Critical Thinking Activity & Grading Rubric 100 points

Students will be presented with a relevant community problem and present solutions using an interdisciplinary approach. Students will use methods of at least two academic disciplines to work towards a solution. Students will complete a paper that clearly presents an argument using source material from two disciplines as evidence. You will then informally present your argument to the class through the Canvas discussion forum.

Community Problem

Background: Five years ago, Rolling Hills Landfill received an order from the Office of Environmental Enforcement, on behalf of Escambia County, Florida, to stop receiving debris. The Rolling Hills Construction and Demolition Facility had its permit revoked because of its failures to address cited violations that included “nuisance odors” and a debris mound that rose above the permitted height and could be seen past the property line. Beyond the annoyance and eyesore, residents of the Wedgewood Community in Pensacola, FL, had been calling for closure of the landfill for many years, as they claim it causes the health issues they have seen in the community. However, after five years, the landfill still had not been safely closed by the contractor hired by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.

Present situation: After community uproar, the FLDEP fired the contractor and hired a new one. The Escambia County Commission also committed funds to conduct monthly tests of waterways near the landfill after high levels of aluminum and iron had been found in the ground water near the site. When residents recently complained that they had not seen any progress on the closure of the site, the FLDEP created a website to update residents on the progress of the closure.

To get more information on this issue, you must look through articles from Pensacola News Journal and visit the FLDEP website devoted to this issue. To access the PNJ, click on “Library Tools” in Canvas and find the newspaper under “P” in our Database A-Z list. Searching for “Rolling Hills” should get you results that you may sort by date.

Content

Your paper should include at least a brief discussion of the current issue to provide context to your argument. You should then choose at least two disciplines and think about how they could be integrated to solve the issue. For the purposes of this paper, you may write as though only the background portion of the community problem has happened. Or, you may pick up the problem from the present if you see that issues are unresolved. In order to understand the situation from multiple perspectives, you will first need to conduct research. A great place to start is to browse news coverage of Rolling Hills Landfill. Then, you will want to move to news coverage and scholarly sources on the broader issues surrounding such sites (e.g., search on topics such as: landfill locations, landfill hazards, environmental activism, environmental discrimination, etc).

Questions you may consider:

Why was that location picked for the landfill in the beginning?

What are the demographics of the residents of the Wedgewood community? What is their socioeconomic status? Do these factors play a role in the location of the landfill or the delay in its closure?

What could have been done differently in this entire situation? In terms of communication from all sides? Advocacy? Environmentally?

What do these issues say about consumerism? Pollution? The broader Pensacola community that might say “not in my backyard”?

What steps can governmental officials take to repair their relationship with the Wedgewood residents?

Has the issue been solved satisfactorily? To whom?

Could more awareness have been brought about early on? How?

These questions are meant to get you brainstorming about your approach and are NOT meant to be answered one-by-one. As you prepare your own solutions, remember to center your argument on evidence and not opinion or emotion (think slow, rather than fast). Therefore, be careful of the sources you use and verify they are professional or scholarly in nature.

Your submission will be judged for its integration of two disciplines, clarity, consistency, relevance, logic, depth, and reasoned argument. Refer to the rubric for guidance in each of these areas. Further, for a list of questions a reader might ask, see the page below from The Critical Thinking Community. http://www.criticalthinking.org/pages/a-sample-ass…

Paper Specs

4-5 pages (1000-1300 words)

double-spaced

Times New Roman, 12 point font

At least 3 sources

include the word count at the end of your paper

Discussion

The second piece of this assignment includes participation in a discussion forum. Post a brief explanation (around 5 to 8 sentences) of your role, position, and argument in the Critical Thinking discussion forum. Then, read and respond to each of your classmates’ posts. You are encouraged to follow up with their responses to your own post.

Grading Rubric Elements

Points

Criteria

Score

Interdisciplinary approach

15

• at least two disciplines are used to address the community problem

disciplines are integrated

sources are used from each discipline

Clarity & Consistency

10

• issue is well-stated

complex parts of the problem are clearly defined

key concepts are clarified where necessary

Coherence, Logic, & Relevance

15

• definite line of argument is presented

sensitivity to issues that are being assumed or taken for

granted

argument progress logically

examples and evidence presented are relevant to the

issue

Depth

15

response does justice to the complexity of the issue • Are there multiple examples and evidence presented

Reasoned Argument/Solution

15

• Argument/proposed solution is well-supported

shows sensitivity to other points of view

response to objections raised by alternate points of view

Grammar and Citations

10

• correct grammar and spelling used?

all sources are clearly cited

all citations are properly formatted in accepted style

Discussion Participation

20

• respect for all participants and views is expressed

argument is clearly presented

provides rebuttal to counter arguments

TOTAL POINTS