Compare and Contrast Instructions

The table below provides an extensive list of topic options from which you must select, and we recommend that you choose one that you are interested in beyond this course. For instance, if you are a Finance or Business major, you might be interested in the Stocks v. Bonds topic. If you are a Political Science major, you might choose Monarchy v. Presidency. Or perhaps you’re taking StraighterLine’s Intro to Philosophy course, in which case you might opt for the Hobbes v. Locke topic. Note that you must use at least one credible source to support your ideas.

Additional helpful resources:

Compare/Contrast Rubric | Compare and Contrast Sample

You may choose any of these topics:
Topic Options

•Stocks v. Bonds

•Socialism v. Capitalism

•Hitler v. Napoleon

•Apple v. Microsoft

•Renaissance Art v. Baroque Art (or any two artistic periods)

•Biology v. Chemistry

•America in the 1950s v. the 1970s

•Women in 1914 v. today

•Pop Culture in the 1980s v. Pop Culture today

•Abraham Lincoln v. Thomas Jefferson (or any two presidencies)

•British English v. American English

•Writing for print v. Writing for the Web•American Government v. Canadian Government (or any world government)

•US Constitution v. Articles of Confederation

•Star Wars v. Star Trek

•Monarchy v. Presidency

•Thomas Hobbes v. John Locke (or any two philosophers)

•The former USSR v. Russia today

•(World War) Allies v. Axis

•Maya Angelou v. Adrienne Rich (or any two poets)

•Nazism v. Fascism

Choose one of the options above and write an essay comparing or contrasting the two topics in your selection using EITHER the point-by-point OR the subject-by-subject method to organize the details and specific examples. Consider focusing on three to five subtopics and generate ideas through prewriting. Develop a strong thesis statement for your essay that includes your two topics from the list above; your three to five subtopics; and a claim about how they are similar, different, or both.

Sample Thesis Statements:

If you will argue that your two topics are mostly similar:

Topic A and Topic B share many similar characteristics, including (Supporting point 1), (Supporting point 2), and (Supporting point 3); while they differ in (Additional supporting point), the similarities greatly outweigh the differences.

OR

If you will argue that your two topics are mostly different:

While Topic A and Topic B have (Additional supporting point) in common, they are mostly quite different; in fact, they differ in characteristics such as (Supporting point 1), (Supporting point 2), and (Supporting point 3).

OR

If you will argue that your two topics have many important/interesting similarities and differences:

Analyzing Topic A and Topic B reveals many fascinating similarities as well as differences; for instance, they share (Supporting point 1) and (Supporting point 1), but are vastly different when it comes to (Supporting point 3) and (Supporting point 4).

Tips

To brainstorm, you might consider using a Venn diagram or a simple list to show what your topics have in common and how they differ. Then you can select the most prominent or interesting characteristics that you want to highlight in your paper.

Be sure to avoid beginning your comparisons or contrasts in the introduction. Your thesis is the only place in the introduction where you will include this information. Use the introduction to get your reader’s attention, and consider using a good strategy that leads into the topic. For instance, you might relate a short anecdote to illustrate your topic, an interesting quotation that relates to your topic, or perhaps a surprising statistic that reveals something about your topic.

Then, in the body paragraphs remember to support your claim(s) outlined in the thesis. For instance, if one of your points says the city and the country are different in terms of transportation, be sure the topic sentence of one body paragraph presents a similar statement. In addition, spend equal time on each subtopic in each body paragraph, and one way to develop organized body paragraphs is to focus on one topic before moving to the next one so that the paragraph support is split 50/50. In other words, using the example above, you would explain the transportation options in the city in full, and then, you would detail the types of contrasting transportation in the country. End each body paragraph with a strong concluding sentence that synthesizes that paragraph’s discussions.

The conclusion should sum up the specific supporting points as well as your overall assessment of why these points are important. Consider what kinds of interesting or new conclusions you can draw from your comparison. In other words, your essay must reveal why your comparison is important. A well-developed paragraph often contains a minimum of five sentences. Note that any of the main sections below labeled with Roman Numerals (I, II, III, IV) could be more than just a single paragraph.

Point-by-Point

I. Introduction
A. Thesis
B. Additional information to introduce your topic and gain the reader’s attention

II. Supporting point 1
A. Topic 1
B. Topic 2

III. Supporting point 2
A. Topic 1
B. Topic 2

IV. Supporting point 3
A. Topic 1
B. Topic 2

V. Supporting point 4 or Additional point
A. Topic 1
B. Topic 2

VI. Conclusion
A. Reiterate your thesis (but do not simply restate it from the introduction)
B. Give your overall assessment—the “so what” factor—about your topic. For instance, is one topic better than the other for some reason? Is one topic misunderstood?

Subject-by-Subject

I. Introduction
A. Thesis
B. Additional information to introduce your topic and gain the reader’s attention

II. Topic 1
A. Supporting point 1
B. Supporting point 2
C. Supporting point 3
D. Supporting point 4 or Additional point

III. Topic 2
A. Supporting point 1
B. Supporting point 2
C. Supporting point 3
D. Supporting point 4 or Additional point

V. Conclusion
A. Reiterate your thesis (but do not simply restate it from the introduction)
B. Give your overall assessment—the “so what” factor—about your topic. For instance, is one topic better than the other for some reason? Is one topic misunderstood?

Here’s an example of how you might organize using these methods for an essay about cats versus dogs as pets (remember, this topic is not one of the options for this essay).

Point-by-Point

I. Introduction
A. Thesis: While cats and dogs are both clear winners when it comes to pet choices, these animals are vastly different when it comes to noise level, exercise needs, and cleanliness.

II. Subtopic 1: Noise level
A. Topic 1: Cats are quiet
B. Topic 2: Dogs can be noisy

III. Subtopic 2: Exercise
A. Topic 1: Cats do not have to be walked
B. Topic 2: Dogs require exercise

IV. Subtopic 3: Cleanliness
A. Topic 1: Cats groom themselves
B. Topic 2: Dogs need to be bathed

V. Conclusion

Subject-by-Subject

I. Introduction
A. Thesis: While cats and dogs are both clear winners when it comes to pet choices, these animals are vastly different when it comes to noise level, exercise needs, and cleanliness.

II. Topic 1: Cats
A. Subtopic 1: Noise level
B. Subtopic 2: Exercise
C. Subtopic 3: Cleanliness

III. Topic 2: Dogs
A. Subtopic 1: Noise level
B. Subtopic 2: Exercise
C. Subtopic 3: Cleanliness

IV. Conclusion

The guidelines for this assignment are as follows:

Remember to apply the concepts you’re learning in the course, including elements of grammar, punctuation, thesis development, and other skills.

Length: This assignment should be at least 500 words.

Sources: You need a bare minimum of one credible source for this assignment.

Header: Include a header in the upper left-hand corner of your writing assignment with the following information:

• Your first and last name
• Course Title (Composition I)
• Assignment name (Comparison and Contrast)
• Current Date

Format:

• MLA style documentation (please see the tutorial in the course topic)
• Last name and page number in upper-right corner of each page
• Double-spacing throughout
• Title, centered after heading
• Standard font (Times New Roman or Calibri)
• 1″ margins on all sides
• Save the file as .docx or .doc format

Assignment 4: Project Presentation

Due Week 10 and worth 300 points

In order to complete this assignment, you will consolidate the
previous three (3) writing assignments into a PowerPoint Presentation.

Your project is now in its closing stage. You are ready to present a
final report to your major stakeholders, and deliver the project to the
client/customer.

Develop a closing process PowerPoint presentation. Your PowerPoint
presentation must have speaker notes and these speaker notes must be
written as if you were presenting this project to your stakeholders. A template is
provided for your use. You can modify the template based on your
professor’s instructions. Do not omit any information from the template
because the information aligns with the rubric.

PowerPoint Resources

• Review the videos in the lynda.com playlist “Creating a Presentation in PowerPoint 2013”, located at http://www.lynda.com/SharedPlaylist/3a6dbf0365fc469580e3a974705a8f8d?org=strayer.edu, for tips on getting started using PowerPoint.
• Review the “Death by PowerPoint” presentation, located at http://www.slideshare.net/thecroaker/death-by-powerpoint, for tips on effectively creating engaging presentations.

Prepare a twelve to fifteen (12-15) slide presentation in which you:

1. Identify the project objectives, and conclude how the project team has met each of the identified objectives.
2. Discuss how having a project charter contributed to the success of your project.
3. Identify the stakeholders, and describe how stakeholders’ analysis has assisted in a smooth management of the project.
4. Analyze the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) created, along with the explanation for each task.
5. Present the project plan / network created, and make sure that critical path is properly depicted.
6. Describe the techniques of reducing project duration, and describe if any such techniques are used for your project.
7. Describe the project communication plan used for the project.
8. Describe the main assumptions and exclusions (taken from scope
   statement), dependencies, or any other major issues of the project.
   Explain how they have been handled.
9. Distinguish the scope, time, and cost constraints.
10. Compile a list of six (6) best practices arising from this project’s lessons learned.
11. Recommend methods to avoid similar obstacles in future projects.
12. Compose a list of next steps with the assumption that there is a need to create another phase for this project.
13. Format your assignment according to the following formatting requirements:
    1. Use the PowerPoint presentation template that
       can be found in the online course shell. Your professor will inform you
       if the template can be modified. If you need more than the maximum
       allotted number of slides for your presentation, contact your professor
       for the approval.
    2. Include a Title Slide which contains the title of the assignment,
       the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the
       date. The Reference Slide must follow APA format. A minimum of three (3)
       references are required. The Title Slide and Reference Slide are not
       included in the required page length.
    3. Create Speaker Notes to accompany each slide that emphasize and
       embellish the key points to the stakeholders. Please be clear and
       thorough as if you are actually presenting.

The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are:

• Evaluate and assess the best practices used when outsourcing project work.
• Develop a process for measuring the progress of a project, providing
  oversight, coordinating project closure, and determining project
  effectiveness.
• Develop a project network to implement the project plan, manage projects effectively, and complete required resource allocation.
• Use technology and information resources to research issues in project management.
• Write clearly and concisely about project management using proper writing mechanics.

Choose a family member, friend or colleague and interview them. Ask them about their experiences with technology as they were growing up in their educational environment. Have them share how they use technology in their daily routine for work and personally. Summarize the responses and submit a 2-page paper.

Make sure to substantiate your paper with research from either readings in the class or outside scholarly sources. There is no right or wrong answer for this; the paper will be graded on the strength of the case being presented.

The paper needs to be double-spaced, full name in the header and attention should be paid to grammar and syntax. There is no need to write the questions as this is mainly a summary of the interview.

Monique Food Processing Company produces light snacks that can be heated in a microwave. The following steps are included in the process:

Steps	Description	Capacity (Units/Hour)
1	Prepare food	200
2	Measure and place in plastic pouch	175
3	Prepare cardboard box	200
4	Insert pouch into box	300
5	Shrink-wrap box	200

• What is the system capacity, and which is the bottleneck department?
• How much slack (unused capacity) is available in other departments?
• How much system capacity can be gained by adding capacity to the bottleneck?
• What are the key factors that determine when to add capacity?
• Why would an organization want to reduce its capacity

Literature Review

Literature reviews help to provide boundaries of what is known about a particular field and serve to guide researchers in their quest to uncover the mysteries and nuances of a selected issue or problem. A well-developed review of literature is essential to a thorough, well-considered paper. Whether the writing is intended for a high-end scholarly journal or a student’s weekly assignment, the literature review pertains to uncovering the body of knowledge that previous researchers have generated. It is a savvy researcher who is able to take advantage of the existing base of knowledge in the creation of a new line of inquiry. A literature review should be conducted at the beginning of a research study.

Using Chapter 2 of the Creswell text as guidance, write a literature review for your preferred area of criminal justice study. To successfully complete this study, you must

•Identify a particular area of criminal justice.

•Define the area’s boundaries by explaining the methodologies and statistical techniques used.

•Describe the specific canon of literature found.

•Define the field in general.

•Critique the field, including areas requiring further examination.

The literature review

•Must be three to five double-spaced pages in length (not including title and references pages) and formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center (sample Literature Review in the Ashford Writing Center).

•Must include a separate title page with the following:

◦Title of paper

◦Student’s name

◦Course name and number

◦Instructor’s name

◦Date submitted

•Must use at least five peer-reviewed sources in addition to the course text.

◦The Scholarly, Peer Reviewed, and Other Credible Sources table offers additional guidance on appropriate source types. If you have questions about whether a specific source is appropriate for this assignment, please contact your instructor. Your instructor has the final say about the appropriateness of a specific source for a particular assignment.

•Must document all sources in APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.

•Must include a separate references page that is formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.

Carefully review the Grading Rubric for the criteria that will be used to evaluate your assignment.

Assignment Submission