Alberta (Canada) Oilsands: Financial Benefits Vs. Environmental Impacts

Formatting Exceptions:
Running header that includes student name, course, and section number (no templates, and no headers on intro pages). Running footer should have page number centered at bottom of page (small Roman Numerals for intro pages, and regular Arabic numbers for balance of document). Title page is first page, but number doesn’t show.
No title fly or letter of transmittal is necessary on this report.

Outline:

Title Page (1 page)

Table of Contents (1 page)

Executive Summary (1 page) – Provides a purpose statement (why is this a significant topic?), a methodology (what steps did you follow in writing the report), quick, at-a-glance summary of the entire contents of the report, and the conclusions and/or recommendations of the report. The Executive Summary is always written after completion of the report, so should not contain any future tense words or phrases like “This review will cover …”. The Executive Summary highlights or gives an overview of the main points that you have made in each section.

Introduction (1/2-1 page) – Although this paper is a literature review, you will still need to have an argument/overall idea/consistent viewpoint. This may not be quite as specific as it was for the last essay, but you should still know where you’re going with the paper. You will introduce this idea in your introduction and give an overview of your intent for the main ideas in each of your sections. As you write your sections, remember to relate your information back to the main idea.

Background (1-2 pages) – In this section, you will summarize some basic facts/background information about your issue using a variety of sources. Describe what the issue is and why it is important. Use subheadings where appropriate.

You will probably wish to organize this section like a mini-essay, with a short introductory paragraph to introduce your main idea and main points, and a conclusion that wraps up your ideas in a satisfying manner and relates them back to your overall idea.
Viewpoints (approx. 3 pages) – In this section, you will group the different viewpoints that your authors have about this issue into several different categories with a separate subheading for each category. Discuss each viewpoint and analyze/explain why the authors approach the topic in the way they do. You will also want to set the viewpoints in context by discussing how they relate, respond, or appear to be influenced by each other.

You will probably wish to organize this section like a mini-essay, with a short introductory paragraph to introduce your main idea and main points, and a conclusion that wraps up your ideas in a satisfying manner.

Arguments, Evidence and Techniques (10+ pages) – In this main section of your report, you will discuss the different types of approaches that authors take to this topic by grouping them into categories with subheadings. What types of articles did you find in your research? On what types of evidence do the authors base their opinions?

You will probably wish to organize this section like a mini-essay, with a short introductory paragraph to introduce your main idea and main points, and a conclusion that wraps up your ideas in a satisfying manner.

Conclusion (1/2 page) – Restates the material in the introduction by summarizing your main ideas from each section and making clear how they relate to your overall viewpoint. Your conclusion should bring everything together in a manner that is interesting and convincing for your reader.

References – Must include at least 15 high quality sources. I will be looking to see that you have picked resources that have some depth to them. I am hoping that you will find different types of articles and different viewpoints or approaches in these articles. I will also be looking to make sure that you have accessed them using a mixture of different resources, e.g. online, library databases, news websites, print material.

*So, remember that the literature review surveys the literature written about a topic, categorizes the perspectives, and then evaluates the validity of arguments used with regard to quality of evidence, unified proposition, mode of reasoning, and use of emotional and/or logical fallacies. Make sure you re-read the assignment guidelines for both the proposal and the Literature Review project, as well as Kent Lewis’s introductions to Chapter 5 (Questions) and Chapter 8 (Argument) before continuing. Lewis’s introductions will provide you with the professional definitions and terminology required for true rhetorical analysis of argument.