Team Essay assignment: To see your partner(s), the next document on the website lists them.
Your assignment will be to write a 800-1200 word paper that looks at a hot topic in Biology and analyzes
it from the past research that has led up to the current state and clearly illustrates the current status of
the topic. You will be working as a team, however, one person will primarily be responsible for the past
steps that were researched and the other person will examine today’s research. When citing resources
for either portion, you will cite the source and indicate which partner found the source that was used.
By doing this as a team you are doubling your ability to find primary sources and getting help with the
writing quality. Finally, you will present to the class (3-5 min) on what you found. For tonight consider
what topics might be interesting, you may need to search science daily or some other source to find an
interesting topic. It must relate to ecology, animals, or human anatomy and physiology.
HOW TO PREPARE A GOOD ESSAY.
Due: Outline of paper: 2/9 (2 homework grades)
2/23 (paper): Presentation same day 3-5 min.
One Test grade: late = 1 grade/day
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Choose a topic that truly interests you. Any piece of writing will have more energy, more clarity, more of a
feeling of a person behind the writing—if that person really cares about the topic.
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Have a point and develop it in a clear, organized way. Essays should develop it in a logical way. Don’t
assume the reader knows as much about your subject as you do after your research—think, “why it is important,
and what would I need to read in order to understand?” Consider what research done in the past led directly to
this topic and why it was needed. Answer that question for yourself. Then, that is what you should write.
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Show why your subject matters. The essay readers will be interested in why your subject is important to “the
real world”—today’s world, or tomorrow’s. It is part of your challenge to address this issue directly.
Research and Writing Tips
Perhaps the most important first step you will want to take is to narrow your topic sufficiently so that it can
be covered in 800-1,200 words. Once you get writing, you will discover that this is fewer words than it might
seem to be. And if you choose too broad of a topic, your treatment of it will probably come across as
superficial and general. The essay readers will think you just skimmed the surface of your subject.
One way to narrow your topic is to phrase it in your mind as scientists often phrase problems they confront—
as a question. Say you are interested in air pollution. You might start with a question like,
“How can we reduce air pollution in the United States?”
There’s no way that you will be able to answer that question intelligently in 1,000 words. So narrow it down
to
“How can we come up with energy sources that will reduce air pollution?”
Then narrow it again, to something like
“What kinds of energy create the least pollution?”
Then, you might narrow it to
“What role can the use of solar energy play in reducing air pollution in the United States?”
Now, that may STILL be too broad—but it is getting closer. And the process of narrowing-down will also help
you zero in on what you really want to write about and what the focus of your research should be.
Speaking of research, writers today have more material close at hand than ever before. Using search words to
cruise the Internet for relevant information has revolutionized nonfiction writing. But it also has created new
dangers, because it is still true that you can’t believe everything you read.
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Sites that have the suffixes gov. (government) or edu. (educational) are most often most trustworthy.
The national organization of the branch of science that is relevant to your topic should be dependable.
Online encyclopedias are sometimes dependable.
With some sources, on the other hand, you should be careful with the information you’re getting:
 Posts or blogs by individuals, particularly if they are not experts who can demonstrate their credentials, are very often undependable, and
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good to stay away from.
Don’t use information from any site that is trying to sell anything including their biased ideas.
Try to use sites based on research.
In general, make sure that any fact you use in your argument is verifiable by at least two or three
sources—just as scientists make sure the results of experiments can be independently duplicated before
considering them to be valid.
Now, a word about style—writing style. This is to be a “formal” essay, not a personal one, but that
doesn’t mean that you can’t let your personality shine through. You have enthusiasm for your topic;
let the reader see it. It’s all right to use a little humor, too. It’s a good idea to give your essay immediacy by
using brief quotations from experts. And it’s OK—in fact, it’s a plus—to use figures of speech such as similes,
metaphors, personification, and alliteration. You may associate those kinds of things more with papers for
English class than with science essays, but in fact they enliven any kind of writing.
GRADING of ESSAY: One Test Grade. Due February 23rd (turnitin.com and printed out)
Essays will be judged based on the following rubric categories, and each is weighted according to the
percentages in parentheses:
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Mechanics & Conventions (25%)
o Grammar, sentences, clarity
Ideas & Content (25%)
o Creative, detailed and informative,
good sources, correct,

Organization (25%)
o
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Thoughtful, built from past to present,
clear explanation of the many areas of
research being explored currently.
Voice (specific, personal, and clear) 25%
o It is clear that is an explanation and
is not just a list of facts. It has clear
importance and connections.
Official Rules: Checklist
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Write an original 800- to 1200-word essay.
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Type your essay in a double-spaced, standard, 12-point font with margins of 0.5 inches to save paper.
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Attribute all ideas that are not your own and any quotes in the body of the essay. Place a number that
corresponds to the item in your bibliography. If a sentence is constructed using information from a
source it would like this …………………………… (2, StudentA) indicating the source marked 2 in the
bibliography is the source used. The Student A would be the name of the student who located this
resource (not necessarily the person who wrote the section using the source).
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Your essay must include a bibliography of your source material on a separate page at the end of your
essay. Each source should be numbered. No source that is not cited within the paper should be
in the bibliography.
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Avoid plagiarism. Your ideas and words should be driving this process.
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Proofread your essay carefully!! Think about how to make sentences clear and concise.
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Do not include illustrations, graphics, or diagrams.
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Do not use the word thing, something, anything or any other thing related word.