Dr. Fritsch's
Technical Assistance for Term Papers
Courses with Writing Projects
- 4700 Research Methods
- 4900 Senior Seminar: Criminal Justice and Public Policy
- All graduate level courses
Although the topics and format of the papers and writing assignments vary greatly depending on the course, the primary reason Dr. Fritsch assigns writing projects is to provide more in-depth exposure to the literature on an issue facing criminal justice. In addition, these projects to give students practice in writing. It is crucial that students can express themselves through writing and as with most things you become better with practice. He expects the following in written projects:
- Comprehensive - well-researched. The student did not just pick a few articles on the topic and started writing but really became engrossed in the topic and explored it in depth
- Structured -the paper flows from the beginning to the end. There is a logic to the structure and the student does not jump from point 1 to 2 then back to 1, etc.
- Well-written - correct punctuation, grammar, spelling, etc. Usually these aspects will count for up to 20% of the grade on the paper.
Dr. Fritsch requires Justice Quarterly
referencing format. Guidelines for referencing material under Justice Quarterly format will be passed out in class. It is also beneficial to look at a Justice Quarterly article and follow the referencing format used.Dr. Fritsch recommends that the student start early in the semester on the paper. A topic should be chosen and the literature obtained from the library before mid-semester. If you do this you will find out if there is enough material on the topic and you will be able to give interlibrary loan plenty of time to obtain your materials. Second, he recommends that you discuss any problems, concerns, or questions with him. He can provide you with guidance on your writing assignment, so keep that in mind when you run into problems. Third, make sure you proofread your paper before you turn it in and have a friend read it. If it does not make sense to you or your friend then it probably won't make any sense to Dr. Fritsch.
Common Problems
- Lack of structure - emphasizes that the paper must be well structured and logically flow from beginning to end, but sometimes a paper lacks appropriate structure. In other words, the student jumps from point 1 to 2 to 3 back to 2 then back to 1, etc.
- Failure to follow specified format - Many times Dr. Fritsch specifies the exact format of the paper including what subheadings must appear in the paper. Sometimes students do not follow this required format.
- Failure to tell me the purpose and topic of the paper in the introduction - You must introduce your topic in the introduction and tell Dr. Fritsch what the paper is about and what you are going to do. Sometimes he has to read over half of the paper before he finds out what is the topic of the paper.
- Too many quotes - He does not like quotes. Dr. Fritsch wants you to paraphrase the material not quote it. He understands that sometimes something is said perfectly and you must quote it, but if you have more than 2 to 3 direct quotes in your paper it is probably too many.
- Failure to provide adequate referencing in the paper - Too often students do not provide citations when they are needed. Not following Justice Quarterly referencing format.
- Spelling and grammar errors - With spellcheck, spelling errors should be a thing of the past.
Grading Criteria for Writing Projects
The criteria varies depending on the writing project assigned. Generally, Dr. Fritsch develops a grade sheet based on the sections of the paper and assign points for each section of the paper. For example, the following grading criteria has been used in Senior Seminar.
5 points Introduction
20 points Analysis of strengths of policy
20 points Analysis of weaknesses of policy
20 points Description of implementation and evaluation of policy
5 points Conclusion
20 points Organization
10 points Grammar, Spelling, and Punctuation
100 points
FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
How do I find material on the topic?
Your first stop should be the Willis library. Start with the
Criminal Justice Abstracts which is an electronic resource in the library. It can identify
articles on your topic based on certain keywords. Also explore the Department of Criminal
Justice term paper technical assistance web page for information on your topic. These are
not the only two ways to find material on your topic, but it will give you a good start.
How do I cite information from the Internet?
Check out the Citation Section of
the Department of Criminal Justice Term Paper Technical Assistance web page. A basic
form is the Author, date, title, and internet address.
How do I know if something from the internet comes from
an academic source?
If the material came from one of the web sites on the
Department of Criminal Justice term paper technical assistance web page, then it is an
academic source. If not, then it probably is not an academic source, but you can show Dr.
Fritsch the item and he will let you know if it is an academic source or not.
How do I know if something from a journal or book is an
academic source?
One method of identifying academic sources, although
imperfect, is who wrote the article or book. If the author has a Ph.D., J.D., or Ed.D.
then it is probably an academic source, if not then it probably isn't. Magazines and
newspapers are not academic sources, regardless who wrote the article.
Plagiarism
If you obtain material from a source, then
you must cite it. Dr. Fritsch does not like direct quotes but prefers the student to
paraphrase the material. To avoid plagiarism, he recommends that you do not write or type
while you are looking at one of your sources. If you do, it is too easy to use the
author's direct words. Instead, read an article then remove it from your sight before you
start writing. This way you will be sure to paraphrase because it is up to you to
interpret what the author wrote. If you are staring at what the author wrote, then you are
likely to write it down verbatim.
If you have any questions, feel free to contact him by email at:
efritsch@scs.cmm.unt.edu
