Guidelines for Assessment Item 1 This assignment requires you to develop an essay proposal to be completed for Assessment Item 3. It is 1000 words in total and includes the essay proposal and an annotated bibliography. The reading you do for the Annotated Bibliography is the basis for deciding the focus of your essay proposal. That is, the main work you need to complete to do this assignment is relevant reading for your selected topic. In terms of the allocation of words there is no rule but I would suggest that it makes sense that more words are taken up with the annotated bibliography than the essay proposal. Maybe think about a 2/3 to 1/3 split but this is not a requirement. So long as you do both parts adequately within the 1000 words (plus or minus 10%) that is acceptable. 1. Annotated Bibliography In order to do a plan for your essay topic you need to do some reading in the area you have chosen to focus on for the essay I suggest that your annotated bibliography have a minimum of 10- 12 items, mostly if not exclusively journal articles, books and/or book chapters related to your topic. That is, do not rely on www searches and web sites for your research for your essay content. Search the library data bases and the library catalogue and google scholar for relevant articles and books. If you do not know how to do a data base search I would strongly advise you to book a session with a librarian at your closest campus library to learn about data base searches. It is an essential skill for PG study and very useful for research and for jobs requiring policy work, background documentation, and so on. Each entry in your annotated bibliography contains the following: • Title and reference details (as you would include in a reference list) – this is NOT included in the word count • Brief description of the content – included in word count • Relevance and usefulness to your research – included in word count See Library resource for further details about doing your annotated bibliography: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3f2IME6KLiM&feature=youtu.be Please note this guide Western Sydney Library Guide states you need to write 100-200 words of detail; for the purposes of this assignment up to 100 words is sufficient for each entry (as an example, the 2nd paragraph above is 94 words), not counting the reference details. It demonstrates APA referencing but in the SSAP UWS Harvard referencing is preferred. Whichever you use, be consistent, and do not use a footnote system. 2. Essay Proposal Your essay proposal can be in dot points but there needs to be sufficient details so I can provide feedback on your proposal. The proposal will have 3 sections as follows: (i) Essay Title - start by indicating the likely title for your essay, Here are some examples: “The application of Bourdieu’s concept of habitus to working with clients from different class backgrounds.” OR An analysis of Domestic violence drawing on feminist theories from the work of …” OR Understanding (an aspect of) the work of … (name theorist) and its application to my work in …” OR How can Post-colonial theory (or an aspect of/or the work of a theorist within PC) help us to understand the high incarceration rates for Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander women. Is it important to consider of feminist Post-Colonial theorists in this analysis? OR Marxist theory was developed as a critical analysis of capitalism in the mid-1800s. What are some of the intervention in Marxist theory that have been made since that time and is it still a useful tool for critiquing capitalism in the 21st century. If you want assistance with your essay title I can do this either before you submit the proposal or as part of the feedback for the assignment. Not having a correct title is not grounds for losing marks for your assignment so long as there is demonstration in the assignment that you have thought about it. (ii) Theories/theorists you are focussing on for the assignment. Here you need to state what theories and or theorists you will be focussing on for the essay. Two possible ways of thinking about your essay are as follows: 1. Focus on developing a deep analytical understanding of a body of theory or the work of a particular theorist that we have covered or will cover as part of the unit 2. Analyse the usefulness of a body of theory or work of a theorist in your field of work - for example social work or planning or …. (iii) Issues and arguments. As much as you can indicate what issues and arguments you think you will be exploring and analysing in your essay. You may change this as you do further reading and or start writing the final essay but for now it will be based on your current thinking about your topic. This is what becomes the body of your essay when it is completed for Assessment item 3. 3. Reference List Include a reference list for all material used in the annotated bibliography and in the essay proposal sections of the assignment. UWS Harvard is the preferred reference style. You need to be consistent in your style across the reference in the annotated bibliography section and the reference list.