Writing assignment
One of the learning goals for the BIO140 course is to explain the diversity of disease caused by organisms worldwide through writing assignments and discussions of current news and case studies. One of the goals in health-related professions is to be scientifically literate. This assignment helps build that scientific information literacy, a critical lifelong skill. This research assignment requires that you locate two articles on a microbiology topic. The first article will come from the New York Times, newspaper database. The second article will be on the same topic and come from the Emerging Infectious Diseases Journal on the government website for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. You will read and summarize the content of the two articles and then critically compare how the information from these two different sources is presented.

1. Choose one article from The New York Times database that discusses a current issue in microbiology (i.e. antibiotic resistance, superbugs, public response to new viral diseases, new treatments approaches for tuberculosis, hepatitis, and other infectious diseases, development and safety of new vaccines). The New York Times article should have been published within the last five years . To access the New York Times database:

a. Go to the college website and login

b. OR go to https://library.mc3.edu/ Click the red Research box.

c. Scroll down to find the Nexi-Uni database.

d. Type in your topic and select the “Date is After” option under the Date dropdown menu next to Date. Then type is a date five years prior to the current date.

e. Type in your search.

f. Select an article from the results list.

g. Read the article. (If you need assistance using the database or finding an article, please schedule an appointment with a librarian using the “Schedule an Appointment” link on the home library page.)

h. Send the article to me through email by October 9. I will review the article to make sure that it is appropriate for the assignment.

2. Now find an article from EID on the CDC website. Go to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website (www.cdc.gov) to research the same topic.

a. Scroll down to select (Under Science) the EID (Emerging Infectious Disease Journal) Type your topic into the search box. The CDC article should be a research study and contain the following sections: an abstract; a methods (methodology) section; and a results section. It should also have a Discussion section.

b. Read the article.

c. Send the article to me through email by October 9. I will review the article to make sure that it is appropriate for the assignment.

3. In one page, write two paragraphs in which you summarize the information presented in each article (one paragraph per article). Provide the APA citation* for each source above the corresponding paragraph. There should be a double space between each citation and corresponding paragraph. This summary should comprise one page typed (double-spaced; 1” margins; 11 point).

4. On a second page, write a paragraph in which you critically compare and contrast how the topic is treated in the two sources. Think about the technical nature of the two articles and what that tells you about the audience for each. As you compare the content of the two articles, think about who would read each of these articles. Would the average person (non-scientist or medical person) such as a mother trying to follow information about Lyme disease seek an article from the CDC or one from the NYT or another popular publication? Why or why not? Does this make the information in one source better than another source? Yes or no and why or why not?

5. Attach a copy New York Times article and a copy CDC article to your paper when you submit the assignment through the Blackboard course site. This writing assignment is due on November 13 at 11:59 P.M.

6. Please carefully review the grading rubric as you complete the paper.

*If you need assistance with your APA citations, please select Tutorial Services under

the menu of resources in the portal.

BIO140 Research/Writing Assignment

Grading Criterion

Name: _______________________________ Score: _________

Article Selection – 10 points

10 points

· One article is from The New York Times; other research article is from Emerging Infectious Diseases on the CDC website

· The topic for both articles is same current issue in microbiology

· The New York Times article was published within the last 5 years

5 points

· One article is not from The New York Times; the other article is from Emerging Infectious Diseases

· CDC article lacks an abstract or methods or results section

· The topic for both articles is same current issue in microbiology

· One or both articles were not published within the last 5 years

0 points

· One article is not from The New York Times; other information is not an article from the Emerging Infectious Diseases on the CDC website

· The topic for both articles is not a current issue in microbiology

· Both articles were not published within the last 5 years

Paper Requirements – 10 points

10 points

· Paper is one to two-pages and typed (double-spaced, 1” margin, 11 point) and submitted on time

· First page is summary of each article; second page is a paragraph critique

· Both printed articles are attached to summary

· Cites the articles using APA format above each paragraph summary

5 points

· Paper is more than three pages but is typed (double-spaced, 1” margin, 11 point) and is not submitted on time (one day late)

· First page is summary of each article; second page is not a paragraph critique

· Both printed articles are not attached to summary

· Does not use APA format

0 points

· Paper is not one to two-pages, not typed, and submitted 2 or more days late

· First page is not a summary of each article; second page is not a paragraph critique

· Both printed articles are not attached to summary

· Does not use APA format

Summary- 40 points

Summary Content – 40 points

40 points

· Summary demonstrates thorough understanding of articles and considerable reflective thought

· Excellent use of details (research data) and information from articles to support summary

· Summary is in own words with 2 or less direct quotes (properly annotated)

30 points

· Summary demonstrates partial understanding of articles and some reflective thought

· Good use of details and information from articles to support summary

· Summary is in own words with 3 or less direct quotes (properly annotated)

20 points

· Summary demonstrates partial understanding of articles and some reflective thought

· Satisfactory use of details and information from articles to support summary

· Summary is not in own words with more than 4 direct quotes

10 points

· Summary demonstrates minimal understanding of articles and little reflective thought

· Unsatisfactory use of details and information from articles to support summary

· Summary is not in own words with more than 4 direct quotes

Critique – 25 points

Critique Content – 25 points

25 points

· Critique compares and contrasts the articles clearly using specific examples and supporting information to illustrate comparison

· Critique provides extensive evaluation and comparison of information from articles, including timeliness of sources, authority of sources, intended audience, and validity of information (all four)

· Well-developed, excellent analysis and evaluation of information and data

15 points

· Critique compares and contrasts the articles clearly but uses general examples supporting information to illustrate comparison

· Critiques provides some evaluation and comparison of information from articles (3 of 4)

· Satisfactory analysis and evaluation of information and research data

10 points

· Critique compares and contrasts the articles less clearly and lacks examples and supporting information to illustrate comparison

· Critique provides some evaluation and comparison of information from articles (2 of 4)

· Unsatisfactory analysis and evaluation of information and research data

Coherence & Grammar – 15 points

15 points

· Writing is free from errors in spelling, grammar, sentence structure and mechanics

· Writing is organized in a logical way with smooth transitions between ideas

· Writing of the critique uses substantial comparison and contrast transition words to show relationships between ideas

10 points

· Writing errors are slightly evident, but do not interfere with the meaning of the writing

· Writing is organized in a logical way with smooth transitions between ideas

· Writing of the critique uses some comparison and contrast transition words to show relationships between ideas

5 points

· Writing errors are common and detract from the clarity of the work

· Writing is not organized in a logical way and lacks smooth transitions between ideas

· Writing of the critique uses minimal comparison and contrast transition words to show relationships between ideas

2 points

· Writing is filled with errors in spelling, grammar, and mechanics and is not understandable

· Writing is not organized in a logical way and lacks smooth transitions between ideas

· Writing of the critique uses minimal comparison and contrast transition words to show relationships between ideas

STUDENT SCORE: _____________/ _____________ = _______________

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