policy submission paper

Final Exam
Policy Submission or Policy Position Paper
(40%-50% of Final Grade)
The Scenario:
As you have seen over the course of our short time together, the world of broadcasting
and telecommunications is constantly evolving and it can be a challenge for the
Government, the federal regulator, industry players and stakeholders to keep pace with
the changes. But, that doesn’t mean that they shouldn’t try.
For our final assignment, you have two options.
1) Imagine that you’re a stakeholder in the broadcasting and digital communications
sector. The Government (either the Government of Canada or the federal regulator) has
launched a consultation process in order to make changes to how it supports and
regulates the broadcasting and digital communications sector. You are very passionate
about your perspective and want to ensure that your voice and concerns are heard. In
order to do so, your submission paper should:
• Clearly state what perspective you’re writing from and what your interests are;
• Provide relevant background information about the industry and context;
• Make and justify three (3) recommendations to the government.
OR
2) Imagine that you’re a policymaker in government (either at the CRTC or in a federal
department) at the end of the policy consultation process. You have a nuanced
understanding of the context surrounding your issue and have collected input from your
stakeholders. It’s now time to make your policy recommendations to your Minister. In
order to do so, your position paper should:
• Clearly explain the context and history of the issue;
• Discuss stakeholders’ perspectives and concerns;
• Establish and justify three (3) policy options that should be adopted to
address the issue.
Requirements
From the perspective of either the government or a stakeholder, write a 7-10 page
paper (not including a title page and bibliography) on an issue related to broadcasting
and digital communications.
Note: You do not have to write your paper on an issue or theme that we discussed in
class, however you do need to connect it to the existing legislative, regulatory and policy
framework.
CMN 3182A – Policy Studies
Summer 2020
For each issue, the policy paper should clearly explain the context and history of the
issue, discuss stakeholders’ perspectives and concerns (i.e. the reason why this
issue(s) are issue(s) that need to be addressed), and establish and justify three (3)
policy options that could be adopted to address the issue(s).
Other requirements:
• APA Citation Style
• Times New Roman, Font 12
• Double-spaced
• “Normal” margins (2.54cm)
• Use headings and sub-headings as appropriate
• Bibliography and Title page are not included in the page count
A detailed rubric (attached) provides a more detailed background of how the
assignment will be graded.
Due Date and Method of Submission:
Assignments are due by August 7th at 11:59PM (the last day of exams) but may be
submitted in advance of this date. Please submit your assignment via Brightspace.
Please include only your student number on the title page – do not include your name.
Rubric
Please note that the criteria listed under each section are not exhaustive but rather are
meant to provide general guidance on how the assignment will be graded.
Formatting
/10
Headings Headings and subheadings were used in a logical manner to
guide the reader
General Page requirements, margins and font specifications were
respected.
Content
/60
Introduction • Relevant background information about the broadcasting
and telecom sector was included
• Current state of the industry, pertaining to the issues, is
described
Context • Explanation of what is happening in broadcasting,
telecommunications and digital communications sector(s)
that is driving change or the need for change
CMN 3182A – Policy Studies
Summer 2020
• Demonstration of insight and a nuanced understanding of
the context by recognizing relationships and making
novel associations between industry trends, stakeholders
and public policy issues
Recommendations
and Conclusion
• At least three (3) specific options were presented to
address the issue at hand
• The policy rationale behind the options was specified
Writing Style
/30
Citations • APA Citation Style was followed
Writing • Clear, simple and easy to follow
• Arguments and options were presented in a concise
manner
• Paragraphs flowed in a smooth manner
• The paper was well-organized and arguments were welldeveloped
Spelling &
Grammar
• Minimal spelling and grammatical errors were present