Unit 1 Research Paper Guidelines
Your Research Paper will be completed in three different Parts and each one will build off of the other and end up a cohesive whole.
Below is a breakdown of the individual parts
Part A (Narrative and Bridge)
Part B (Research Findings)
Part C (Conclusion, References, and Final Draft)
This research paper will be completed as described below.
Topic for the research paper: What does the future of printing hold?
Note: Each section has different pages in length please make sure that in all three parts A,B,C the length of pages should be accurate for each one.
Note: Use APA style and format to create this research paper. You will find information on APA in the Course Information of this course.
Part A - Narrative and Bridge
The Narrative
In the first section of Part A, you will be telling us the story of how you came to be interested in the topic and why you want to pursue research on the topic.
Here are some guidelines for The Narrative:
- It should be at least one full page in length.
- When possible, rely on personal experience to tell this story (the story of what happened to make you so interested in finding out more about the topic).
- This section should capture the reader's attention and make us want to continue reading. (Vivid language and description help with this.)
- All information included in this section must be relevant; in other words, all parts of the story being told here must relate to the purpose of this section, which is to show your readers why you are interested in the topic.
- Readers must get a sense that the writer's interest in the topic is genuine.
- Although I am not looking for grammatical perfection here, I do want to see that you have made an effort to eliminate errors in grammar and sentence structure that would be distracting to your readers.
The Bridge
This second section of Part A will function as a bridge (or transition), leading your readers from the narrative into the actual research process. Although thesis statements are traditionally found in the first paragraph (or introduction) of an essay, your thesis statement will appear in this section.
Next, you will tell us what you want to know about the topic and how you plan to find out about it. This is a great place to present a few focused questions that you plan to find the answers to. Again, remember that this section will be narrative in nature (use the first person "I"). (HINT: To conduct some brainstorming for this section, you might want to spend a few minutes jotting down what you already know or think about the topic, and then a few minutes jotting down what you want to know about the topic.)
Here are some guidelines for The Bridge:
- This section should be at least half of one page in length.
- You should continue to use the first person "I" perspective to write this section.
- You should include a specific thesis statement in this section that lets the reader know what is to come. (When you submit this second section, please underline the sentence you feel is your thesis statement.)
- Readers should feel as though this second section is providing them with a nice transition between what was discussed in the first section and what will be discussed in the third section. (Remember, the purpose of this second section is to provide a bridge for your reader that seamlessly leads them from the narrative into the research.)
- You should include a discussion of what you already know about the topic and/or what you assume to be true about the topic.
- You should include some focused questions to which you want to find the answers.
- You should provide us with some details about how you plan to find the answers to the questions. What kind of research will you conduct? Where will you go to find the answers to your questions?
- Although I am not looking for grammatical perfection here, I do want to see that you have made an effort to eliminate errors in grammar and sentence structure that would be distracting to your readers.
Part B - Research Process and Findings
In this section of the paper, you will add on to Part A and tell us what you discovered (the story of your hunt). You will tell us where you looked and what you learned. In this section you will still be using a narrative voice (first person "I"), but you also will be paraphrasing, summarizing, and quoting the sources you found.
Here are some guidelines for Part B:
- This section should be roughly three to five pages in length.
- You should continue to use the first person "I" perspective to write this section.
- You should use a clear method of organization; do not organize the paper source by source, but rather by topic.
- You must include information from at least four sources in this section.
- You should include a variety of sources (book, magazine article, web site, etc.).
- You must incorporate effective and correct paraphrasing, summarizing, and quotations-all of these must include appropriate parenthetical citations.
- To make the paper read as a cohesive whole, refer to earlier sections of your paper (early experiences you discussed in The Narrative, questions you asked and assumptions you made in The Bridge).
- Your voice and your ideas about what you have learned should be the driving force behind this section. Do not make the mistake of simply throwing together a bunch of information you got from your sources. That is too hard for your readers to process. Instead, you should be telling us what you found and then making sense of it for us.
- Although I am not looking for grammatical perfection here, I do want to see that you have made an effort to eliminate errors in grammar and sentence structure that would be distracting to your readers.
Part C - The Conclusion and References Page
For your Conclusion, you will add onto the previous sections and tell us what you discovered! After concluding your research, compare what you thought you knew, assumed, or imagined with what you actually discovered and offer some personal commentary and draw some conclusions. After you have included your conclusion, you must include a References page.
Here are some guidelines for Part C:
- The Conclusion section should be roughly one page in length.
- You should continue to use the first person "I" perspective to write this section.
- You should re-visit your earlier research question that was mentioned in section 2 (your thesis statement), and summarize your findings for us.
- You must be sure to mention any areas where your assumptions about the topic were proven false.
- Feel free to tell us what additional questions your research process raised.
- Provide your readers with a clear sense of closure.
- Although I am not looking for grammatical perfection here, I do want to see that you have made an effort to eliminate errors in grammar and sentence structure that may be distracting to your readers.
