Montana State University Bozeman Role of American Criminal Justice System Discussion

POSITION PAPER

Students will write a position paper on the topic, “Is the American Criminal Justice System Really A Just System?”. The paper will be a minimum of five (5) pages in length (not to include the title page or reference/works cited page). Students will use only APA or ASA citing styles for the internal citations and for their works cited page; no other citing styles will be accepted for this paper. Papers will be returned to the student if the citing is not correct. If you have a question about citing your paper, see the Writing Center or the professor for advice. The due date for the position paper is Wednesday, October 28th by 12:00 noon. Students can use Moodle (Turn-it-In mode) to proofread your paper for plagiarism. Students will be subject to the college’s procedure concerning plagiarism (See Student Handbook).

Why does it matter how you format and cite your paper?

Just as there are general accepted rules for formatting a letter (greeting, body, signature) or an e-mail (all caps=yelling) or almost any other type of writing, formatting for academic writing and citing allows readers to find your sources, follow your argument, and not be distracted by varying fonts or confusing abbreviations.

Also, formatting your citations correctly can help you avoid accidental plagiarism that could damage your credibility and your grade. Moodle helps reduce these issues.

The library provides a guide with examples based on the 6th edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (which is located in the Ready Reference area behind the reference desk under the call number R 150.72 Am35P) the information available on the APA website and style blog. APA is just one of several different citation styles you might be asked to use through your time here at King’s College. Make sure you know which citation style your professor wants before you start your paper, so you do not have to do your work twice (King’s College Library website, 2017). (SEE KING’s COLLEGE WEBSITE CITING)