Short paper 2
Basic Information :
Points: 40
Due date: May 5th by 11:00am
Page length: 4-5 pages double spaced, 12 point font
References needed: 5 minimum (APA citation format)
Topics : This is a more traditional research paper and students can choose to write on one of the following prompts:
1. Highlight a real juvenile offender and apply at least two criminological theories to explain why they committed the crimes they committed. Then talk about, based on why they offended, what prevention programs would have been appropriate to stop their offending.
2. Discuss two risk factors (that we talked about in class), highlight at least 2 new facts about each risk factor, and present at least one prevention program that would be useful to combatting each risk factor.
Structure of paper for Prompt 1
I. Introduction: summarize in one paragraph what your paper will talk about.
a. I suggest writing this at the very end after you have already written up your paper and structured your argument.
II. Discuss your real juvenile offender (1 page or so)
a. This will require you to look around at famous cases of juvenile offenders. This can be any kid who has been convicted of a crime. You can find these cases anywhere (podcasts, movies, etc.), but you will use reputable news sources or articles to fill in your discussion of the youth and the case.
b. Most of this discussion should focus on the case.
III. Applying criminological theories (bulk of your paper)
a. Based on the facts of the real juvenile offenders’ case that you selected, you will discuss two criminological theories that can explain this person’s behavior
i. These theories can be ones we talk about in class or something you learned in the Criminological Theories/Criminology class.
b. You should not just speculate on the causes of this persons offending, but instead should use facts about the case and about their life to draw these conclusions.
IV. Prevention/rehabilitation programming
a. Based on what you determined the causes of your juvenile’s crime to be, what prevention programs or rehabilitation programs could be beneficial to this youth and kids that are similar to him/her?
b. Don’t forget to check the youth.gov website to look for effective programs! You can find this link in our last class PowerPoint.
V. Conclusion: students should, in 2-4 sentences, summarize the paper and present a new insight not drawn in the paper thus far.
| Short paper 2 rubric: Prompt 1 | |||||
| Excellent | Above average | Acceptable | Below average | Non-existent | |
| Introduction (2.5 points) | Student had an introduction that outlined the paper fully | Student had an introduction but it only outlined part of the paper | Student had an introduction but it only outlined part of the paper and was confusing | Student had an introduction but it was off topic | Student did not include an intro |
| Discussing juvenile offender (10 points) | Student found a real juvenile offender, provided a clear description of who they are and the crime. It was well-researched and well-written. | Student found a real juvenile offender, provided a description of who they are and the crime. But the section was either not well-written or was not well-researched. | Student is missing 1 or more of the following: (1) found a real juvenile offender, (2) described a real juvenile offender, (3) well-researched and well-written. | Student is missing 2 or more of the following: (1) found a real juvenile offender, (2) described a real juvenile offender, (3) well-researched and well-written. | Student did not complete this section. |
| Applying theories/prevention programs (20 points) | Student presented two theories, used details about the youth to back up their case, and found appropriate programming. Well-written and researched. | Student is missing 1 of the following: (1) a discussion of theories, (2) why these theories apply, (3) a discussion of programming options, (4) why they apply, (5) well-written/researched | Student is missing 2 of the following: (1) a discussion of theories, (2) why these theories apply, (3) a discussion of programming options, (4) why they apply, (5) well-written/researched | Student is missing 3 or more of the following: (1) a discussion of theories, (2) why these theories apply, (3) a discussion of programming options, (4) why they apply, (5) well-written/researched | Student did not complete this section. |
| Conclusion (2.5 points) | Student had a conclusion that summarized the paper and provided a new insight and was well-written | Student had a conclusion that summarized the paper and provided a new insight but was not well-written | Student had a conclusion that was missing either (1) a summary of the paper or (2) a new insight, but was well written | Student had a conclusion that was missing either (1) a summary of the paper or (2) a new insight and it was not well-written | Student did not include a conclusion |
| References (5 points) | Student had at least 5 references, they were all reputable, and they were cited properly | Student had at least 5 references, but they were not reputable or were not cited properly | Student had fewer than 5 references but they were cited properly and were reputable | Student had fewer than 5 references and they were not cited properly or were not reputable | Student did not reference anything |
Note: well-written = easy to understand, not 100% grammatically correct or perfect .
Structure of paper for Prompt 2
I. Introduction: summarize in one paragraph what your paper will talk about.
a. I suggest writing this at the very end after you have already written up your paper and structured your argument.
II. Discuss the two risk factors you chose (bulk of your paper)
a. You should present the major key pieces of information on each risk factor.
i. This should include: the prevalence of that risk factor among the juvenile offending populations (aka what % of youth experience it), why its related to offending (any theoretical linkage to offending?), and present at least two facts about it that we did not discuss in class.
III. Prevention/rehabilitation programming
a. In this section, you should highlight at least one prevention or intervention program that could be used to combat each of your risk factors.
b. Don’t forget to check the youth.gov website to look for effective programs! You can find this link in our last class PowerPoint.
IV. Conclusion: students should, in 2-4 sentences, summarize the paper and present a new insight not drawn in the paper thus far.
| Short paper 2 rubric: Prompt 2 | |||||
| Excellent | Above average | Acceptable | Below average | Non-existent | |
| Introduction (2.5 points) | Student had an introduction that outlined the paper fully | Student had an introduction but it only outlined part of the paper | Student had an introduction but it only outlined part of the paper and was confusing | Student had an introduction but it was off topic | Student did not include an intro |
| Discussing risk factors (20 points) | Student met all of the following criteria (1) selected two risk factors we discussed in class (2) provided prevalence and explanations for why this risk factor is related to delinquency, (3) provided two new facts about the risk factor, (4) it was well-written/researched | Student was missing one of the following criteria (1) selected two risk factors we discussed in class (2) provided prevalence and explanations for why this risk factor is related to delinquency, (3) provided two new facts about the risk factor, (4) it was well-written/researched | Student was missing two of the following criteria (1) selected two risk factors we discussed in class (2) provided prevalence and explanations for why this risk factor is related to delinquency, (3) provided two new facts about the risk factor, (4) it was well-written/researched | Student was missing three or more of the following criteria (1) selected two risk factors we discussed in class (2) provided prevalence and explanations for why this risk factor is related to delinquency, (3) provided two new facts about the risk factor, (4) it was well-written/researched | Student did not complete this section. |
| Applying prevention/rehab programs (10 points) | Student met the following criteria: (1) found one appropriate programming option for each risk factor, (2) explained why these are appropriate, (3) Well-written and researched. | Student is missing one of the following criteria: (1) found one appropriate programming option for each risk factor, (2) explained why these are appropriate, (3) Well-written and researched. | Student is missing two of the following criteria: (1) found one appropriate programming option for each risk factor, (2) explained why these are appropriate, (3) Well-written and researched. | Student is missing all of the following criteria: (1) found one appropriate programming option for each risk factor, (2) explained why these are appropriate, (3) Well-written and researched. | Student did not complete this section. |
| Conclusion (2.5 points) | Student had a conclusion that summarized the paper and provided a new insight and was well-written | Student had a conclusion that summarized the paper and provided a new insight but was not well-written | Student had a conclusion that was missing either (1) a summary of the paper or (2) a new insight, but was well written | Student had a conclusion that was missing either (1) a summary of the paper or (2) a new insight and it was not well-written | Student did not include a conclusion |
| References (5 points) | Student had at least 5 references, they were all reputable, and they were cited properly | Student had at least 5 references, but they were not reputable or were not cited properly | Student had fewer than 5 references but they were cited properly and were reputable | Student had fewer than 5 references and they were not cited properly or were not reputable | Student did not reference anything |
Note: well-written = easy to understand, not 100% grammatically correct or perfect
