Essay 4 – Reducing Oppression Now that you’ve learned about the mechanisms and effects of oppression what can be done to reduce it? To reduce discrimination and change intergroup attitudes there will need to be a multidimensional approach so be sure that you address at least 2 levels of intervention: individual, cultural, institutional, and organizational. You should be sure to report past strategies/interventions/laws as well as current strategies/interventions/laws, discuss their actual and proposed effectiveness, and apply them in the context of what you’ve learned this semester. Be sure that this essay includes at least 2 concepts from Chapter 13.
HSER 330 / PSYC 365 (Professor Hokerson)
Short Essay Instructions
Page 1 of 5
Course Student Learning Objective #5
To evaluate racism, classism, sexism, heterosexism, ableism, or ageism, including their origins, and causes, as it
relates to working with diverse populations.
Project Overview
You will be assigned one topic (racism, classism, sexism, heterosexism, ableism, or ageism) and write 2 short
essays (each worth 50 points) to be completed over the course of the semester. These essays are analytical,
should be written in the third person, and require that you effectively find, report, analyze, and evaluate
information on your topic. In Canvas I’ve posted links to help you succeed in writing these essays, how to
search for information using available resources (i.e. the Internet and ARC Library), and how to effectively cite
your sources using APA style citations. You will be assigned a topic during the first week of class and you
will write each essay on a different aspect of the same topic.
Submission Deadlines
You will write either Essay 1 or Essay 2; then you will write either Essay 3 or Essay 4. Specific due dates are
posted in the printable class calendar, but here are the general submission deadlines:
Week 4 = Essay 1- Defining Oppression
Week 8 = Essay 2- Stereotypes and the Media
Week 12 = Essay 3- The Impact of Oppression
Week 16 = Essay 4- Reducing Oppression
Late submissions in the Dropbox must be made within 48 hours and can only earn up to a C grade (70%).
Table of Contents
Topic Instructions………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 2
Format Requirements…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 3
Direct Quotations………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 3
APA Citations ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 3
Plagiarism………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 4
Characteristics of Critical Thinking Skills……………………………………………………………………………………………………… 4
Penalties………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 4
Rubric……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 5
HSER 330 / PSYC 365 (Professor Hokerson)
Short Essay Instructions
Page 2 of 5
Topic Instructions
It is essential that you follow each short essay topic instructions below very carefully.
Each essay must include research from at least 3 different sources including your textbook, the
Internet, or other print/electronic sources. Your submission must also adhere to college level writing
standards, including a guiding thesis, introduction, body, and conclusion.
Essay 1 – Defining Oppression.
What is the definition of your topic? You will most likely find that there are varying definitions hence it is
expected that you will report and contrast at least 2 definitions to the one from our textbook. What are the
similarities and differences between our textbook definition and other definitions? In this essay you must also
clearly identify the dominant and subordinate groups – which population receives privileges and which receive
disadvantages? Be sure that your essay includes these concepts from Chapter 1 – oppression, privilege, and
the textbook’s definition of your ism.
Essay 2 – Stereotypes and the Media
One key to understanding oppression is to uncover the beliefs and biases that drive it hence this essay will
consist of two areas of research and require that you discuss 3 concepts of your choice from chapters 3-6:
What are the stereotypes that perpetuate your ism? Be sure that you have evidence (i.e. research) that shows
these cultural beliefs exist. How are these beliefs that drive oppression transmitted and passed within our
culture? The media! Provide examples of how the media perpetuates these stereotypes through what you see
and don’t see across the media (which includes news, film, TV, Internet, and radio).
Essay 3 – The Impact of Oppression
Oppression creates advantages for dominant groups and disadvantages for subordinate groups – this is
discrimination. Report 3-5 clear examples of disparities across multiple domains such as violence, health care,
mental health care, employment, housing, and/or educational opportunities. If a disparity is reported as a
percentage be sure that you provide a comparative percentage for both dominant and subordinate groups;
you can also report a disparity as a ratio (for example, “seven times more likely” or “twice as often”). Keep in
mind that discrimination takes many levels, such as interpersonal, organizational, cultural, and institutional, and
your essay should include at least 2 different levels across at least 2 of the domains.
Essay 4 – Reducing Oppression
Now that you’ve learned about the mechanisms and effects of oppression what can be done to reduce it? To
reduce discrimination and change intergroup attitudes there will need to be a multidimensional approach so be
sure that you address at least 2 levels of intervention: individual, cultural, institutional, and organizational. You
should be sure to report past strategies/interventions/laws as well as current strategies/interventions/laws,
discuss their actual and proposed effectiveness, and apply them in the context of what you’ve learned this
semester. Be sure that this essay includes at least 2 concepts from Chapter 13.
HSER 330 / PSYC 365 (Professor Hokerson)
Short Essay Instructions
Page 3 of 5
Format Requirements
Carefully follow the format requirements below. Any variation will result in lost points or no credit.
Margins = no greater than 1 ½ inch
Font type = Arial, Times New Roman, or any Sans type font
Font size = 12 point / double spaced
650 – 1000 words (references not included)
Title should include the topic and essay information (e.g. Ageism –Essay 1)
Acceptable file formats:
Rich Text Format (RTF)
Word (DOC or DOCX)
Portable Document File (PDF)
Submission of any other format may result in a zero!
Direct Quotations
These essays are expected to be written in your own words therefore no more than 10% of the essay should
be quoted. If you submit an essay with more than 10% quoted material you will be penalized one point for
each percentage above 10%. If you submit a project with more than 20% quoted material you will receive an
automatic zero and possibly be reported to the Dean if academic dishonesty has occurred (refer to the
plagiarism policy on the next page). Only use quotations when you can’t paraphrase or summarize the
content without losing its impact, value, or meaning.
APA Citations
This is not an APA research paper, however you are expected to use APA style citations throughout your
essay, which include in-text citations and full citations on a Reference page. In each essay you are
expected to cite at least 3 unique sources and will be penalized 2 points for each missing resource. Do
NOT use Wikipedia or any other wiki in your essays.
If you submit a project without any citations you will receive an automatic ZERO.
If you use MLA, footnotes, or any other style you will be penalized 5 points.
Links on plagiarism and APA style citations are provided in CANVAS.
You are expected to include concepts / theories / research from relevant chapters in your
textbook in each essay. Be sure to appropriately cite the textbook as well as any other
source you use in gathering information.
HSER 330 / PSYC 365 (Professor Hokerson)
Short Essay Instructions
Page 4 of 5
Plagiarism
You are responsible for submitting original work (new and previously untested) and I reserve the right to
question anybody and take appropriate actions to enforce this policy. Upon submission in CANVAS these
essays will be checked through a plagiarism detector to verify originality. If your submission demonstrates an
egregious act of plagiarism you will be given an automatic zero for this project, will be reported to theSS
Area Dean, and possibly the campus disciplinary officer. If you use citations to avoid plagiarism but do so
incorrectly or inconsistently, you may receive a smaller penalty for plagiarism (see the project rubric).
Characteristics of Critical Thinking Skills
Each essay will be evaluated on your ability to demonstrate critical thinking skills. Here are some examples…
