Assignment
Your main tasks in Essay 3 are to
(1) research a broad range of proposed solutions. These policies, solutions, initiatives, or plans
may come from many different sources corporations, think tanks, advocacy groups, or
local, state, federal, or foreign governments but they must be official proposals with
some kind of institutional support.
(2) choose two proposed solutions that outline plans to fix the problem, lessen its severity, or
mitigate its effects.
(3) weigh the strengths and weaknesses of both proposed solutions to ultimately a.
advocate one solution over the other (in other words, argue that one solution is
superior to the other and we should support it), OR
b. argue that both are important solutions and they should both be advocated for
different reasons, OR
c. argue that both are insufficient solutions to adequately address the problem.
What does an official proposal entail?
An official proposal has weight and support behind it, meaning that (1) it comes from a governmental
body, legitimate organization, or credible scholar affiliated with a research university or institute, and (2)
its proposals may eventually be enforced, strongly encouraged, and/or funded.
Official proposals are viable they can actually be put into practice. They are also detailed and
specific, and researchable on these dimensions:
a. Strengths and weaknesses
b. Success rates (through projected estimates or precedents)
c. Cost detail
d. Implementation plan
e. Known support and opposition
f. History of debate
Essay Requirements
Minimum of 8 pages, double-spaced (not including Works Cited or References)
Minimum of 10 credible sources, correctly integrated into your own argument and cited correctly
using MLA or APA formatting (multimodal sources are optional and will count towards the number
of required sources)
Organization that supports the thesis and helps readers follow your argument
Clear, error-free sentences in academic English
Works Cited or References list
Structuring a Proposal Evaluation Essay
Introduction to the problem
In one or two paragraphs, you should define your problem and provide concrete information from
credible sources to make your reader understand the problem and care about it. Your specific but
concise statement of the problem can be adapted from Essay 1 and/or Essay 2 and should be at least
one paragraph long. However, do not assume that your reader has read your Essay 1 or Essay 2. You
need to be both concrete and succinct in getting your reader to understand what the problem is before
moving on to discuss the history think of how specific and precise you had to be establishing these in
your previous essays.
As you conduct further research, you may discover that you will need to narrow your problem further or
shift the focus of your problem slightly these adjustments are an organic part of the research and
writing process.
Identify the proposed solutions
After explaining the problem, you will introduce the two proposed solutions you have chosen to analyze.
In one paragraph, explain who proposed the solutions and offer relevant background: title, source, date
published/introduced, current status, goals, etc. This section should contain a clear overview of the
proposed solutions and indicate which parts of the proposals you will focus on.
Thesis: Argue for a course of action
The thesis will either (a) advocate one proposal over the other (in other words, argue that one proposal
is superior to the other and we should support it), (b) argue that both are important proposals and they
should both be advocated for different reasons, or (c) argue that both are insufficient proposals to
adequately address the problem.
Whichever path you take, the thesis should outline your reasons to support your argument and assess
both strengths and weaknesses of your proposals. Your thesis points should not merely state the things
the proposed solutions will do, but rather suggest, in an analytical way, whythose things are the best
ways to solve or lessen the severity of the problem. This is a lot of ground to cover, so the thesis may be
its own paragraph.
Analyze the first proposed solution (4+ paragraphs)
In these paragraphs, you will use the strategies we discuss in our course to analyze the strengths and
weaknesses of the first proposed solution. Quote from the proposal as necessary and cite detailed
data from other credible sources to support your analysis of the proposal.
Remember that no proposed solution is perfect: recognizing potential flaws in any policy actually proves
you to be more of an expert, not less of one. You should also explore potential objections to the
proposed solution. Discuss where these objections are coming from (what kinds of organizations and
what kind of logic) as well as why they may be misguided or short-sighted. Remember, however, to be
fair in your critique. Just as the proposal probably has flaws, it is likely that at least some aspects of
these obje