Interdisciplinary Natural Sciences Reflection Essay

 In this assignment, you will be writing an interdisciplinary reflection essay centering around the natural sciences discipline of biology and the germ theory of disease. You will find detailed instructions below in the box entitled “Reflection Essay Assignment Instructions.” Follow the details of those assignment instructions very closely.

This reflection essay is NOT a research paper. You do not need to go online or to the library to find information about this topic. You will not need to cite references at the end of your paper or make in-text citations.

A reflection essay deals with information from your personal experience, observations of the world around you, your workplace, and your community. We want to hear your voice and your words on this topic. For the essay to be interdisciplinary, it must include more than one discipline, so you will be asked to reflect on different disciplinary aspects of the music that you love the most. Those disciplines are specified in the instructions below in the box entitled “Reflection Essay Assignment Instructions.” 

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College of Professional and Continuing Studies
University of Oklahoma

LSTD 3003 – Interdisciplinary Inquiry
Unit 5.2 Natural Sciences (NS) Reflection Essay

WRITING ASSIGNMENT TOPIC: Natural Sciences discipline: BIOLOGY

Write a 500-word interdisciplinary reflection essay on the germ theory of disease. For centuries
humankind did not know how diseases were spread. In the mid-1800’s, it was discovered that
germs caused disease. The germ theory of disease is interesting to reflect on because it was a
shift in the natural sciences that had far-reaching impacts on many other disciplines as well. This
reflection essay is NOT a research paper. You do not need to go online or to the library to find
information about this topic. You will not need to cite references at the end of your paper or
make in-text citations. A reflection essay deals with information from your personal experience,
observations of the world around you, your workplace, and your community. We want to hear
your voice and your words on this topic. For the essay to be interdisciplinary, it must include
more than one discipline. Those disciplines are specified in the instructions below.

THE FIVE-PARAGRAPH ESSAY (INSTRUCTIONS)
When writing this essay, please use the five-paragraph approach. In this case, each paragraph
should be approximately 100 words long. This is by no means the only formula for writing such
essays, but for this assignment, it serves our purposes well. This method consists of:

1. Add a title page with all the information that is highlighted in yellow on the title page of
the “APA Sample Paper” that is provided.

2. Do NOT include an “abstract” page. An abstract it not necessary for the purposes of this
essay.

3. PARAGRAPH 1 (100 words) – An introductory paragraph
Clearly and concisely states the paper’s purpose, which is engaging, and thought
provoking.

a. Set the context –provide general information about the main idea, explaining the
situation so the reader can make sense of the topic and the claims you make and
support

b. State why the main idea is important –tell the reader why he or she should care
and keep reading. Your goal is to create a compelling, clear, and convincing essay
people will want to read and act upon

c. State your thesis/claim –compose a sentence or two stating the position you will
support

4. Three evidentiary body paragraphs (paragraphs 2-4)
a. PARAGRAPH 2 (100 words) – Reflect on the natural science discipline of

biology and how the germ theory of disease affected the health sciences and how
we approach and research medicine.

b. PARAGRAPH 3 (100 words) – Reflect on the social sciences discipline of
psychology and how we think differently about our lives knowing that many
diseases that used to kill people can be cured.

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c. PARAGRAPH 4 (100 words) – Reflect on how the germ theory of disease
affected natural sciences discipline of botany. (i.e. Many plant extracts are used in
modern medicine.)

5. PARAGRAPH 5 (100 words) – A conclusion paragraph
In your conclusion, reflect on what you see as the positives and negatives for both the
individual and society since the discovery of the germ theory of disease. Reflect on what
you have learned that you did not know before and perhaps what you can use in your
personal and professional life based on your reflections.

6. No citations page is needed. Citations pages are required when you are acquiring
information from outside resources. In a reflection essay, the information is coming from
within. It is information from your personal experience, observations of the world around
you, your workplace, and your community.

FORMATTING: Double spaced, Times New Roman font, 12-point text, one-inch page margins. College-
level writing is expected. The paper will be graded, in part, for content, grammar, spelling, punctuation,
and sentence structure.