WSTA01: Introduction to Women’s and Gender Studies
Written Assignment #2| Application of Course Concept | Aarzoo Singh


VALUE: 15%
DUE: Friday November 4, 2022 by 11:59pm on Quercus
FORMATTING: Double-spaced, 12-point font + works cited
LENGTH: Each section should be between 325 and 375 words (Please include your word count at
the end of each section), 650-700 words in total. You may go over word count by 10%, no more.
SOURCES: You must refer to min one course reading in your response, but you many use as many
as you might need—so no max (any from the first 7 weeks of class). Please do not use any sources
we have not seen in class.

For the second written assignment, you will choose one of the course concepts we have talked about and
apply it to a real-life situation you have experienced or witnessed.

In order to successfully complete this assignment, please follow the steps outlined below:

1. Choose one of the course concepts we have learned about in the first 7 weeks of class. Examples of
course concepts include (but are not limited to): intersectionality, the sex-gender binary, the
heterosexual matrix, heteronormativity, transgender identity, intersex traits, postfeminist media
culture, social determinants of health, ableism, settler colonialism. If you are unsure about whether
your idea is a course concept or not, please contact your tutorial leader for guidance.

2. Write a 325– to 375–word explanation of the concept you have chosen. Your explanation should be
clear and should not presuppose any prior knowledge on the part of your reader; pretend you are a
professor and you are explaining the concept to first-year university students. You are allowed to use
appropriate and useful quotations from any of the relevant articles we have read or video clips we have
watched in this section, if they help clarify your points. Please do not use any sources we have not seen
in class.

3. Write a 325– to 375–word description of how the course concept you have chosen and that you have
described above can be applied to a real-life situation you have experienced or witnessed. If you want
to relate the concept to an event in your own life, you are more than welcome to; if you would rather
not speak about your own life, then you may choose a real-life event that you have read about or seen
in the media. You may also choose to write about somebody else’s lived experience (a person that you
know or know of), but you must anonymise your text (ie, remove all identifying information about
this person). Again, you are allowed to use appropriate and useful quotations from relevant articles in
this section to establish the links between the lived experience you are describing and the course
concept; however, these should be brief, concise and limited. Please do not use any sources we have
not seen in class.

Please note that your written assignment must respect the following guidelines:
• Your first page should include the following information: the date, your name and student number,
the course number, your tutorial time and section, and the name of your tutorial leader.
• Your assignment should be typed in Times New Roman (or equivalent font) size 12, and double-
spaced.
• Your margins must be 1 inch, or 2.54 centimetres (the standard width when you open a Word
document).
• Please include a word count for each section (explanation of concept and link between concept and
lived experience). Each section should be between 325 and 375 words.
• You must use MLA format for any citations. A clear explanation of MLA style can be found at:
https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/mla_fo
rmatting_and_style_guide.html

You will submit this assignment as a Word document (.doc or .docx) on Quercus; you will have until 11:59
on November 4h to upload it to Quercus. Should you require accommodation around this deadline, advanced
discussion with your TA is necessary, otherwise a late penalty of 2% per day will be applied to your
assignment; we will not accept assignments uploaded after Friday November 11 at 11:59pm without valid
medical documentation.

Grading Rubric
Explanation of concept: /4
Links between concept and lived experience: /4
Quality of written expression: /3
Organisation of ideas /3
Material presentation: /1
Total /15

Please note that the grading rubric is appended to this document (page 3). Please read the rubric
categories carefully.

Academic Integrity
Academic integrity is essential to the pursuit of learning and scholarship in a university, and to ensuring that a
degree from the University of Toronto is a strong signal of each student’s individual academic achievement.
As a result, the University treats cases of cheating and plagiarism very seriously. The University of Toronto’s
Code of Behaviour on Academic Matters (http://www.governingcouncil.utoronto.ca/policies/behaveac.htm)
outlines the behaviours that constitute academic dishonesty and the processes for addressing academic offences.
Potential offences include, but are not limited to:
In papers and assignments:
• Using someone else’s ideas or words without appropriate acknowledgement.
• Submitting your own work in more than one course without the permission of the instructor.
• Making up sources or facts.
• Obtaining or providing unauthorized assistance on any assignment.
On tests and exams:
• Using or possessing unauthorized aids.
• Looking at someone else’s answers during an exam or test.
• Misrepresenting your identity.
In academic work:
• Falsifying institutional documents or grades.
• Falsifying or altering any documentation required by the University, including (but not limited to)
doctor’s notes.
All suspected cases of academic dishonesty will be investigated following procedures outlined in the Code of
Behaviour on Academic Matters. If you have questions or concerns about what constitutes appropriate
academic behaviour or appropriate research and citation methods, you are expected to seek out additional
information on academic integrity from your instructor or from other institutional resources (see
http://www.utoronto.ca/academicintegrity/).
Adapted from: Jeri English
GRADING RUBRIC
Written Assignment #2: Critical Response Paper
4 3 2 1 Score
Explanation
of course
concept
(4 possible
points)
- Explanation is between 325 and 375
words.
- Explanation presents all of the main
ideas and fundamental points of the
course concept.
- Explanation is clear, detailed and always
easy to follow.
- Quotations are well chosen and serve as
excellent illustrations of the course
concept.

- Explanation is somewhat too long or too
short.
- Explanation presents most of the main
ideas and fundamental points of the
course concept.
- Explanation is mostly clear; may not
have enough detail or be always easy to
follow.
- Quotations are mainly well chosen;
some may be superfluous.

- Explanation is quite a bit too long or too
short.
- Explanation misses some key ideas and
fundamental points of the course concept.
- Explanation is not very easy to follow;
ideas do not always come across clearly.
- Quotations are often poorly chosen or
overused.

- Explanation is entirely too long or too
short.
- Student misses most key ideas and
fundamental points of the course concept.
- Explanation is very unclear and hard to
follow.
- Quotations are poorly chosen or
overused.


Links between
concept and
lived
experience
(4 possible
points)

- Description of lived experience is
between 325 and 375 words.
- Links between course concept and lived
experience are clear and well-articulated.
- Examples given to establish link
between course concept and lived
experience are vivid and specific.
- Description of lived experience is
somewhat too long or too short.
- Links between course concept and lived
experience are mostly clear and quite
well-articulated.
- There are good, relevant examples given
to establish link between course concept
and lived experience.
- Description of lived experience is quite
a bit too long or too short.
- Links between course concept and lived
experience are somewhat unclear or are
not well-articulated.
- There are some examples given to
establish link between course concept and
lived experience, but these are vague or
general.
- Description of lived experience is
entirely too long or too short.
- Links between course concept and lived
experience are entirely unclear.
- There are too few or no examples given
to establish link between course concept
and lived experience.


Quality of
written
expression (3
possible
points)

- Manipulates complex sentences for
effect/impact.
- Few punctuation or mechanical errors.
- Vocabulary is sophisticated and correct.
- Sentences vary in structure and length.
- Tone is clear, consistent and appropriate
for intended audience.
- Uses some complex sentences.
- Some punctuation and/or mechanical
errors.
- Vocabulary is used properly, though
sentences may be simple.
- Uses simple sentences
- Too many punctuation and/or
mechanical errors.
- Vocabulary is unsophisticated and not
used properly.
- Ideas are hard to follow because of
writing problems.

Organisation
of ideas
(3 possible
points)
- Paper is logically organized and ideas
are easily followed.
- Uses effective, smooth, and logical
transitions.

-Paper has a clear organizational structure
though there are too many digressions,
ambiguities and irrelevances.
- Transitions are basic.
- Ideas can be difficult to follow.

- There is no apparent organization to the
paper.
- Ideas are difficult to follow.
- There are no or poor transitions.


Material
Presentation
(1 possible
point)




- Guidelines with regards to the
presentation of the paper were respected,
including MLA citations.


TOTAL
Comments: