the wealth of their
parents) is fair some example theses are:
o After considering evidence for each side of the debate, it is clear that inheritance is
not fair, and that the government should implement an inheritance tax on
inheritance over a million dollars to make society more equal.
o It is clear that inheritance is a fair practice, and that the government does not need
to implement any inheritance-related policies because the ability for parents to pass
wealth to their children without tax should be a protected right.

4 Argument (2 For, 2 Against) Paragraphs FAQ

1) When making the two arguments in our paper for each side, is it best to have three supporting
facts for each argument? How many facts are recommended to support each argument?
o There's no maximum or minimum for how many facts you should have. It's open-ended on
purpose - you should use any many facts or sources as you feel are needed to support your
arguments. A good general guide, however, is to have two facts/empirical (i.e. based on
data) supporting argument per argument paragraph (i.e. 4 paragraphs and 8 required
sources).

2) In our paragraphs presenting the arguments for and against, should we write things like "The
argument is that", or "Many argue that", or should we just present the argument straightforwardly?
o It depends on what you mean by "straightforwardly" here. If you're editing your paper and
the sentences don't seem straightforward (e.g. are overly wordy etc.) then that may indicate
they need to be revised to be more concise. Professor McIvor's guide has examples that I
think might be getting at the issue you may be having.
o I would also note that if you use the phrase "Many argue that," an academic reader will
expect you to cite multiple sources to substantiate that "many" people make that argument
and often "many" comes off to the reader as too broad. For example: "Many academics
argue that overly broad statements undermine argumentation" would need to be supported
15

by evidence from multiple different sources to be convincing to the reader. By contrast
"McIvor (2023) argues that overly broad statements undermine argumentation" is a more
specific claim/statement. There's no hard rule on this, but as you edit, do watch out for
phrases that might leave the reader wondering whether the argument is actually
substantiated.

3) Should our two opposing paragraphs relate to the two "for" paragraphs? For example, if one of
our opposing paragraphs is discussing the economic challenges of going to university, should there
be a "for" paragraph that debates against the economic challenges? Or can the two "for" paragraphs
cover different topics that talk about how Gen Z students have it easier?
• Each argument should be independent of the others. When it comes to the opposing
arguments they should NOT be counter-arguing the for paragraph arguments, they should be
their own and separate arguments. You introduce counter-arguments and evaluate the
arguments in the judgement paragraph.
• Think of it like a court case. In a trial, the lawyer of each side presents their own arguments for
their side. It is not a case where one side presents arguments and then the other responds only
to those.

4) What do you mean when you say that each paragraph should end with a sentence connecting it
back to the thesis? What if my thesis is something like Gen-Z has a harder university experience but
the paragraph is an argument for why they don’t, how would I connect that to the thesis.
• Using the last sentence of each paragraph to connect the paragraph to the thesis is key to good
paper structure and flow. Basically, every paragraph starts with a sign-post sentence (telling the
reader where in the paper structure they are so that they know what information is coming in
the paragraph). Then the last sentence tells the reader WHY the information that you just went
over is being given to them, this is what we mean by connecting it back to the thesis.
• So in the case you mention (the paragraph argument contradicts the thesis conclusions) then
the tie-back sentence would be something like “[The Paragraph Argument] provides strong
evidence for why Gen-Z has an easier university experience than prior generations.” This ties
the paragraph to the thesis because it puts the paragraph in the context of the overall paper
question/theme.

Policy/Judgement Paragraph FAQ

1) How specific do we need to get with describing the policy we think should be implemented?
o You just need to state what your policy is and why you chose that as your policy (which will
ideally be based on the arguments made in the paper). You do not need to go into all the
details and specifics of the policy, we are not concerned with the details and instead are
more interested in why that is the policy you chose.


In-Text Citations FAQ

16

1) If the website I'm citing does not have an author, how would I do the in-text citation?
o If the specific author is unknown, then use the name of the organization/institution that
owns the website. For example, if I were to cite a webpage with no known author from the
American Sociological Association's (ASA) website, I would cite ASA as the author. e.g. (ASA,
2022) if I knew the page was published or modified in 2022 or (ASA, n.d) if I didn't know
when the page was published or modified.

2) When do I need to use quotation marks?
o From the posted General Writing Guide: "How do you know if you should use quotation
marks? In general, I recommend you follow the 5-word rule. In other words, if any 5 or more
consecutive words come directly from a source, you MUST put quotation marks around it.
Some students have a misconception that if you take a sentence and change one or two
words, this makes it paraphrasing instead of quoting. This belief is NOT true, however, as if 5
or more consecutive words remain the same it is plagiarism still. In such a case you would
need to use quotation marks and provide an in-text citation" (McIvor, 2023: p.1).

3) How do I use in-text citations properly?
o From the posted General Writing Guide again:
o "In-Text Citation Rule #1: Quotes should always be accompanied by an in-text
citation that contains the author, year, and page number of the quote within the
same sentence. You can do this in many different ways. For example:
▪ The motivation for communism may find its roots in the statement: “workers
of the world unite” (Marx, 1848: p.122).
• This is the most typical form of in-text citation for a quote, I.e. including
(Author’s last name, Year: page#) at the end of the sentence in
parentheses. It is
not, however, the only way to do it. You could also do:
▪ In The Communist Manifesto, Karl Marx (1848: p.122) states: “workers of the
world unite.”
• In this case, the author’s last name is stated in the sentence so it does
not need to be included in the parentheses. It is traditional also to put
the year behind the author’s name to indicate when the author said it;
this is why the date appears in the middle instead of at the end of the
sentence here. Finally, the page number of a quote is always given with
the year, hence why it appears earlier here as well. You could also do:
▪ In 1848, Karl Marx famously wrote “workers of the world unite” (p.122).
• In this case, both the author and year are stated in the text. Thus, only
the page number needs to be included in the parentheses at the end.
What you should take away from this is:
▪ In-Text Citation Rule #2: Of the 3 pieces of information needed to be
included in any in-text citation for a quote—i.e. author’s last name, year,
and page number—anything stated in the text does not need to be stated in
the parentheses.
o The same two general rules apply when paraphrasing another author’s ideas but not
directly quoting them word for word. There is, however, one key difference when
doing an in-text citation for a paraphrased idea versus a quote: you do not need to
include the page number when it is not a direct quote. The only information required
when paraphrasing is the Author’s last name and the year. Rule #2 also applies in that
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if you state the information in the sentence itself, it does not need to be stated again
in parentheses at the end of the sentence.
4) Can you explain the ASA citation style to me?
o It is preferable to use the most recent edition, but using any edition is 100% OK. Please see:
https://www.asanet.org/wp-
content/uploads/savvy/documents/teaching/pdfs/Quick_Tips_for_ASA_Style.pdf
o As well as: https://sociology.fas.harvard.edu/files/sociology/files/asastyleguide.pdf

5) Do I need to use the most recent ASA edition? Can I use an older edition?
o It is preferable to use the most recent edition, but using any edition is 100% OK.

6) Do I need to cite lectures? How do I cite lectures?
o This source includes how to cite lectures in ASA style:
https://brescia.uwo.ca/library/docs/asa_jan_2020_ocr.pdf
o Course materials (Assigned Material, Lectures, etc.) do NOT count towards the 8 required
sources. However, you should still cite them when using information from them (both as in-
text citations and in the works cited).

Works Cited FAQ

1) The debate assignment instructions say you must have at least eight sources and don't need to
cite all of them if you don't use their ideas. But the assignment template says you should have at
least eight references cited on the works cited page. Should we cite at least eight sources even if we
don't use their ideas to show that we researched them? Or should we mention only the sources that
contribute to our paper? How would you know that we researched at least eight sources if we didn't
cite them all?
o You do need to have a minimum of 8 good empirical sources in your works cited list - this
can include sources that you consulted in the research process but did not ultimately draw
on in your paper. If you do draw on them directly in the paper (through quotes or
paraphrasing), then you would cite them in-text, AND include them in your works cited list.
So the official rule is that you do NOT need to have all 8 sources cited in the paper as in-text
citations (though that would be a good idea), you DO however need to have at least eight
sources in the works cited still to show you did a sufficient amount of research for the paper.

2) We just have to cite the sources we used right we don't need to do a whole annotated
bibliography type thing for them?
o You need a formal references page (as per ASA guidelines) but you don't need an annotated
bibliography - that is, you should have references for each of your citations, but you should
not have annotations for each of the references. Just the reference is expected.

3) Can you explain the ASA citation style to me?
o It is preferable to use the most recent edition, but using any edition is 100% OK. Please see:
https://www.asanet.org/wp-
content/uploads/savvy/documents/teaching/pdfs/Quick_Tips_for_ASA_Style.pdf
18

o As well as: https://sociology.fas.harvard.edu/files/sociology/files/asastyleguide.pdf

4) Do I need to use the most recent ASA edition? Can I use an older edition?
o It is preferable to use the most recent edition, but using any edition is 100% OK.

5) How do I cite generative AI in ASA style?
o OpenAI. 2023. Chat GPT (March 14th Version). Accessed [replace this, including brackets,
with the date you accessed it]: [replace this highlighted part, including brackets, with
website URL used].

6) Do I need to cite lectures? How do I cite lectures?
o This source includes how to cite lectures in ASA style:
https://brescia.uwo.ca/library/docs/asa_jan_2020_ocr.pdf
o Course materials (Assigned Material, Lectures, etc.) do NOT count towards the 8 required
sources. However, you should still cite them when using information from them (both as in-
text citations and in the works cited).