Each student will deliver a report on a current problem of his or her own selection on SATURDAY. The report should follow the steps of problem consideration discussed on the welcome page for this site:
1. Identify a “problem”.
2. Prove that it is, in fact, a “problem” and analyze its dimensions.
3. Gather information about the causes of the problem.
4. Consider solutions to the problem based on all the information that has been collected and propose a plan for how you would contribute to solving the problem.

The problem should be described, supporting documentation should be presented to support the proposition that a problem does exist, the causes and dimensions of the problem should be presented with data and analysis, and a proposed solution or solutions should be offered that are based on the data and analysis that has been found in the student’s research.

Papers should be at least six pages in length, double spaced in 12 point Times New Roman type, and the paper should follow American Psychological Association (APA) style. At least five research sources should be cited.

A very useful tool for finding scholarly articles for your paper is Google Scholar. You can access Google Scholar through the OU Library's website, and then you will be able to find full text versions of academic articles. I have prepared a short video on using Google Scholar on the library's website. Click here for the video. (You may need the QuickTime plugin for the video, and it is available for free from Apple.com.

You may submit a draft of your paper for review before you submit the final paper that will be graded. The draft will not be graded, and I will look over it and return comments to you about the paper within two working days after I receive it. You can then make any changes that you wish to the final version of your paper. Draft papers may be submitted up one week after the last day of class. In the compact format of this class it can be difficult to provide adequate feedback to students, so the offer to review drafts is a way to insure that you have access to feedback at a level that you select. A special dropbox has been created on the learn.ou.edu website for drafts. If you place a draft in the dropbox after the last day of class, then please send me an email to alert me to the fact that your draft is there. I will get feedback to you within two days of your notification to me that you have submitted a draft paper.

The class report will be delivered verbally. Some students may wish to use a presentation software (PowerPoint, Keynote, or other), but it is not required.

Your paper MUST be submitted through the dropbox that has been created on the learn.ou.edu site for this class. Only papers submitted through the dropbox will be considered to have been officially submitted. The complete syllabus for the course is available by clicking here.

Papers are due in the dropbox one week after the last day of class. If you need an extension on the time to complete your paper, let me know and we can almost certainly work out something to accommodate you. However, I will not accept any drafts for review past the second Sunday of class.