Directions: Choose one of the following topics and write a research paper on this topic.
Ten Leading Causes of Death for Older Adults in the United States
The History of Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, Medigap
The Human Flourishing Program of Harvard University
While the major focus should be on one of the three topics above, students may also explore a particular interest within this broader theme. For example, after reporting on Ten Leading Causes of Death for Older Adults in the United States, the student may ask: “Is this the same for males versus females? … for older adults versus adolescents? … for Caucasian Americans versus people of color? … for people in the United States versus people in other countries or on other continents?” For another, after examining The History of Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, Medigap, a paper may explore: “What are the strengths and weaknesses of each of these programs? … What can be done to improve these programs for the future … for minority communities?” Lastly, after describing The Human Flourishing Program of Harvard University, the study could ask: “What can individuals, families, and institutions do to promote wellbeing for older adults?”
The paper will be written and submitted as a whole, but should be developed in stages. The Exploration section should be conducted, but it should not be submitted as part of the paper and will not count toward the 2,000-word minimum.
Exploration
Read the Appendix in Moody and Sasser.
Choose one of the three topics (above).
Gather concepts, facts, or quotes from at least ten different sources—including Moody and Sasser.
Cite the fact or quote with the proper reference citation.
Introduction
Introduce the reader to the topic and show why it is important.
Provide any necessary history, background, statistics, or definitions.
Review
Summarize the published information on the topic.
Discussion
Provide practical discussion of the topic for older adults.
When the paper is submitted, it should not show the Exploration stage, but must include these sections: Introduction, Review, Discussion, and References. These four sections of the paper will be graded against the criteria listed in the syllabus and described herein. Specific criteria include:
Word count (2,000 minimum) including references
Spelling
Grammar
Composition
Margins (one-inch all around)
Double-spacing from the first word
Main headings (all] capitalization, centered, beginning a new page)
Side headings (initial capitalization, flush left, underscored)
Following all elements of style from the example provided for citations and references
AGNG 200 is a writing-intensive course; thus, students are expected to learn about gerontology and about the process of research writing. Toward that end, this paper should never cite unreliable sources (i.e., Wikipedia, YouTube, etc.), nor use automatic formatting (i.e., no hyperlinks, built-in references, etc.).
All assignments should be submitted in Microsoft Word and will be checked for plagiarism (example: www.turnitin.com).
Among the references used in this paper, at least half should come from sources that are available in hardcopy (example: The Journals of Gerontology), not from light-weight media sources (ex: blogs, infomercials). When citing sources—including online sources—the elements of style should be manually produced and closely follow the examples below:
