Instructions for Paper 3
Paper 3 should be 750-1000 words in length. It will be an expository paper based on the book Acts of Faith by Eboo Patel. In the paper, your assignment is to describe Eboo Patel’s views on one of thefollowing topics as his views are presented in the book Acts of Faith. Choose just one of these topics (not more than one) as the focus of your paper:
(A) How to discourage young people from joining extremist religious groups
(B) How to embrace one’s own belief system while also learning from other religions (C) How to create and lead a successful non-profit group
For this paper, do not focus on saying whether you agree or disagree with Patel’s views. Do not focus on
comparing or contrasting his views to the views of others, or on doing outside research. Also, keep in
mind that the paper is not a “book report” in which you are supposed to summarize the entire book.
Rather, focus the paper on your chosen topic. Your goal is to describe Patel’s views on that topic clearly,
accurately, and in detail, as his views are presented in Acts of Faith. To do this, include at least eight
citations from the book in your paper. Be sure to discuss general terms and principles from the book, as
well as some of the concrete examples that Patel considers.
Make the last sentence or two of the paper’s introduction your thesis statement: a statement that clearly
states three main ideas you will present in the paper. Then, focus one paragraph of the body of the paper
on each main idea, before ending with a conclusion. This will lead to the following list of paragraphs:
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Paragraph 1: Introduction Paragraph 2: Main Idea 1 |
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Paragraph 3: Main Idea 2 |
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Paragraph 4: Main Idea 3 |
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Paragraph 5: Conclusion |
Use correct spelling, grammar, and style throughout the paper. Also, be sure to follow all the instructions
in Part 4 of the syllabus concerning assignment formatting, citations, submission, and the Turnitin
program. (Some details on how to cite Acts of Faith correctly using APA style are provided below.) If your
paper is late or not submitted, it will be subject to the relevant penalties described on the syllabus.
Your grade for the paper will be based on the quality of your work in the following areas, with the highest
scores in each area awarded for excellent work:
20% Factual information
Provide detailed and accurate information about Patel’s views as these are presented in
the book Acts of Faith, using appropriate citations.
40% Main ideas and supporting evidence
Organize the paper around three main ideas that are interesting and significant and relate
to your chosen topic. For each main idea, present it in a clear and detailed way in a
paragraph of the paper’s body. Use good logical reasoning and appropriate citations to
show how each main idea reflects Patel’s views in Acts of Faith.
10% Spelling, grammar, and style
10% APA format, citations, and References page
20% Other instructions
Follow the other instructions in this document and on the syllabus.
In addition to your grade, which will be based on the above criteria, I will also complete a standard rubric that is associated with the paper on LiveText. The marks on the rubric will be approximate and will not directly affect your grade, but are meant to give you a rough sense of how you are doing in various areas of the writing process. When I complete the rubric, I will focus on the general categories on the left side of the rubric, rather than the small text in each box. (The row for “content area” will relate to the factual information you present in the paper and the row for “writing strategy” will relate to your organization of the paper around three main points that present Patel’s views on your chosen topic.)
<><><><><><><><><><><><> Here are examples showing how to cite Acts of Faith using APA style:
Physical print book
In-text citations
(Patel, 2007/2010, p. 70) References page entry
Patel, E. (2010). Acts of faith: The story of an American Muslim, the struggle for the soul of a generation. Boston: Beacon Press. (Original work published 2007)
Electronic book
In-text citations – Since eBooks do not have standard page numbers, just indicate the chapter for each citation. For more detailed scholarly work you would also be required to also cite by paragraph, but I will not require that for this paper.
(Patel, 2007/2010, chapter 4)
References page entry – Here, I give the iBook version as an example. If you accessed the book in a different format (such as Kindle), you should adjust the appropriate fields.
Patel, E. (2010). Acts of faith: The story of an American Muslim, the struggle for the soul of a generation [iBook version]. Retrieved from iBooks. (Original work published 2007)
