EGS3720 USF Globalization & Technology Maternal Health
Professional Health Blog Minimum Requirements:
Note: Meeting the minimum requirements is necessary for a passing grade of C for this assignment. Above average blogs will exceed the minimum requirements, and will clearly aim to engage audiences through text, tone, links, visual aids, and well executed formatting.
- Minimum 700 words
- A clear, concise, coherent thesis statement (Links to an external site.) that makes a case/presents an argument. The thesis statement (Links to an external site.) should not invoke the comparative nature of the paper. For example, do not mistake the statement “Today I will compare the health care systems of [X and Y countries]” for a thesis statement (Links to an external site.). Similarly, do not confuse statements such as “There are many similarities and differences between the health care systems of [X and Y countries]” with a thesis statement (Links to an external site.); of course there are similarities and differences. Your job is to dig deeply into those similarities and differences, make a case, and make readers believe that your ideas and arguments are insightful and worth spending their time on (see linked resource for information on how to write an effective thesis statement (Links to an external site.)).
- Clear, well organized, and easy to follow structural organization. Your blog must include a clear, useful, and easily discernible introduction (Links to an external site.) and conclusion (see the linked resources for information on how to write introductions (Links to an external site.) and conclusions (Links to an external site.)). Furthermore, the organization of your blog must serve to support your main argument (thesis statement) (Links to an external site.) throughout your work. For example, the introduction should highlight aspects of your research that support whatever your main argument is, and every topic sentence of every body-paragraph must begin with a strong, clear, concise topic sentence that both supports your thesis statement and acts as a thesis statement for its paragraph.
- You must use a minimum of 6 sources for full credit in this section of the rubric. Your sources will be listed at the bottom of your blog, under the heading “References.” Youmust also provide in-text citations, which should be hyperlinked when possible – remember that if you needed a username and password to access a source (such as through the library), your hyperlink may not work, or will be inaccessible to some. Instead, link to a publicly available copy or abstract of your source.
- A list of acceptable sources has been provided for you. Your 6 minimum sources must be drawn from the list provided for you. This list is located in the “assignments” section of Canvas. You may use additional sources of your own finding beyond the minimum 6 sources required, but they must be similar in credibility and authority to the sources provided for you.
- You must use APA formatting (Links to an external site.) for your references, and you must cite your sources appropriately. For example, cite news articles as news articles (Links to an external site.), academic journal articles as academic journal articles (Links to an external site.), and government documents as government documents (Links to an external site.), etc. You can find a sample APA reference page here (Links to an external site.).
Tips for writing an above average blog (Links to an external site.):
- Use appropriate tone and language (Links to an external site.). Your tone and language for this blog should be professional, but personable. You have the freedom to use your own voice, and to take a more casual approach than you would if you were using a strict academic style. You also want to be relatable to a broad audience. However, your audience must be able to take you seriously, and should interpret you as a credible writer/speaker. So, your challenge is to balance clear, professional language and tone with a personable approach.
- Use hyperlinks throughout your blog post. Hyperlinks can be embedded utilizing the toolbar at the top of your text entry area in the Canvas discussion board where you will submit your work.
- Integrate appropriate visuals, such as charts and graphs, which must be referred toin the text and cited appropriately. Take a look at some of the exemplar blogs provided to you to see how hyperlinks and visuals can be successfully integrated, and consider using Gapminder (Links to an external site.) tools to help you present your data effectively. You can also insert pictures, videos, and graphs into your blog post using the toolbar at the top of the text entry area in the Canvas discussion board where you will submit your work.
Professional Health Blog Submission
Submit your blog through Canvas. Each blog must be a minimum of 700 words.
Due Date: Sunday, February 17, by 11:59 pm.
