1. Final Research Paper Outline. This week’s written assignment is important preparation for the Final Paper. You will construct an outline of your Final Paper that will ensure you have all of the required elements. You are expected to write an outline, not a draft of your final paper. Drafts of your paper will NOT meet the requirements of this assignment.

Prepare: Please review the necessary course text chapters, articles, and multimedia. Conduct additional research necessary to complete the assignment.

Reflect: The end of the course is rapidly approaching, and now is a great time to begin working on your Final Research Paper. This assignment will give you an opportunity to create a detailed outline of your paper, which will help you to establish a structure for your final paper. Your outline will be reviewed by your instructor and the feedback provided will certainly help you create a better final product. Remember, the main point of your outline is to help you organize your thoughts and research. The outline should serve as the backbone of your paper and should provide the building blocks for your Final Research Paper.

Write: Make sure to read over the instructions for the Final Research Paper, which are located in Week Five of your online course or in the Course Components section of this course guide. As explained in those instructions, your paper should have seven major sections. For this assignment, you will need to create an outline in a Word document. Review the Sample Outline from the Ashford Writing Center. Your outline must include the following:

 Title page in APA format

 Introduction and Thesis

a. Introduce the main topic and provide a brief preview of main points.

b. Include a thesis statement that identifies how the concepts of federalism, civil liberties, and civil rights are implicated and affected by your selected topic.

 Main Point 1: Identify implications for federalism related to the topic.

a. Provide a topic sentence that describes one positive impact of federalism on the selected topic.

b. Provide a topic sentence that describes one negative impact of federalism on the selected topic.

c. Provide at least one piece of supporting evidence (a quote or paraphrase) that supports all of your claims concerning the impacts of federalism on the selected topic. Be sure to provide an in-text citation.

d. In a single sentence, explain the meaning of the evidence you added above.

e. So what? Add a sentence that tells your reader how this evidence supports your topic sentence. Why is this evidence important to share?

 Main Point 2: Identify implications for civil rights related to the topic.

a. Provide a topic sentence that describes one positive impact on the civil rights associated with the selected topic.

b. Provide a topic sentence that describes one negative impact on the civil rights associated with the selected topic.

c. Provide at least one piece of supporting evidence (a quote or paraphrase) that supports all of your claims concerning the impacts on the civil rights associated with the selected topic. Be sure to provide an in-text citation.

d. In a single sentence, explain the meaning of the evidence you added above.

e. So what? Add a sentence that tells your reader how this evidence supports your topic sentence. Why is this evidence important to share?

 Main Point 3: Identify implications for civil liberties related to the topic.

a. Provide a topic sentence that describes one positive impact on the civil liberties associated with the selected topic.

b. Provide a topic sentence that describes one negative impact on the civil liberties associated with the selected topic.

c. Provide at least one piece of supporting evidence (a quote or paraphrase) that supports all of your claims concerning the impacts on the civil liberties associated with the selected topic. Be sure to provide an in-text citation.

d. In a single sentence, explain the meaning of the evidence you added above.

e. So what? Add a sentence that tells your reader how this evidence supports your topic sentence. Why is this evidence important to share?

 Conclusion

i. In a sentence or two, conclude by reviewing your main points and overall thesis.

 References Page

i. Include a complete list of references utilized within the outline in APA format.

The paper must be at least three pages in length (not including title and reference pages) and formatted according to APA style. You must use at least three scholarly sources, not counting your textbook, from the Ashford University Library to support your claims.