The Senior Research Project

Transcription

1 The Senir Research Prject Task What needs t be dne? The Senir Research Prject requires that yu investigate a scial issue. Yu must examine the prblem, its rt causes, hw it affects sciety, etc. Additinally, yu must examine at least tw effrts that have been implemented in an attempt t slve this scial prblem. Lastly, having assessed the prs and cns f thse interventins, yu will develp yur wn riginal slutin, with three steps detailing hw yu prpse t make it happen. The Senir Research Prject is brken dwn int multiple, cumulative parts. Each part must be submitted befre the next piece can be accepted by yur instructr. 1.) Yu will begin with the written presentatin f yur research in a Literature Review. 2.) Once yu have synthesized this infrmatin, yu will create an utline f the paper yu will ultimately write. 3.) Next, yu will actually write this 6 8 page paper, detailing the prblem, at least tw attempted slutins and utlaying yur riginal slutin. Yu must cite yur research parenthetically and include a MLA frmatted Wrks Cited page. 4.) Lastly, yu will present yur paper, this will include a visual aide and a prduct, therwise knwn as a tangible piece f yur riginal slutin.

2 Senir Research Prject Literature Review Often times, research is verlked in a student s effrt t prduce a finished research paper. A literature review will prevent this cmmn mistake by hlding yu accuntable fr the infrmatin finding, evaluating and analyzing stages f the research prcess. The literature in a Literature Review refers t a cllectin f materials written abut a given tpic. Yu will be the ne ding the cllecting. Yu must have at least 6 usable surces. Remember, ultimately in yur paper, each ne f these surces must be internally cited at least nce, as well as, listed in yur Wrks Cited. The type f surce is relevant fr ur purpses, and as such, yu must have all f the fllwing: 1 2 bks 3 4 nline database articles 1 2 web sites (teacher apprval required) 1 nn text surce A literature review differs frm a research paper in multiple ways. In yur literature review yu will nt be building an argument, but rather summarizing the cntent f the surces n which yu have been taking ntes and justifying their future use by explaining their validity and the criteria yu used t establish this. Under the citatin fr each surce yu will write at least tw paragraphs. The first will summarize the infrmatin gleaned frm the surces. The secnd paragraph will evaluate the credibility and usefulness f the surce. Use the fllwing criteria t help yu determine the credibility and usefulness f each surce: Evaluating Infrmatin Resurces Hw did yu find the infrmatin? Ggle? Library catalg? Academic databases? What is the cverage and relevance? Are the facts crrbrated in ther surces? Des it cme frm a trusted surce, such as a database f peer reviewed articles?

3 Wh is its intended audience? Is it cvered in apprpriate depth? Is it relevant t yur tpic/task? What is the purpse f the infrmatin? Are research findings being presented? Is a partisian view, bias r sme ther agenda being presented? Is it designed t sell a prduct r service? What level f language is used? Of a high schlarly rder? Inflammatry, sensatinal r therwise persuasive? Designed specifically fr students? Hw up t date is it? Cntemprary scial prblems demand a very high level f current infrmatin. Other in subject areas such as literature r art infrmatin published several years ag may be just as valuable. Is the infrmatin up t date? D newer editins/revisins exist? Des it have a Bibligraphy, Wrk Cited r list f References? The presence f a bibligraphy is ne indicatin f quality Des the authr prvide surces fr facts used? What types f references have been used t supprt the dcument schlarly surces (jurnal articles, bks, cnference papers) r ppular surces? The types f references indicate the level f research fr the infrmatin. Wh is the authr? Is the authr named? Are her qualificatins/credentials/prfessinal affiliatins given? Can yu identify an institutin, if any, t which the authr belngs? Is cntact infrmatin fr the authr included r easily accessible? Wh published it? Reputable publishers nrmally prduce reputable infrmatin. D yu knw the publisher s reputatin? What type f infrmatin des this publisher usually prduce? Evaluating Websites

4 Yu shuld apply the evaluatin techniques abve t any infrmatin yu find n the Internet. Yu need t cite infrmatin frm the Internet as yu wuld any ther infrmatin. It is ften difficult t evaluate the quality f infrmatin retrieved frm the Internet. Althugh there is a lt f infrmatin; nt all f it is useful, accurate, up t date, unbiased, and/r apprpriate fr yur research. The fllwing are sme extra indicatrs fr yu t cnsider: Wh is respnsible fr the creatin and maintenance f the website? Are ther infrmatin and links prvided? Is the site subject t influences ver cntent e.g. a cmmercial rganizatin, a plitical rganizatin? Are the pages current and updated regularly? Is the site user friendly? Is there an index r site map r ther navigatin links t the site infrmatin? Is the layut f the site prfessinal r amateurish? Take nte f the web address dmain r URL infrmatin sme widely recgnized examples:.gv gvernment site.cm cmmercial site.edu educatinal institutin.rg rganizatin (Nte: Nt all.rg sites are the fficial sites. Checking infrmatin "Abut us" n the site will ften alert yu t this.).net netwrks, sme rganizatins, Internet Service Prviders ~ can indicate persnal page even if spnsred by a credible institutin r university % in URL can indicate a grup site

5 Senir Research Prject the Outline Using an utline can help yu rganize yur material and present the mst chesive argument. The act f creating an utline can als help yu recgnize and, thus, discard irrelevant infrmatin and identify and avid the repetitin f material. A wrking utline will help yur teacher t see the cnstructin f yur argument befre yu actually write the paper and identify whether yu are attempting t accmplish t much r have dne t little in preparatin. Yu will be creating a Full Sentence Outline. This requires that yu review the ntes yu have taken n yur tpic frm all 6+ surces. Brainstrm: List all the ideas that yu want t include in yur paper. Organize: Grup related ideas tgether. Order: Arrange material in subsectins frm general t specific r frm abstract t cncrete Label: Create main and sub headings. Yur thesis statement shuld be the first thing listed under a centered title. It is yur Rman Numeral I. Remember this is ne declarative sentence that sums up yur argument. It must be driven by yur riginal slutin as ultimately that is the crux f yur final paper s argument. Infrmatin is presented in the fllwing sequence Rman Numerals (I, II, III, IV, etc) Capitalized Letters (A, B, C, D) Arabic Numerals ( ) Lwercase Letters (a, b, c, d) PLEASE NOTE, if yu have an "A" in yur paper, yu need t have a "B"; a "1" requires a "2," and s frth.

6 Putting yur Final Paper Tgether Each part f the paper needs t be cmpleted and typed in 12 pt Times New Rman fnt. This prject requires a lt f wrk n yur part and will demnstrate hw much yu have learned. The rder f the paper is as fllws: Part 1 Title Page Part 2 Outline and Thesis Statement The wrd Outline is centered at the tp f the page n bld Part 3 Bdy (a full 6 8 pages) includes the intrductin, bdy, and cnclusin just like an essay but lnger and with dcumentatin. Tpic verview Full explanatin f the prblem/ examinatin f the issue: Attempted slutins Wh is being affected? Hw is sciety impacted? What are the number, statistics, by prducts, etc? Examinatin f a minimum f 2 implements slutins Original slutin Prs & Cns, hw/where have they been successful and what are the shrtcmings f each Based n yur research, hw wuld yu reslve the prblem? What 3 steps are necessary t accmplish this? (Think abut csts, public educatin, supprt, legal prcess, etc.) Last page Wrks Cited The wrds Wrks Cited centered at the tp, again n bld and in 12 pt Times New Rman fnt Alphabetize the entries by authr s last name r first wrd in the entry If the citatin extends t a secnd line it shuld be indented (it s the ppsite f a paragraph) Remember perids at the end f each entry D NOT number the entries

7 Yur Title Here With yur cmputer still set n duble space, hit enter 6 times. Center yur title n the page, remember t capitalize imprtant wrds. Yur Name Here Teacher English IV Date