Recent orders
Why the death penalty should be abolished. (discuss both views)
Why the death penalty should be abolished. (discuss both views)
My Guidance for Your Research Papers
1. Your paper will be 10 full pages, including footnotes. You must be clear and avoid the filler that
is often contained in longer papers.
2. Introduction (10%): Your introduction will not be longer than two pages.
3. Thesis Statement: (10%): Immediately after your introduction, you must present a clear thesis
statement. In simplistic terms, a thesis statement is the main point of your paper that tells the
reader what you intend to argue later in your paper. You must word your thesis statement, as
follows: “My thesis statement is . . . .” The thesis statement should not be longer than two
sentences, and normally one is sufficient.
4. Road Map (5%): Immediately after your thesis statement, you must provide a clear road map
to let the reader know where you are going with your paper. Word your road map, as follows: “My
paper will first briefly explore . . . , followed by . . . . Finally I will defend my thesis by . . . .“ Your
road map should be only a few sentences, but it must be clear.
5. Background (10%): Next, provide a brief but clear background of your topic. This may only be
one page or less.
6. Argument/Defending Your Thesis (50%): Now we are at the meat of the paper, defending your
thesis statement. This must be at least five full pages, and you must use your research to defend
your thesis. This is the hardest part of your paper, and this is where you need to focus your time
and energy. Why? This is where students fail in their Capstone theses (I don’t mean literally fail,
but they lose a lot of points). Students either present poor arguments or they present no
arguments at all. You will present clear arguments, supported by your research, to defend your
thesis. Last three points in this area — (1) Conclusory statements must be supported with your
research; (2) Do not use provoking language which amounts to merely an opinion, such as:
“Those who support capital punishment are idiots.” (This actually came from a student); and (3)
You need to fill in glaring gaps. For example, one student’s entire thesis argued that the
separation of church and state clause in the Constitution was misinterpreted by the Supreme
Court and that religion should be in schools, government, etc. The glaring gap was, given the
student’s arguments, what did the separation clause mean? This was not addressed.
7. Conclusion (5%): Conclude your paper in one page or less.
Finally, a few other points:
1. Grade: The grading rubric for each section of your paper is highlighted above (in yellow). As
you can see, 50% of your paper is the argument section, which is why I say it is your main focus.
2. References/Proper Use of The Bluebook (10%): You must use a minimum of 15 scholarly
references that will be footnoted (per The Bluebook) on the page where you use the reference.
You may use a reference more than once, but it still only counts as 1 of the 15. Scholarly
references are not Wikipedia, blogs, or crazy websites.
3. Formatting: Double space your paper and use a 12 point font of your choice. Do not include a
title page, abstract, endnotes, or bibliography/reference page.
Opioid Epidemic
Opioid Epidemic
Ramifications of prescription opiates to the public
a) Despite opioid related deaths decreasing in certain states, the total deaths still have increased
nationally.
b) “researchers projected that if prescription opioid misuse rates remain unchanged from 2015
onward, an estimated 700,400 people will die from opioid overdose. Eighty percent of those
deaths would be attributed to illicit opioids such as heroin or fentanyl.”
c) Creating an addict out of someone who normally isn’t susceptible to abusing drugs.
Nurse Performance Evaluation
Nurse Performance Evaluation
REQUIREMENTS
Description of the Assignment
This assignment has two major parts. The first part is the development of a written summative
evaluation using the required template for a learner who is successful, but still needs
improvement in one of the identified competencies. The second part is the development of a
written summative evaluation for a learner who is unsuccessful and must repeat the content. For
both parts of this assignment, the following three competencies are to be used.
• Demonstration of quality nursing care
• Demonstration of professional behavior
• Demonstration of information from evidence-based practice literature
The MSN student may select ONE of the following practice settings based upon career goals.
The practice settings are noted to be the following.
• For the MSN student who is focusing on nurse professional development, the learner’s clinical
competencies are being evaluated as part of a performance improvement plan.
• For the MSN student who is focusing on an academic setting, the learner is a student in a
fundamental nursing class who requires successful completion of the didactic and clinical
components.
For the selected practice setting, the MSN student is required to complete this assignment for
one learner who has successfully demonstrated all required competencies, but has one
competency that needs improvement AND one learner who has not successfully demonstrated
all required competencies. Each competency must be evaluated regarding the knowledge, skills,
and attitudes related to professional nursing practice of the competency.
Criteria for Content
This assignment consists of two required parts:
• Part 1: Completion of the written Final Performance Evaluation for one learner who is
successfully demonstrating TWO of the required competencies but needs improvement in the
third required competency.
• Part 2: Completion of the written Final Performance Evaluation for one learner who is
unsuccessful in all three of the required competencies.
Note: The practice setting is based upon the MSN student’s future practice setting as a nurse
educator.
For each of the two learners, the written summative evaluation is completed using the Final
Performance Evaluation Form noted below. Specific fictional examples of learners’ expected
behavior or absence of behavior are to be provided in the Educator’s Summative Assessment
column in order to support the decision regarding satisfactory, improvement needed, or
unsatisfactory. A comprehensive concluding statement must be provided that summarizes the
decision. A separate Final Performance Evaluation form must be completed for the satisfactory
learner and for the unsatisfactory learner.
• Part 1: Written Performance Evaluation for the Successful Learner: The required content for the
written summative evaluation is the following.
o Identify the practice setting
o Provide a fictional example identifying the behaviors of the successful learner in the clinical
setting
o Identify the evaluation score for each competency
o Identify the competency that needs improvement
o Objective wording present in the Educator’s Summative Assessment that supports the
Evaluation Score
o Specific fictional examples of learner’s behavior for knowledge, skills, and attitudes for each
competency
o Comprehensive concluding statement regarding the summative evaluation
• Part 2: Written Performance Evaluation for the Unsuccessful Learner: The required content for
the written summative evaluation is the following.
o Identify the practice setting
o Provide a fictional example identifying the behaviors of the unsuccessful learner in the clinical
setting
o Identify the evaluation score for each competency
o Identify the two competencies that are unsatisfactory
o Objective wording present in the Educator’s Summative Assessment that supports the
Evaluation Score
o Specific fictional examples of learner’s behavior for knowledge, skills, and attitudes for each
competency
o Comprehensive concluding statement regarding the summative evaluation
PREPARING THE ASSIGNMENT
Criteria for Format and Special Instructions
1. Part 1 requires the use of the Final Performance Evaluation Form: Successful Learner’s
Summative Evaluation, noted below.
2. Part 2 requires the use of the Final Performance Evaluation Form: Unsuccessful Learner’s
Summative Evaluation, noted below.
3. Title page must follow APA guidelines as found in the current edition of the manual.
4. Rules of grammar, spelling, word usage, and punctuation are followed and consistent with
formal, scientific writing.