Personal Concepts

Important Assignment Deadlines:

Part 1 (no word count)

As you read the chapters assigned to each module/week, you will find some concepts more interesting and applicable to your personal or work situation than others. Review the key terms listed in the assigned chapters; then, submit a preliminary thread indicating the key term that you wish to reserve for your thread for that module/week.

Check the discussion board area prior to submitting your reservation to ensure no one else has chosen that key term. In the event the key term you wish to explore is already reserved by someone else, simply move on to another key term in your readings. Duplicate key terms will not earn credit under any circumstance—this includes work submitted in a previous course. Do not ask the instructor to accept a duplicate key term, as this is not fair to those who followed these explicit directions.

Include the exact key term you selected in your thread’s subject line.

Submit Part 1 to the Discussion Board Forum by of the first of the assigned modules/weeks.

Part 2 (800 words minimum)

After you have successfully reserved the key term that interests you the most, research a minimum of 5 recent scholarly articles that relate to the concept on which you wish to focus your research. Articles must be found in reputable professional and/or scholarly journals and/or informational venues that deal with the content of the course (i.e., not blogs, Wikipedia, newspapers, etc.).  After reading the articles, select the 1 article that you wish to discuss.

It is highly recommended that you use University’s Jerry Falwell Library online resources. A librarian is available to assist you in all matters pertaining to conducting your research, including what constitutes a scholarly article. For more details on what constitutes a scholarly journal (and what does not), visit Jerry Falwell Library’s “Scholarly Journals – What Are They?” page.

Your thread must be placed in the Discussion Board Forum textbox (not as an attachment) and adhere precisely to the following headings and format:

1. Key Term and Why You Are Interested in It (100 words minimum)

After reading the textbook, specifically state why you are interested in conducting further research on this key term (e.g., academic curiosity, application to a current issue related to employment, or any other professional rationale). Include a substantive reason, not simply a phrase.

• Explanation of the Key Term (100 words minimum)

Provide a clear and concise overview of the essentials relevant to understanding this key term.

• Major Article Summary (300 words minimum)

Using your own words, provide a clear and concise summary of the article, including the major points and conclusions.

• Discussion

In your own words, discuss each of the following points:

1. How the cited work relates to your above explanation AND how it relates specifically to the content of the assigned module/week. This part of your thread provides evidence that you have extended your understanding of this key term beyond the textbook readings. (150 words minimum)
2. How the cited work relates to the other 4 works you researched. This part of your thread provides evidence that you have refined your research key term to a coherent and specialized aspect of the key term, rather than a random selection of works on the key term. The idea here is to prove that you have focused your research and that all works cited are related in some manner to each other rather than simply a collection of the first 5 results from your Internet search. (150 words minimum)

• References

A minimum of 5 recent scholarly articles (not textbooks, Wikipedia, or other popular reading magazines), in current APA format, must be included and must contain persistent links so others may have instant access. In the event that formatting is lost or corrupted when submitting the thread, attach the Microsoft Word document to your thread as evidence that your work was completed in the proper format. Access the following URL from the Jerry Falwell Library for instructions on creating persistent links: How to Create a Persistent Link.

Submit Part 2 to the Discussion Board Forum by 11:59 p.m. (ET) on Monday of the second of the assigned modules/weeks.

Part 3 (150 words minimum, per reply)

Additionally, you will reply to a minimum of 3 other classmates’ threads. Thus, you will have submit substantive written responses to a minimum of 3 other classmates’ threads.