Right to Bear Arms/Gun Control
TOPIC: Right to bear arms — McDonald v. Chicago, 2010 (U.S. Supreme Court Case)
· What the case is about: This case deals with civil liberties and gun control. On June 28, 2010, the U.S. Supreme Court, in a 5–4 vote, upheld an individual’s right to keep and bear handguns at home. The High Court ruled that the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution applies not only to the federal government but also to state and local governments.
· Purpose of this Assignment: To train students’ analytical ability, research ability (to use library databases), and critical thinking skills which are required for many professional jobs. This research skill applies to most college courses.
A. THE ASSIGNMENT
· In TWO pages, please conduct a library research (at Academics Library Online Databases – See the tutorial video below) to discuss:
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1. what this case (McDonald v. Chicago) is about (the issues the U.S. Supreme Court was asked to consider) (half page),
2. Two Protagonists – who support the Court’s ruling that people have their constitutional right to own handguns at home and why (half page),
3. Two Antagonists – who oppose the Court’s ruling about people’s right to own handguns at home and why. (half page)
· NOTE 1: Your sources must be gathered from Yuba College library databases; otherwise, a zero score will be assigned.
· NOTE 2: You must provide permalinks of your sources and the brief backgrounds/affiliations of your protagonists and 2 antagonists, such as law professor, ACLU lawyer, and the U.S. Senator.
· NOTE 3: For protagonists and antagonists, DO NOT CONSIDER THE SUPREME COURT JUSTICES, the plaintiffs and defendants, attorneys, or any one directly involved/presented in the Supreme Court debates. Otherwise, you will earn zero points on this part. Supporters and critics can be other attorneys, state officials, law enforcement leaders, civil libertarians, senators, congressional members, etc. Supporters and critics must be individuals – don’t generalize with groups.
4. where do you stand regarding this issue/Court case and why? (It does not matter which side you support as long as you provide convincing argument/evidence. Adding one more source/evidence will help.) (half page)
· Key terms for library research: Different key terms will receive different search results. You can try key terms such as: “McDonald v. Chicago”, gun control, self-defense (law), handguns, right to bear arms, and/or other key words combinations for your search.
· The following two tutorial videos will guide you through the steps:
· a. The Instructor’s Explanation of Research Assignments (Must watch!)
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· b. Librarian’s Guide to Find Protagonists and Antagonists:
Library Video Feedback Form Links to an external site. : Your feedback about this tutorial video will help us improve our service.
B. Requirements:
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1. Two full pages of content (Each section should be approximately half a page, thus all four sections should end up as TWO full pages, plus a third page for citations. Citations do not count into the two-page limit. Slightly over two pages is also fine.)
2. Double spaced
3. Font size 12 for content (size 10 for Endnotes if you use Chicago style)
4. Sources: Your sources must be gathered from Yuba College library databases, and your two critics and two protagonists cannot be directly involved in the Supreme Court debates. Otherwise, a zero score will be assigned.
· Number of Sources: Even though there is no set number of sources, I suggest at least four sources for your protagonists and antagonists. More may be needed to earn a high score.
· Students are not allowed to use advanced automated tools (artificial intelligence or machine learning tools such as ChatGPT or Dall-E 2) on assignments in this course. Please catch this chance to develop your analytical research ability.
5. Permalinks & Backgrounds: You must provide permalinks of your sources and the brief backgrounds/affiliations of your two protagonists and two antagonists, such as law professor, ACLU lawyer, and the U.S. Senator.
· Video: How to find authors’ backgrounds/affiliations (2’50”)Links to an external site
· Video: How to generate permalinks (2’45”)
6. IN-TEXT CITATIONS ARE REQUIRED to avoid plagiarism. NO CITATIONS = 0-points!!! DO NOT JUST PROVIDE A LIST OF SOURCES AT THE END. (A work cited page at the end is NOT in-text citations.)
7. Works Cited Page/References: Students must provide this page to list your sources (Remember to check your format.) This page does not count as part of your two-page content.
8. File format: MS WORD (.doc or .docx) file.
9. NO LATE WORK WILL BE ACCEPTED. NO EXCEPTION. Starting early gives you leeway for potential problems.
10. Similarity Score: Please check your Similarity Score and report after submission. Try to limit your Similarity Score under 35% to avoid plagiarism issues. (See the following image guide to find your score which usually shows in two days after your submission.) Paraphrasing more instead of quoting a lot will help you lower down the score. That is, try to avoid quoting big paragraphs.
· NO AI: Students are not allowed to use advanced automated tools (artificial intelligence or machine learning tools such as ChatGPT or Dall-E 2) on assignments in this course. Please catch this chance to develop your analytical research ability.
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C. Tools/Tutorials: In case you need them, you can access more tutorials/resources
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1. Examples of this Essay: The following are good assignment examples with two different citation formats. Choose only one format. (The examples are only for formats and structures, NOT for the topic.)
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· Example 1
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· Example 2
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2. Tutorial Videos about In-text Citation Formats: You can find many tutorial videos on YouTube about how to do in-text citation, such as:
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· Cite in Chicago/Turabian Style (2’51”)
· Cite in APA style (2’35”)
· Cite in MLA Style (3’38”)Links to an external site.
3. Other Tutorial Videos
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· How to find authors’ backgrounds/affiliations (2’50”)Links to an external site
· How to generate permalinks (2’45”)Links to an external site.
D. Reminders
· Do It Early to Avoid Problems: An early submission of your first version (e.g. before Thursday midnight) gives yourself leeway to solve most potential problems, e.g., technical and similarity problems. (You can submit up to two versions before the deadline.)
· Double Check: Always double check your submitted file after your submission. (Some students submitted wrong files and received zero points.) To avoid plagiarism issues, you can also see your similarity percentage about one hour after submission.
· Need Help? A librarian can help you gather good academic sources (details in the announcement), and the college Writing Center can help your citation format and grammar. Both are free at Yuba College.
· It usually takes three weeks for the instructor to return this assignment.
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