Media Analysis

What factors contribute to strained relations between police and ethnic communities?

Rationale

* You are required to research the issues relating to the question, and to show evidence of that research in the form of a Reference List (not a Bibliography) and appropriate quotation.

* You may use a variety of sources (e.g. media and internet sources), however academic sources i.e. books and journal articles (not including the prescribed text) should make up the bulk of your references.

* You are asked to query and evaluate all that you read and, through a critical engagement with it, develop your own opinions and ideas.

* These ideas must be argued and substantiated by rational means, and in a logical order.

* Your argument must have a clear structure.

* You will lose marks for errors in spelling or grammar.

* Essays must be submitted via EASTS (online).

* Emailed essays WILL NOT be accepted.

Before anything else, marks will be awarded to essays that 'have something to say.'

Presentation

Essay Pointers:

* The basic format of an essay is: say what you are going to say, say it, and say it again. That is, introduce the topic and foreshadow your argument in a single paragraph introduction (don't wait until the conclusion to make your point of view clear).

* Make a single clear point in each of the paragraphs of the body of your essay (each paragraph should contain about three to five sentences).

* Your conclusion should be a single paragraph that summarises your essay, answering the question directly.

* Remember to stay relevant. Each paragraph should link your remarks clearly to the question. Use the language in the question regularly throughout your essay. The hardest thing to do when writing an essay is to remove points that you think are interesting or nicely written but are in fact only tangentially related to the question.

* Write clearly and concisely. Don't say "The act of policing should indeed be seen from the perspective that it is an extremely complex activity", when "Policing is a complex activity" conveys the same meaning. Concise writing gives you more space to make your argument.

* Avoid appeals to authority. Something isn't true just because an official spokesperson or prominent author says it. Use quotations sparingly. Quoting someone else's argument is not evidence supporting your own argument. Think about the arguments you read and come up with evidence and examples that support