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Personal Research Project

Personal Research Project. English II Honors. Assignment & Timeline. Go over the assignment thoroughly Determine your timeline for completing the assignment. Good Questioning = Strong Thesis. Choosing a narrow question Too broad: What are the hazards of fad diets?

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Personal Research Project

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  1. Personal Research Project English II Honors

  2. Assignment & Timeline • Go over the assignment thoroughly • Determine your timeline for completing the assignment

  3. Good Questioning = Strong Thesis • Choosing a narrow question • Too broad: • What are the hazards of fad diets? • Is the United States seriously addressing the problem of prisoner abuse? • Narrower: • What are the hazards of low-carbohydrate diets? • To what extent has the US military addressed the problem of prisoner abuse since the Abu Ghraib discoveries?

  4. Good Questioning = Strong Thesis • Choosing a challenging question • Too bland: • What is obsessive-compulsive disorder? • How does DNA testing work? • Challenging: • What treatments for obsessive-compulsive disorder show the most promise? • How reliable is DNA testing? •  intellectually challenging line of inquiry •  Provoke thought or engage in debate

  5. Good Questioning = Strong Thesis • Choosing a grounded question • Too speculative: • Is it wrong to share music files on the Internet? • Do medical scientists have the right to experiment on animals? • Grounded: • How has Internet file sharing affected the earning potential of musicians? • How have technology breakthroughs made medical experiments on animals increasingly unnecessary?

  6. Draft a working thesis • Using your question, draft out a working thesis: • (can always be modified or changed)

  7. Search Strategy • Databases • Access to newspapers, magazines, scholarly or technical journals • Keywords • Books • Web • Lacks quality control so beware • Field Research • Interviews • Surveys • Observation • shadowing

  8. Keywords • “Broadway musicals” • Ireland AND peace Ireland + peace • Titanic NOT movie Titanic – movie • “mountain lion” OR cougar • ‘marine biolo*” • (cigarettes OR tobacco OR smok*) AND lawsuits • Use the advanced search option! • See if the database/search engine suggests other subjects to try

  9. MHS Library • Go to www.wmmhs.org • Click on Library Media Center • Collection (Find Books) • Online Databases

  10. Evaluating sources • How will it contribute to your writing? • Is it worth your time and attention? • Scan search results • Database: title & abstract (relevant?), date (current?), name of periodical (scholarly?), length (extensive coverage?) • Book: publisher?, author (credentials?), date (current?), evidence (sources?), bias (author/publisher?) • Web: title (how relevant?), date (current?), indication of site’s sponsor or purpose (reliable?), url .edu, .gov, .com, .org (relevant?, reliable?), advertising (prominent?)

  11. Evaluating sources—scholarly? • A scholarly source is written by an expert for a knowledgeable audience and will go in depth • Formal language and presentation • Authors who are academics or scientists • Footnotes or bibliography accompanies • Original research and interpretation • Quotations and analysis of primary source • Description of research methods

  12. Evaluating sources • Keep an open mind & critical eye • Primary vs. Secondary • Primary: original docs • Secondary: commentaries on primary sources • Be alert for signs of bias • Assess author’s argument • Have a care with web sources (see handout)

  13. Avoid plagiarism • Maintain a working bibliography • Keep track of source materials • Avoid unintentional plagiarism in note taking • Summarize • Paraphrase • Use quotation marks • Use MLA style guidelines and formatting at all times

  14. For help: • Books: • A Writer’s Reference, 6th edition or up, Diana Hacker • Dianahacker.com/writersref • Writing a Guide for College and Beyond, Lester Faigley • Online: • Online Writing Lab at Purdue University (OWL) • Class webpage • Librarians and English teachers

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