Overview As we finish topics in the course, you will be given a writing assignm

Overview
As we finish topics in the course, you will be given a writing assignment to reflect on the learning. These reflection papers will be ~1500 words (which is about three pages, single-spaced) submitted as an assignment in Canvas. Your reflection paper will only be visible to the instructors.
Outcomes
Students will:
• Review and reflect on course concepts, as they relate to each other and examples discussed in class, readings, etc.
• Make reflective analysis on how the student would like to affect change. How does this reflection drive your potential future decisions or interactions in this area?
• Identify lingering questions from the topic(s)
Length and format
Papers should be ~1500 words (the equivalent of three-pages, single-spaced or six-pages double-
spaced). You may wish to write the essay in a word processor and copy-paste your submission into the
Canvas editor or upload the finished document.
Papers should read as stand-alone essays. Assume that someone who has not been in class could read and understand it. As you quote or reference others’ works, be clear in what is a copied idea versus your own. References should be cited, but do not need to follow a specific style.
Structure
There are three large components that need to be present for the paper:
• Answer the leading question
• Explore your own interests by bringing in a non-class example
• Reflect back on your personal experiences and growth through learning
You can almost think of them as three 500-page essays brought together. Clarity matters. It is perfectly
OK to separate out the different sections. For example, answer the leading question as one large part of the paper, and then address the reflection as a closing. Making sure that the required parts of the paper are addressed is more important than writing for synergistic flow across all the different components.
Answer the leading question
Leading Question: Why is compassion a key part of mindfulness? What does that in common with course topics about race, gender, and oppression?
Each paper will address a specific topic (or related series of topics) and be given a guiding question for
the essay.
Papers will need to answer the guiding question based on understanding and references from the course. In this way, the reflection acts as a content review. The question should be answered with a
clear, strong thesis and backed up with evidence from the course. The leading questions will be large enough that it can be answered in many different ways, giving you the ability to craft your own claim as a response. Make the claim, bring in evidence, and make clear the reasoning on how the evidence supports your claim.
Grading Rubric
Your reflection paper will be scored against four different criteria categories. Each criterion will be
scored as proficient (for full credit), approaching (for partial credit not reflecting proficient levels of
knowledge demonstrated), or missing (for no credit).
Leading question
– Was answered with a strong thesis statement (was easy to identify)
– Thesis reflected understanding from the course
– Evidence from the class was presented that supports the thesis
Exploration of a topic
– Included a reference that was not from the course (was easy to identify)
– External reference was appropriate for the topic
– External reference was synthesized back into the topic and thesis
Reflection
– Included at least one personal reflection (was easy to identify)
– Reflection was appropriate for the topic and course
– Reflection demonstrated understanding or learning of the topic through personal reflection
Miscellaneous
– Was understandable to someone who did not take the course (topics and explanations)
– Proficient writing at a college-level
– References to sources are cited in a reasonable way, easy to view
– Length was between 2-4 pages