Options
Learners have the option of conducting and writing up a field interview or writing a Social Gerontology policy paper.
Option #1 – Field Interview Option: Life Transition paper.
For this paper, you will conduct a personal interview with someone age 60 or older. The focus of the paper is the important developmental transitions that have shaped this individual’s life course. The elder can be a member of your family, a friend or someone in an assisted living facility or nursing home. In the paper you should ask the individual about one or more major life transitions. Inquiry should focus on how they made major decisions in choosing one path over another, asking if they are satisfied with the choices they have made and what they feel they have learned along the way.
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Utilize the “age timetables” on page 34 in Chapter 2 of our text to assist in crafting interview questions. Do not attempt to cover the entire life course. Rather, select a few crucial turning points. For example, it may be the decision to select a partner, marry, to have children, select a career, to take a job offer or to retire. Why and how did they make the decision they did at the time? There is no right or wrong answer.
Let your subject define the issues. Be sure to identify important cultural and issues social issues regarding race, class, and gender.
In the first section, introduce the individual you have chosen to interview. Who are they? How do you know this individual? Identify two crucial life transitions and then devote 4-5 pages describing the individual’s perceptions and experiences related to them. How have they defined and negotiated these life transitions? Finally, you should have a concluding summary page describing any insights you might have learned or gained from the exchange.
Students may write in the first person or the third person. You may include direct quotes from the individual. Often learners will find that the subject will discuss many aspects of his or her life, and that is fine. However, focus your interview by asking your subject to tell you about the most important turning points in his or her life.
Option #2 – Social Gerontology Policy Paper
Select at least one policy issue defined and discussed in our text. Possible policy issues:
Should states restrict the driving privileges older drivers?
Identify, define and discuss policy issues related to aging and gender.
Should aging prisoners be granted a “compassionate release” for medical treatment?
What special aging concerns do gay, lesbian and transgender elders face?
Should more money be used to research childhood obesity or adult heart disease?
Should older people be free to end their own lives when faced with terminal illness?
Should cities require developers to build age-friendly features into their new and remodeled housing? Should school districts operate elderly meal programs at local public schools? Should the federal government stop paying, via Medicare or Medicaid, for “behavior” induced health problems of obese people and smokers?
Grading Criteria for Policy Paper:
Delivery: Is your paper well written, presentable, and well organized? Is it grammatically correct, with correct formatting, spelling, and punctuation?
Scholarly Style and Documentation: Are you familiar with the topic? Have you included appropriate references to support your statements and conclusions on the Works City page? Have you cited material correctly in the paper? Is the student able to demonstrate an adequate level of understanding of the topic and its implications?
Critical thinking: Is your analysis complete, with acknowledgements to both sides of the issue – pointing out the positive and negative outcomes that may be anticipated from any policy or program modification. Do you bring anything new or original to your discussion? Do you look at issues in a new light or suggest new ideas in your paper?
