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How to Write a Research Paper Day One

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Title: How to Write a Research Paper Day One


1
How to Write a Research PaperDay One
2
How to Write a Research Paper
  • Get-to-know you
  • What is it?
  • Different types of papers
  • Choosing a topic
  • Brainstorming
  • Too broad/narrow
  • Initial research
  • Credible sources
  • Varied sources

Day One
3
Get-to-Know You
  • Mrs. Ward
  • 10th grade English
  • Brewbaker Technology Magnet High
  • Reading, guitar playing
  • What is your name?
  • What grade?
  • Which school?
  • What are some of your hobbies?
  • What experience do you have with research papers?

4
What Is a Research Paper?
  • A research report that uses information gathered
    from various sources
  • the culmination and final product of an
    involved process of research, critical thinking,
    source evaluation, organization, and composition
    (OWL at Perdue)
  • Not a summary of information from primary and
    secondary sources

5
Types of Research Papers
  • Argumentative takes a stance or makes a claim
    that will be supported meant to be persuasive
  • Analytical explores a question on which the
    writer may not have a specific claim meant to be
    expository

6
Choosing a Topic
  • Check with your teacher
  • Topic list?
  • Length?
  • Find your interest
  • Brainstorm
  • List
  • Cluster
  • Discuss with others

7
Brainstorming
8
Too Broad or Too Narrow
  • Too broad The Space Race in the
  • Twentieth Century 
  • Not too broad The Apollo 11 Space
  • Mission 
  • Too narrow Corvette Mag Wheels 
  • Not too narrow The Two Best-Rated Sports Cars of
    the Year 

9
Narrowing Down
10
Narrowing Down
11
Narrowing Down
12
Narrowing Down
  • Homelessness
  • Topically
  • Homeless Senior Citizens
  • Homeless Shelters
  • Education for the Homeless
  • Food for the Homeless

13
Narrowing Down
  • Homelessness
  • Chronologically
  • Homelessness During the Great Depression
  • Homelessness Before and After the Reagan
    Administration
  • Geographically
  • Homelessness in New York City
  • Homelessness in Florida
  • Homelessness in Mexico

14
Narrowing Down
  • Homelessness
  • Combinations of Techniques
  • Education for Homeless Children in New York City
  • Homelessness in Florida Before and After the
    Reagan Administration

15
I Have My Topic Now What?
16
Initial Research
  • Encyclopedia articles
  • Internet articles
  • Non-fiction book
  • Scholarly news articles
  • Film documentaries

17
Credible Sources
  • Not all information is trustworthy, particularly
    on the Internet!
  • Check all sources for credibility

C A R R D S S
18
Credibility (Authority)
C A R R D S S
  • Who is the author?
  • What are his/her credentials? Education?
    Experience? Affiliation?
  • Does he/she offer first-hand credibility?
  • Who actually published this page?
  • Is this a personal page, or is it an endorsed
    part of a site belonging to a major institution?
    (Clues pointing to a personal page tilde, ,
    users, members)
  • Is the page hosted by a free server like AOL
    Members, Tripod, or Geocities?

19
Credibility (Authority)
C A R R D S S
  • I cant find author information!
  • Look for
  • About Us, Who Am I, FAQs, For More, Company
    Information, Profiles, Our Staff, Home
  • E-mail address for the author to ask for more
    information

20
Credibility (Authority)
C A R R D S S
  • What do others think?
  • Do a link check
  • In Google or AltaVista type linksite address
  • Your results will show which other sites have
    chosen to link the page. If several respectable
    institutions are linked to the site, that
    provides a clue about the sites credibility.
  • Does the site appear in major subject directories
    like Librarians Index to the Internet (lii.org)?

21
Credibility (Authority)
C A R R D S S
Truncate the URL Delete characters in the address
line up to the next slash mark to see if a main
page offers more information about who is
responsible for publishing the page you are
interested in. http//www.statecollege.edu/histor
y/middleages/chaucer/smith/htm http//www.statecol
lege.edu/history/middleages/chaucer http//www.sta
tecollege.edu/history/middleages http//www.statec
ollege.edu/history http//www.statecollege.edu
22
Credibility (Authority)
C A R R D S S
  • If you have an authors name but no further
    information about credentials,
  • Search the name in quotation marks in a search
    engine or online database.
  • On the Web, include words like profile, resume,
    or C.V. (curriculum vitaean academic resume) to
    narrow your name search
  • Also include the name of a college or association
    you can connect with the person
  • Ask your teacher/librarian for help

23
Accuracy
C A R R D S S
  • Can facts, statistics, or other information be
    verified through other sources?
  • Based on your knowledge, does the information
    seem accurate? Is the information consistent with
    information you learned from other sources?
  • Is the information second hand? Has it been
    altered?
  • Do there appear to be errors on the page
    (spelling, grammar, facts)?

24
Accuracy
C A R R D S S
Practice checking for accuracy with a few of
these sites Californias Velcro Crop Under
Challenge http//home.inreach.com/kumbacj/velcro.h
tml The Jackalope Conspiracy http//www.sudftw.com
/jackcon.htm Republic of Cascadia Bureau of
Sasquatch Affairs http//zapatopi.net/bsa.html Dih
ydrogen Monoxide Research Division
http//www.dhmo.org Federal Vampire Zombie
Agency http//www.fvza.org
25
Reliability
C A R R D S S
  • Does the source present a particular view or
    bias?
  • Is the page affiliated with an organization that
    has a particular social or political agenda?
  • Is the page selling a product?
  • Can you find other material to offer balance so
    that you can see the bigger picture?
  • Was the information found in a paid placement or
    sponsored result from the search engine?
  • Information is seldom neutral. Sometimes a bias
    is useful for persuasive essays or debates.
    Recognizing bias is important!

26
Reliability
C A R R D S S
Consider bias International Society for Animal
Rights http//www.isaronline.org/index.html The
American Physiological Society http//www.theaps.o
rg/pa/humane/pa_overview.htm
27
Relevance
C A R R D S S
  • Does this information directly support my
    hypothesis/thesis or help to answer my question?
  • Can I eliminate or ignore it because it simply
    doesnt help me?

28
Date
C A R R D S S
  • When was this information created?
  • When was it last revised?
  • Are these dates meaningful in terms of your
    information needs?
  • Has the author of the page stopped maintaining
    it?
  • Be suspicious of undated material!

29
Date
C A R R D S S
  • For example, RMS Titanic
  • sank April 4, 1912
  • survivors arrived in NYS April 11, 1912
  • ship found September 1, 1985

30
Sources Behind the Text
C A R R D S S
  • Did the author bother to document his/her
    sources?
  • Were those references reliable, popular,
    scholarly, reputable?
  • Are those sources real? Have you heard of or been
    able to verify them?
  • Is the material reproduced (accurately) from
    another publication?
  • What kinds of link did the author choose?
  • Are the hyperlinks reliable and valuable?

31
Scope (Purpose)
C A R R D S S
  • Does this source address my hopthesis/thesis/quest
    ion in a comprehensive or peripheral way?
  • Is it a scholarly or popular treatment?
  • Is it material I can read and understand?
  • Is it too simple? Too challenging?
  • Who is the intended audience?
  • Why was this page created? To inform or explain?
    To persuade? To sell?

32
What Can You Learn from a URL?
  • You can use the end (or suffix) of a domain name
    to help you judge the validity of the information
    and the potential bias of a website.
  • This strategy is only a guideline. People can
    easily purchase domains that do not reflect their
    actual purpose.

33
URL Clues
.com commercial sites (vary in their
credibility) .gov U.S. government site .org
organization, often non-profit (some have strong
bias and agendas) .edu school or university
site (Is it K-12? By a student? By a
scholar?) .store retail business .int
international institution .ac educational
institution .mil U. S. military site
34
URL Clues
.net networked service provider, Internet
administrative site .museum museum .name
individual Internet user .biz a business .pro
professionals site personal site
35
URL Clues
http//personal.statecollege.edu/ejv114/ http//w
ww.fi.edu/wright/index.html http//www.house.gov/h
ouse/Legproc.html http//aolmembers.com/joyciev328
/civalwarsong
36
Why Does Source Credibility Matter?
  • Imagine making other choices in the future
  • Which car should I buy?
  • Which doctor should I choose?
  • Should my child have this surgery?
  • Should I take this medication?
  • Be sure all information you choose is credible,
    reliable, current, balanced, relevant, and
    accurate!

37
Source Variety
  • Remember, use varied sources, not just the
    Internet
  • Books
  • Magazines
  • Newspapers
  • Encyclopedias
  • Interviews
  • Documentary films
  • Textbooks
  • Medical journals

38
Bibliography
  • Everhart, Nancy. How to Write a Term Paper.
    Second ed. Cornstock, Inc., 1987.
  • Markman, Ph.D., Roberta H., Peter T. Markman, and
    Marie L. Waddell. 10 Steps in Writing the
    Research Paper. Sixth ed. Barron's Educational
    Series, Inc., 2001.
  • Mrs. Horn's Short Story Project. Montgomery Kim
    Horn, 2009.
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