The Purpose of a College Education

Essay #4: The Purpose of a College Education
Final draft is worth 100 points (See due date in Canvas Calendar or Homework Schedule)
Final draft of Essay #4 must be at least 4 pages (page requirement does NOT include Works Cited page, header, title, and heading.
ESSAY FOCUS
Your last essay will focus on higher education and its purpose. The goal of this essay is for you to use your critical thinking skills to establish your own thesis and support it with logical analysis.

You must embed relevant quotes from at least two of the following assigned readings in your essay:

“The Purpose of Higher Education and Its Future” by Lynn Pasquerella
“We Dont Value Education. We Value The Credential. by Brandon Busteed
“The Democratic Imperative for Higher Education: Empowering Students to Become Active Citizens” by Tony Gallagher
The World Might Be Better Off Without College for Everyone by Bryan Caplan
Using the information in the readings listed above, you will construct an argument that will respond to the following question:

What is the purpose of a college education?
Quoting from the Assigned Texts
Carefully choose quotes from the assigned texts (listed above) to support the arguments you are making in each paragraph. Follow these guidelines:

Include at least 1 (ONE) brief and relevant quote (less than 4 lines of text) or paraphrase in each body paragraph (you dont need quotes in your introduction or conclusion). However, you may have two or three short quotes or paraphrases per paragraph.
You MUST cite quotes and paraphrases in proper MLA format when you use them in your paragraphs.
Include no more than 2 long quotes (more than 4 lines). If your quote is longer than your analysis of the quote, you will lose points for underdeveloped analysis.
Analyze EACH quote. Analysis should be at least 2-3 sentences per quote. Do not simply summarize the quote. Ask yourself, why is this quote important? or how does this quote support the ideas in this paragraph?.
Dont leave quotes hanging at the end of your paragraphs add your own explanation and interpretation of the quote.
Dont start body paragraphs with quotes; construct a clear and focused topic sentence in your own words.
Avoid using the first person and the first person pronouns.
Quoting from Sources Outside Assigned Readings
You are NOT required to include research beyond the assigned readings associated with this essay (unless you choose to approach the topic in a different way see above). However, if you would like to use quotes and paraphrases from credible outside sources, you may.

If you use outside sources, I strongly encourage you to use the GCC Databases for your research. Although you are welcome to start your preliminary research with Google, remember Google doesnt always provide you with credible sources. The GCC Databases include quality, credible, and scholarly sources.

Heres a list of some databases that will be particularly useful to you for the essays in this course:

Academic Search Premier
Issues & Controversies
LexisNexis Academic
ProQuest Direct
Psychologic and Behavioral Sciences Collections
Wikipedia, Spark Notes, Ask.com, Yahoo Answers or any similar study guide or Q&A websites are not acceptable sources for this essay. If you quote from these types of sources, points will be deducted from your score.

All quotes and paraphrases need to be cited in MLA format.

MLA Format
Your entire essay must be computer word-processed (typed) in Times New Roman, 12-point font, double-spaced, one-inch margins on all sides, and must follow MLA style format. Refer to the resources on Canvas or at https://style.mla.org/formatting-papers/ (Links to an external site.) .

Works Cited Page: You must include an MLA formatted Works Cited page with all the sources youve quoted from or paraphrased in your essay even if they are from our textbook.
Your Works Cited pages must be formatted using the new 2016 UPDATED 8th edition of MLA guidelines. Check https://style.mla.org/works-cited-a-quick-guide-book/ (Links to an external site.).
Your Works Cited page is NOT included in your minimum page requirement.
Sample Essay in MLA Format: For a sample student essay in proper MLA format, see Student Sample Essay in Proper MLA FormatLinks to an external site. document on Canvas in Modules under the Essay 1 Module.

Submission to Canvas
You must upload your final draft to Canvas by clicking on the link Upload FINAL Draft of Essay 1 Here! under Modules.

You must upload your essay as a .doc, .docx or .pdf attachment or you will lose all your MLA formatting and, subsequently, you will lose points.
Do NOT upload a file youve saved in Google Docs! Canvas does not retain the same formatting as it appears in your Google Doc. If you dont have Microsoft Word, review the link How can I get Microsoft Word for FREE?Links to an external site.
If I cant open your attachment because its in a format that is not .doc, .docx, or .pdf I will consider your work late

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