Option #1: Critical Thinking Paper on Issue or Problem

Select an issue or problem that you wish to investigate critically. Formulate a question or thesis on the issue so that your research has a clear and cogent direction.

Use Paul and Elder’s (2012) intellectual standards to find a topic or problem that is clear, relevant, significant, and precise.

Now, write a paper that addresses the problem or issue via scholarly sources.
Your paper should include the following:

1. Title page: include your name, date, title of essay, and class
2. Introduction: provide a two-paragraph introduction that frames the issue or problem carefully
3. Engagement with issue or problem using scholarly sources and the intellectual standards proposed by Paul and Elder (2012): What is the issue? Why is it significant? Why is this issue relevant to you (and/or your community)? What have you learned about the depth and breadth of the issue or problem from scholarly sources? How do the scholarly sources aid you in fair-mindedness and logic?
4. Conclusion: Reflect on your issue or problem and how the sources informed your thinking. What have you learned? How can you apply the intellectual standards and elements of reason to this issue or problem to come to creative solutions? What critical questions remain?
5. References

Details

• Cite all claims and ideas using scholarly sources. While it is acceptable to write in the first person, be sure to cite your sources to support your inferences.
• Your paper should engage a minimum of six scholarly sources that are not required or recommended readings for this course. The CSU-Global Library is a good place to find these sources.
• Your paper should be eight to ten pages in length and formatted according to the CSU-Global Guide to Writing & APA.
• Papers should be double-spaced, 12-point font.

*Please see attached Portfolio Milestones – One is specific to the reason for the paper, and the other is the outline of the paper itself that I would like to use.