To draw connections between theory and your own pivotal developmental experiences.
Part A – Developmental Experience
You should discuss your developmental experience in approximately 2 – 2.5 pages. You may pick one of the developmental topics below to discuss, as long you focus on a period of development that occurred at 6 years of age or older.Please pick a topic that you are comfortable sharing. I am a mandated reporter and would need to report any instances of abuse/harm to self or others that are disclosed.
Part B – Theory Overview
Pick a developmental theory or framework from the list provided. Use the theory or framework to explain some of the developmental experience that you described in Part A of the paper. This section should be one to two paragraphs in length. In writing this section of the paper, you will briefly explain the theory that you selected. Here you will include the name of the theory and which theorist(s) are associated with it. You will describe the key points about this theory using your own wordsAND you will include in-text citations to note where you got this information from.
You must include citations throughout this section of the paper, especially when you’re referencing information/facts from your sources! You should paraphrase (or re-write) information in your own words based on the ideas/information that you read from, and you must include an in-text citation in your sentence to show where that information came from.
Part C – Connection Between Theory and Experience
In three to four paragraphs (no more than 2 pages), you will discuss why this theory helps explain your developmentalexperience. The goal is connecting theory to your experience.
For example, you may discuss tenets from the theory that align with your experience. Or you might analyze how the theory helps give you insights to better understanding the experience that you went through. Remember to include in-text citations as you write!
Paper Format:
Please proofread your research paper before submitting! Check for the following:
• Typed paper in a Word document, using 12-point font, Times or Times New Roman font (including in the heading and cover page!)
• Your paper order: cover page, research paper, references (the research paper should begin at the top of the 2nd page after the cover page). No abstract or footnotes are needed.
• Research paper sections: You’ll have:
a) Introduction: 1 introductory paragraph that explains what the paper will cover,
b) Part A on your developmental experience,
c) Part B briefly describing the theory/framework
d) Part C discusses how theory helps explain experience
e) Conclusion this is 1 concluding paragraph that summarizes what was discussed in the prior sections
f) References
• You will have the following section headers listed in your paper (see the template example!): Part A – Developmental Experience, Part B – Theory Overview, Part C – Connection Between Theory and Experience, Conclusion. Each section should then have its own paragraphs.
• Spacing:
o Double-spaced, with 1-inch margins all around
o The start of each paragraph should be indented ½ an inch, with no extra spacing before or after each sentence or paragraph
• The only section breaks in the paper should be after the cover page and before the references
• Your paper should be 4-to-5-pages (not including cover page and references). This means a full 4 pages, carrying onto the 5th page. Papers shorter than this will be marked down; papers longer than 5 pages will also receive a reduction.
APA Guidelines:
• Follow the APA (American Psychological Association) style on citations, quotes, and references. Make sure to check out my Canvas resource on APA References Examples!
• Minimum of 4 references: 1 from our class readings and 3 peer-reviewed journal articles
• Direct quotes: Limited to no more than 2 quotes or no morethan a total of 4 lines of text
• Sources must be cited in APA format throughout
References:
Your references should start on a new page after the last line in your paper. References should be double-spaced, with indents to separate one reference from the next. In total, you need a minimum of 4 references (3 peer-reviewed journal articles + 1 reference from any of our course readings), but more are strongly encouraged!
