English Composition ( research paper)
, ENG111 College Composition Group Members!
As we meet this week, I urge you to be sure to take thorough notes — as usual — as we will be discussing areas important to your APA-style research paper:
* Quotations: How and When to Use Them
* APA Style: Fundamentals
* APA Reference List
* Outlining
* How We Cite
* Searching in Google Scholar
* Evaluating Sources for Credibility
The thrust of our study this week will be the successful completion of part one of your research outline, which is your plan of attack or roadmap for the complex task at hand. If you have already submitted that, hold your horses; you’re getting ahead of yourself.
You will not be able to craft your written-out research paper without first submitting your outline, list of five or more reliable sources (in APA format), and approval on your chosen topic. As stressed from day one, the course is designed to advance your writing skills, and as such builds progressively, week by week. Therefore, you may not skip preliminary steps and should not assume that these may be submitted later or that finished paper may be submitted by students who have not produced all prerequisite coursework components building toward the final project.
Please bear in mind that the first tasks in writing a research paper are:
1).the discovery of your own ideas about your topic, and 2). finding suitable research material to extend, support, and lend authority to your ideas. (Please remember to give credit to all sources outside of your own brain each time you use them.)
Your focus for this week should be finding a suitable, narrowed-down research topic, a temporary thesis statement (it may change as you proceed with your research), and gathering solid support from your research findings that comes in the form of carefully selected, relevant, and blended quotations, summaries, and paraphrases that buttress your own thinking and conclusions about your selected topic.
When approaching a short research essay (such as the project we are currently engaged in), an early challenge is selecting a manageable topic that is neither too broad nor too narrow. Look over the following list of potential topics to get a feel for the sort of broad issues students have chosen to research and write about in the past that you, too, may find will work well for your own, narrowed, research essay. You are not limited to the options below, but start with these suggestions, and if you come up with your own topic, do your best to make it specific enough to explore in a 5-7-page paper.
Abortion
Gun Control
Climate Change
Marijuana Legalization
Tobacco
Addiction
Electronic Devices
Video Games
Child Abuse
Obesity
e-Cigarettes
Teen Pregnancy
Social Media
Body Image/Shaming
Healthy Lifestyle
Capital Punishment
Healthcare
Discrimination
Same-Sex Marriage
Vegetarianism
To narrow a broad topic, simply ask yourself:
“What about it?”
Are you for or against?
What are the common arguments for and against?
What do recent studies suggest?
See you in class.
Regards,
Dr. Hagarty.
WELCOME TO TASK 8!
During this week you will upload the first draft of your 5-7 page research paper.
Here is a guideline for drafting your research paper. Many people follow this guideline; however, you can do it in the order that makes most sense to you.
First, review your outline and gather the following information:
Topic
Research Question
Stakes
Thesis
Roadmap
Develop these pieces into your introduction paragraph.
Second, draft a complete paragraph, including your research, for each of the main supporting points from your outline. Use in-text citations for all borrowed material.
Third, draft a complete paragraph, including your research, which details the main counterarguments. Use in-text citations for all borrowed material.
Fourth, add the conclusion paragraph. Make sure you use in-text citations for all borrowed material.
Fifth, read through the entire paper and fix any obvious errors.
Sixth, check your References page for APA formatting.
Solution Preview
UNDERAGE DRINKING MENACE
Introduction
Alcohol is none of the most abused drugs in the world’s it is readily available and legal in most states. Underage drinking is one of the major health issues that is experienced in the United States. When teenagers indulge in underage drinking, everyone suffers the effect either directly or indirectly. According to the National Substance Drug Use and Health, an estimated 7.1s million American between ages 12-20 report alcohol consumption.
(2,166 words)