You will write a 2 to 3 page, double-spaced, essay that compares and contrasts two sides of the following debate: Are Violent Video Games Harmful to Children and Adolescents?
1. What are the claims being made by each side?
2. What evidence does each side provide for the claims?
3. Does the evidence appear valid to you? Why or why not?
4. How does the correlation/causation issue we covered in unit 1 factor in?
5. Are there alternative explanations to the conclusions each side makes?
5. Who do you believe makes the strongest argument and, importantly, why?
Introductory paragraph
The introductory paragraph should read like a roadmap of the paper. It should have one or two sentences to introduce the issue, followed by an explicit purpose statement with the main points of the essay and, lastly, a conclusion. Sometimes, it is best to write the introductory paragraph without a conclusion and come back to add the conclusion AFTER the entire essay has been written.
Body:
Once the introductory paragraph is written (with or without the conclusion), what you will write next should not be a mystery because your introductory paragraph has already informed the reader (and writer) of what will come next. Therefore, the body of the paper should expand the introduction of the general issue and quickly move on to the main points, all of which should never stray too far from the paper’s main purpose.
Conclusion:
Make certain that your conclusion logically follows from that which you have written up to the point of beginning your conclusion.
This paper is NOT just a summary of the “yes” and “no” side of the debate.