ENGW 1302 Rhetoric and Composition II,

Unit 3 prompt and calendar: Research paper

ENGW 1302 Rhetoric and Composition II, Spring 2016

This paper is the culmination of the previous projects. You will write a focused research paper on your chosen topic within the broader class topic of human behavior in modern society. Like a good reporter, you will provide most of the “conversation” on your research question, present some of the current points of view, and bring it all home with a “so what?/who cares?/what’s the news?” argumentative payoff supported by evidence. During this unit we will be focusing only on your research paper. You should be working on it consistently, and bring it to class every day.

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This project has several things to turn in. Refer to your calendar for the due dates for these items:

1. Research proposal
2. Annotated bibliography of your sources
3. Outline
4. Peer review rough draft
5. Final paper

This counts as your third paper in the class and is due Monday April 11, and yes you will be able to revise it.

Mechanics/notes: The tone for this paper should be academic, thoughtful, and professional. Base your claims on evidence. No contractions, no ranting, no unsupported claims. This paper will rely heavily on the sources you choose, but you must remain in control of the paper. No quotes over one line will be accepted – find a way to synthesize the ideas into your own ideas and write from your own mind, while staying in an academic tone. You may choose the point of view that best fits your audience, purpose, and occasion. Find the document on Canvas under UNIT 3 called “3 types of research paper templates” for ideas on tone, point of view, and how to structure the paper. The paper must follow the following criteria:

• 6-8 pages, plus a Works Cited page
• Proofread and edited meticulously
• Engaging, precise title
• Works Cited in MLA format, ordered alphabetically
• In-text citations in precise MLA format
• Careful use of “source burgers” as covered in class – NO HUGE QUOTES OR QUOTE QUILTS!
• Audience: The English department at St. Edward’s which means a semi-formal academic tone. Some papers will be chosen randomly to be reviewed. Keep in mind that this is a picky audience! No contractions (meaning you write “cannot” instead of “can’t” etc. Your paper will be run through a plagiarizing program, Turnitin.

The basic plan: Everything is on the calendar here, but this is a quick overview of what is happening, in order.

1. Swim around in the topic – we just did that a little bit with our last unit.
2. Start scholarly research by searching on the SEU database for peer-reviewed journals and credible sources.
3. Choose your sources. You must have at least 6 sources, and no more than 10 (you are not writing a book!), comprised of these categories:
   1. Scholarly sources: must have at least 3 of these. This means credible, peer-reviewed journals, studies, reports, documentaries, etc. You will find these using the SEU library database.
   2. “Semi-scholarly” sources: may have 3-6 of these. This means sources that are sourced by scholarly sources – meaning that their writers and creators get their information from credible places. Think of publications like The Atlantic, or The New York Times or The New Yorker, Harper’s, Science Magazine, an art exhibit, photographs, visuals, etc. See me if you are not sure about a source. You may consider various categories: video/film; print; and visual.
   3. Primary sources: at least 1 is required. In addition to drawing on published research, you will conduct your own research to help answer your research question. This research might take the form of surveying your fellow students at St. Edward’s, interviewing your professors, recording oral narratives of family members, observing students in the library or computer labs, emailing professionals in particular field, collecting texts from online communities, etc.
4. Annotate your sources for a grade. Due date for this is on the calendar, instructions follow the calendar.
5. Create outline. Again, see the document on Canvas under UNIT 3 for templates on how to do this.
6. Draft, revise, draft, repeat – always revising along the way.
7. Peer edit.
8. Turn in final paper, and yes you will be able to revise.