Research+Essay+Stuff

I-Search Peer Review Sheet Please follow these steps PRECISELY. Do not short-cut on Steps 3, 4, and 8. This sheet must be returned to the author by the end of class on Wednesday. WE WILL HAVE A GRAMMAR REVIEW ON THURSDAY. YOU DO NOT NEED TO COMMENT ON GRAMMATICAL AND EDITING ISSUES. Review for content.1.) What is the argument that this essay presents? Write what you believe the thesis statement to be below. If you are unsure of the thesis statement, write “Unsure.” 2.) Comment on the validity of the thesis based on our expectations for a good argument (argumentative, falsifiable, concise, precise, and well beyond the obvious). 3.) ON A SEPARATE PIECE OF PAPER, outline the essay by writing down each topic sentence. **Write down the complete sentence.** Then, explore the reverse outline that you have made and comment on the extent to which the essay is organized around the argument. How can this writer improve upon the organization of the essay? 4.) List the **cited** sources below. How well does this author satisfy the requirements of source variety (book, journal, primary, experiential)? What types of sources are needed? How well does the writer take material from different sources? 5.) Check the writer’s citations. Are all IDEAS that are not the writer’s own properly cited? Do you suspect missed citations? Please indicate on the essay any idea that you suspect might be missing a citation. 6.) To what extent does the writer reflect upon and interpret his/her research? Highlight each sentence of the essay that you would characterize as the writer’s own idea. ANY SENTENCE NOT HIGHLIGHTED OR CITED SHOULD BE REMOVED FROM THE ESSAY! 7.) What, in your opinion, should the writer cut? Suggest places in the essay that can be removed or eliminated. You can use brackets to indicate clutter as you move through the rough draft. 8.) What specific strengths does this essay possess (list three). Then, list three specific and constructive changes you would make to the essay.A.)B.)C.) A.)B.)C.) Step 2: Annotated Bibliography – How To

For this step of the process, you must ensure thoroughness and care. To get full credit for your annotated bibliography, please pay close attention to the following expectations:

1.) You need at least eight sources, four of which must have originated as print sources, one of which comes from an academic, peer-reviewed journal, and two of which are considered primary sources. You must also have an experiential source.

2.)You must ensure that all of your sources are strong and credible. Sources like Wikipedia, commercially driven sources, and sources with clear bias (essentially non-credible sources) will not be counted as one of your eight minimum sources.

3.)Using proper MLA citation is important, so be sure that you properly fill out all fields on Noodletools.

4.)Your annotation for each source should explain why you are using the source, what you hope to find in the source, and how the source will contribute to a fuller understanding of your topic. Use the annotation to defend the validity of your source. Each annotation should be a short (2-3 sentence) paragraph.

Annotation example:

Research Question: How has Haribo come to dominate the American gummy bear market? How has the company worked to redefine what we consider to be a gummy bear.

“From a Backyard Kitchen to a World Market Leader” Web. [] Accessed 1/23/2013.

This source provides a corporate history of the Haribo company. By considering the corporation’s own facts, I hope to show how Haribo brands itself as a family friendly company, which makes sense given its product. This site also shows the juxtaposition between a humble origin story and the reality of monopolistic marketing practices. Assessments 5-7: The “I-Search” Project The I-Search project will run the length of the third quarter and will require students to engage in deep and original research that addresses a self-designed research question. Students will be asked to devise a question that emanates from an essential element of their identity. Based on their reading of Whitman’s “Song of Myself,” students will isolate and identify some aspect of themselves, their family, their community, and/or their nation and will craft an objective, argumentative, and falsifiable research question that will guide their research and inquiry. Through engaging multiple sources (print, online, archival, interviews, site visits), students will aim to produce a research essay of approximately eight pages. This project will be completed in the following steps:

Step 1: Research Question and Rationale – Due January 18th

For this first step, you will devise a research question that will guide your argument. Essentially, the answer to this question will form your thesis statement. After writing your research question, you will compose a one-page essay that explains and defends the strength of your question. A strong question must be open-ended, fact-based, argumentative, and falsifiable. It cannot be easily answered (meaning that it must be able to sustain a discussion), but it cannot be overly subjective or unable to be proved. You will receive a separate handout on how to devise a strong research question. Essentially, you must choose something that will allow you to engage in objective research (so, “why am I so feisty?” would be a bad example of a research question whereas “what effect does climate change and global warming have on my temper (or the temper of others)?” will allow for an objective consideration of the intersection of climate and psychology.

Step 2: Annotated Bibliography – Due January 25th

Your bibliography will be a working document, meaning that you can and should add to it over the course of your research. What you turn in on this date will not be your final product; however, by this date, you must have the required number of sources in bibliographic form. You will use Noodletools to write your bibliography and your annotations. This project will require the following sources:

- At least four print sources (one of these sources must be a book and one of these sources must be a journal article). - At least two primary sources (newspaper articles, historical documents, interviews, site visits, archives, etc.) - One personal interview or site visit. Your project will require you to have some sort of experiential source. - By the time that your annotated bibliography is due, you will be required to have eight overall sources of research material.

For each source, you will need to make an annotation. An annotation is a short paragraph (3-4 sentences) describing the source, defending its validity, and speculating about its potential value to your research. Including these reflective annotations is an essential step in completing your research.

Step 3: Thesis Statement and Rationale – Due February 1st.

Your thesis statement and rationale will look nearly identical in format to your research question and rationale. Your thesis statement should be an attempt to answer your research question. At this point in the project, you should have performed enough research to get a general sense of your argument. Remember that this statement represents a //working thesis//, meaning that the statement can and will change as you engage in more in-depth research. You will use your rationale for two purposes: first, to explain why your argument is “good” (in other words, you will want to subject your thesis statement to the thesis test we have used throughout the year); secondly, to speculate as to how your argument will work. Essentially, your rationale gives you the space to describe your IDEAL argument (in other words, the argument you would make if facts and research were not part of the process).

Step 4: Notecards (25 due on February 5th; 50 due on February 11th).

Use note cards to record salient facts from your research, and organize them in a way that allows you to reflect on and interpret these facts. Your note cards are the vehicle of your expression—the central tool you will use to move from ideas in your head to words on the page. Allow those note cards to be spaces to reflect and to free write. You can also use them as an organizational tool when you move to the outlining stage of composition. You will use NoodleTools for all of your note cards. The numbers listed above are the minimum requirement for note cards. Remember that every research fact you discover must have an associated note card, and you should take care to properly record source and location (page numbers, date accessed, etc.) to make the composition of citations and a bibliography easier.

Step 5: Full Outline – Due February 22nd.

Your outline will present a revised thesis and a main idea for each paragraph of your essay. Use your note cards to fill your outline with detailed and specific information. For an essay of this length, a full outline with details will run at least five pages. Use the outline as an intermediary step between note cards and a rough draft.

Step 6: Rough Draft – Due March 1st.

You will submit a full rough draft. Your rough draft must be **at least ten pages** in length, not including title page or bibliography.

Step 7: Final Draft – Due March 8th.

Your final draft will be due a week after your rough draft. It may be **no more than nine** pages in length. In other words, you must edit your rough draft significantly by cutting it.

Step 8: Research Presentations – Due the week of March 8th.

You must prepare a presentation of approximately ten minutes in length for your peers. More information about this presentation will be given later in the quarter.

Grading: This project counts as three assessments. Each assessment is equally weighted.


 * Assessment #5: Meeting all deadlines.**

This will be your only “points based” assessment of the year. Each step will earn you points for Assessment #5, but you must submit everything on time and in full to get those points. Late or incomplete assignments will receive no credit related to Assessment #5.

Research Question – 15 points Bibliography – 10 points Thesis Statement - 15 points 25 Notecards – 10 points 50 Notecards - 20 points Outline - 10 points Rough Draft – 20 points

Meeting all deadlines on time and in full: 100 points = 100%


 * Assessment #6: I-Search Essay**

Your research essay will be graded on the following: - Your ability to construct an argumentative and falsifiable thesis that presents a compelling argument related to your topic. - Your ability to use research information to support and sustain that argument. - Your ability to synthesize primary, secondary, and non-traditional sources. - Your ability to organize your essay around the thesis statement. - Your ability to make a precise argument throughout the essay. - Your ability to produce original research work associated with a topic of genuine interest and meaning to you.


 * Assessment #7: I-Search Presentation**

Your presentation will be graded on the following:

- Your ability to sustain a ten minute discussion of your topic and research, including a presentation of your argument. - Your ability to use visual or auditory assistance in the presentation of your research. - Your ability to engage the interest of your audience and to make the research presentation an active process in the classroom. - Your ability to speak clearly, concisely, and in an organized fashion from notes (you may not have written remarks prepared, nor may your slides contain more than five words per slide).