Part 8: Writing Reports for the Center and Forthcoming Assignments

Before you write your first report, in Week 2, be sure to read Ron Dudai’s “’Can You Describe This?’ Human Rights Reports and What They Tell Us About the Human Rights Movement.”

Academic Integrity Policy—make sure you are clear about standards of academic integrity before you begin.

Training Reports

Each training report (approximately 8-10 double-spaced pages 1,500 words, 6 pages double-spaced) must provide the following:

• ABSTRACT — A brief summary of the history of the problem and why allegations of human rights abuses have been made. This should include a review of the relevant human rights instruments (can be local, national and international) that would apply.
• CONTEXT and EVIDENCE — A larger discussion of the historical, political, and other relevant context necessary to understand the root causes and current state of the alleged violations.
• EFFORTS TO DATE — A summary of efforts to resolve the problem and an assessment of failures and successes.
• THEORETICAL FOUNDATIONS — A section that links the context, human rights instrument(s), and alleged violations to the best theoretical foundation from your reading to support your determination that a human rights violation has occurred.
• RECOMMENDATIONS — Recommendations for policy changes, including a determination that the host government warrants certification as being in compliance with international law. Be sure to give a clear justification for your recommendations and judgments. That justification should draw clearly on your earlier sections.
• WORKS CITED — Full documentation of sources (footnotes or endnotes with page numbers, locations, in either MLA or APA style as long as your citations are consistent).

Response to Hopgood and Emergency Sex and Other Desperate Measures (approx. 1,500 words, 6 pages double-spaced):

For this short response, consider human rights rhetoric and ideals on the one hand and the human rights worker on the other. Craft your own argument about the way the authors describe the relationship between ideals (legal, moral, philosophical) and practice.  Where are the recipients of human rights work -- the sufferers of human wrongs – in this equation?  How does the way in which the authors write – both the form of the book and their individual writing styles – relate to the arguments they make?  Please note that you MUST cite brief passages from the books to support your points. 

Please avoid sweeping platitudes about in favor of close textual analysis of the book.  If you want to draw broader conclusions at the end of your response, that's fine; however, the emphasis should be on an analytical argument, supported by close textual readings (quotes and analysis), on how the book does its work.

Research Group Reports  (50% of course grade)

The trainee class is divided into small investigative units.  The project leaders will be assigned by the director.  They will post topics, and then the other trainees will sign up for a group, taking care to distribute themselves into equal groups. Groups should begin meeting by midway through the course to develop a research agenda and decide on the division of labor so that the final report is ready by the due date specified in the course calendar. The success of each group investigation depends on the commitment of all participants. The Center firmly believes that collaborative inquiry provides the most effective environment for understanding complex human problems and making sound recommendations for resolving them.

Final projects are expected to be more in-depth versions of the training reports.

Each unit report will follow the same format as the shorter, individual reports, and each report, and each report must provide the following:

• A brief summary of the history of the problem (500-750 words) and why allegations of human rights abuse have been made
• A list of specific articles in international human rights standards that pertain to reported violations
• A discussion of the larger context (the root causes and history of the alleged violations)
• A summary of evidence to support the allegations
• A theoretical foundation for the group’s analysis and findings
• A summary of political and judicial efforts to rectify the problems
• A summary of issues that are unresolved
• Policy recommendations and certification of compliance
• A list of resources (books and articles, films and documentaries, web resources)
• End notes with full documentation of all sources used in the report

You can also add images, video clips, and other data to your report to make it as persuasive as possible.

Although this is a group assignment, and the overall quality of the report affects everyone's grade, each member of the group is graded individually. In addition to submitting your group report, each participant must submit his/her own section. In addition, the Director (professor) will check in regularly with each group to see how the collaboration is proceeding.

Although there is one designated project director, that person would no doubt appreciate help with editing and compiling the report, managing the group meetings, and so forth. Be sure to share your skills with your group and work together.

 

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