POSITION PAPER

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

At the end of the lesson, the students

will be able to:

Understand the nature, purpose and

usage of a Position Paper; and

Prepare a Position Paper

 POSITION PAPER

A position paper presents an arguable

opinion about an issue. The goal of a
position paper is to convince the audience
that your opinion is valid and worth
listening to.
To influence the pending
implementation of new policies, systems
and procedures
 ISSUE CRITERIA
To take a side on a subject, you should first
establish the arguability of a topic that interests you.
Ask yourself the following questions to ensure that
you will be able to present a strong argument:

•Is it a real issue, with genuine controversy and

uncertainty?
•Can you distinctly identify two positions?
•Are you personally interested in advocating one of
these positions?
•Is the issue narrow enough to be manageable?
 Analyzing an Issue and
Developing an Argument

Listing out the pro and con sides of the topic will
help you examine your ability to support your
counterclaims, along with a list of supporting evidence
for both sides. Supporting evidence includes the
following:

• Factual Knowledge
• Statistical Inferences
• Informed Opinion
• Personal Testimony
 Who is your audience?

1. What do they believe?

2. Where do they stand on the issue?

3. How are their interests involved?

4. What evidence is likely to be effective with

them?
 In determining your viewpoint,
ask yourself the following:

1. Is your topic interesting?

2. Can you manage the material within the
specifications set by the instructor?
3. Does your topic assert something specific
and propose a plan of action?
4. Do you have enough material to support
your opinion?
 Organization

Your introduction should lead up to a thesis that

organizes the rest of your paper. There are three
advantages to leading with the thesis:
1. The audience knows where you stand.

2. The thesis is located in the two strongest places,

first and last.

3. It is the most common form of academic

argument used.
 Parts of a Position Paper

1. COVER PAGE
2. TABLE OF CONTENTS
3. INTRODUCTION (Part I)
 Background
 The Issue/s
4. THE SPECIFIC PROBLEM (Part II)
 State the problem associated with the issue at hand
5. THE POSITION (Part III)
What is your stand
 Parts of a Position Paper

6. WHY THE NEED TO IMPLEMENT CHANGES (Part

IV)
Cite arguments / present facts to support your stand
Cite consequences of not acting on the matter
Provide Counter arguments for opposing views
7. STRATEGIES TO EFFECT CHANGES (Part V)
Cite key activities to implement changes with brief
discussion
8. AFTER EFFECT OF PROPOSAL (Part VI)
Cite perceived impact of proposal on the current
situation
 Parts of a Position Paper

9. POSSIBLE CHANGES IF PROPOSAL WILL BE

IMPLEMENTED (Part VII)
Cite additional changes “ripple effect” that will arise
out of the implementation of the proposal
10. EVALUATION OF THE PROPOSAL (Part VIII)
Compare the advantages and disadvantages of the
proposal
Highlight its resulting improvement from the present
set-up
11. ANNEXES / REFS / ACKNOWLEDGEMENT (Part IX)
END