Step 1: Locate Census Data on education for your state using the following process:
Go to the U.S. Census Bureau website.
Type your state’s name and Median Earnings by Educational Attainment in the search bar on the landing page. For example, “Virginia Median Earnings by Educational Attainment.”
The page will open to a table with median earnings by sex and educational attainment.
Step 2: Analyze the “Median Earnings by Educational Attainment” table for your state.
Write a 350-500 word essay in response to the prompts under the following headings.
Introduction – One paragraph
What is the purpose of the essay?
What steps will you take to achieve the purpose of the essay?
Include a thesis statement to forecast the direction for the rest of the paper.
Discussion of the Data – Three paragraphs
Name and fully describe the data source that will be used in the analysis.
Discuss the relationship suggested by the data between educational attainment and earnings. Give two examples from the “Median Earnings by Educational Attainment” table to support the relationship that you discover.
Compare and contrast earnings for males and females for two of the levels of educational attainment.
Note: Do not draw conclusions in this section.
Conclusion – 1-2 paragraphs
What two conclusions does the data suggest about the relationship between educational attainment and earnings?
Use data from the “Median Earnings by Educational Attainment” table to support the conclusions you made.
Summary and Suggestions for Further Study – One paragraph
Briefly restate the main points from the essay.
Propose two questions for further study that will help to better understand the relationship between educational attainment and the economy.
Step 3: Review and Meet the Submission Requirements
The completed essay must be within the range of 350-500 words in length to earn full credit. The essay should be double spaced and include the following:
12-point Times New Roman font.
1ʺ margins on all sides.
A separate title page and reference page.
Includes in-text citations to at least one scholarly source. The textbook is an excellent source. Remember: Wikipedia, encyclopedias, and encyclopedia-type sources (answers.com, infoplease.com, and such) are not considered academic sources.
