Prepare an introductory paragraph that articulates the information you have learned from your review of the literature in the annotated bibliography.

Preparing for the Final Paper: Seeking the Truth

[WLO: 5] [CLO: 6]

The summative assignment for this course is a Final Paper, which is due in Week 5. To ensure proper preparation for this cumulative work and provide you with an opportunity for some initial feedback and guidance, this week, you will prepare an Annotated Bibliography (Links to an external site.) and an introduction that includes a thesis statement. In addition, you will prepare a list that includes any questions you may have about the Final Paper. You will be using the Preparing for the Final Paper Template to complete this assignment.

To prepare for this assignment,

• Review the instructions for the Final Paper, which are located in Week 5 of the course. See also relevant Instructor Guidance and Announcements.
• Select a topic from the approved list that includes various commonly held beliefs.
• Visit the Ashford University Library to locate a minimum of three relevant, Scholarly, Peer-Reviewed, and Other Credible Sources (Links to an external site.) that will inform your understanding of the issue from a psychological perspective. Before beginning your writing, verify the scholarly nature of the articles you have chosen. Review the Ashford University Library Quick ‘n’ Dirty (Links to an external site.) tutorial for more on how to use the library in the research process.

To complete this activity, produce the following utilizing the Preparing for the Final Paper template:

Part 1: The Annotated Bibliography: An annotated bibliography is a list of relevant scholarly works along with a descriptive and evaluative summary of each. Your annotated bibliography will relate information relevant to your analysis of the selected option provided for the Final Paper. Review the Making an Annotated Bibliography (Links to an external site.) tutorial and Sample Annotated Bibliography (Links to an external site.) for an example of how to complete your assignment.

• Develop an Annotated Bibliography (Links to an external site.), which evaluates each of the three selected sources, appraising the information relevant to the chosen topic (one paragraph per source).
  • Do not use direct quotes; instead, paraphrase or summarize, using your own Academic Voice (Links to an external site.) and properly applying in-text citations. Review Quoting, Paraphrasing, & Summarizing (Links to an external site.), APA: Citing Within Your Paper (Links to an external site.), and In-Text Citation Helper (Links to an external site.) for more.

Part 2: The Introduction Paragraph

• Prepare an introductory paragraph that articulates the information you have learned from your review of the literature in the annotated bibliography.
  • Your introduction should create context for the topic, provide a concise preview, and conclude with a clear thesis statement identifying your conclusion regarding the veracity of the commonly held belief. Apply academic voice through application of ethical writing strategies. Review Introductions & Conclusions (Links to an external site.) and Writing a Thesis Statement (Links to an external site.) for more.

Part 3: The (Brief) Outline

• Provide a brief overview of the content you plan to cover, Outlining (Links to an external site.) the major points of the paper.

Part 4: Questions

• List any questions about the Final Paper you may have for your instructor. (If you do not have questions that is okay.)
• Indicate planned future steps necessary to complete the assignment.

The Preparing for the Final Paper: Seeking the Truth assignment

• Must be completed using the Preparing for the Final Paper template.
• Must be three double-spaced pages in length at minimum, excluding the title and reference pages.
• Must be formatted according to APA Style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center’s APA Style  (Links to an external site.)resource.
• Must include a separate title page, as identified in your required template, with the following:
  • A header
  • Title of paper
  • Student’s name
  • Course name and number
  • Instructor’s name
  • Date submitted
    For further assistance with the formatting and the title page, refer to APA Formatting for Word 2013 (Links to an external site.) and Running Head Format for APA Style Papers (Links to an external site.).
• Must utilize academic voice. See the Academic Voice (Links to an external site.) resource for additional guidance.
• Must include the introduction paragraph draft that you intend to apply to the Week 5 Final Paper. Your introduction paragraph needs to end with a clear thesis statement that indicates the purpose of your paper.

• For further assistance on writing Introductions & Conclusions (Links to an external site.) as well as Writing a Thesis Statement (Links to an external site.), refer to the Ashford Writing Center resources.
• Must use at least three scholarly, peer-reviewed sources. Additional scholarly sources are encouraged. Be sure to integrate your research smoothly rather than simply inserting it.
  • The Scholarly, Peer-Reviewed, and Other Credible Sources (Links to an external site.) table offers additional guidance on appropriate source types. If you have questions about whether a specific source is appropriate for this assignment, please contact your instructor. Your instructor has the final say about the appropriateness of a specific source for a particular assignment. For more, review the Ashford University Library Quick ’n’ Dirty (Links to an external site.) tutorial and Integrating Research (Links to an external site.) resource.
• Must document any information used from sources in APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center’s APA: Citing Within Your Paper (Links to an external site.) guide.
• Must include a separate reference page that is formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center. Review the Formatting Your References List (Links to an external site.) resource in the Ashford Writing Center for specifications.

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Carefully review the Grading Rubric (Links to an external site.) for the criteria that will be used to evaluate your assignment.

Waypoint Assignment Submission

The assignments in this course will be submitted to Waypoint.  Please refer to the instructions below to submit your assignment.

1. Click on the Assignment Submission button below. The Waypoint “Student Dashboard” will open in a new browser window.
2. Browse for your assignment.
3. Click Upload.
4. Confirm that your assignment was successfully submitted by viewing the appropriate week’s assignment tab in Waypoint.