The Research Paper What is a research paper

The Research Paper

What is a research paper? n A summary of what others have already said or written on a given subject

The only originality is: Your selection and organization of material n Your presentation and expression n Your general conclusion n

The research paper is a presentation of facts: n n Based upon reading or consulting several specified sources Presented according to a standard method or procedure Limited to a relatively narrow phase of a subject Original in the selection, evaluation, expression and conclusion

Seven Steps in the Process of writing a Research Paper Select a topic – limit it! n Working with a bibliography (works cited) n Preliminary outlines n Reading ----- and taking notes n Assembling your notes---for final outline n Rough draft n Final draft (with citations and works cited) n

Parts of the Research Paper n n n Title Page-Front page of research paper containing information required by teacher Introduction— 1 st paragraph of the paper Thesis statement ----a statement that is one sentence about your paper in general Body---the main part of a research paper Conclusion---the last paragraph of the paper Works Cited—Bibliography- List of the sources that you used to write your paper

Types of Sources n n n General Encyclopedia—Book that contains general information about many topics Dictionary—A book that contains alphabetically arranged words with their definitions/usages Thesaurus—Lists synonyms and antonyms Autobiography—A book about someone’s life written by that same person Biography—A book about someone’s life written by another person Atlas—A book of maps n n n Almanac—annual book with calendars, weather forecasts, astronomical information, and other facts Encyclopedia Yearbook-a book containing general information Interview---Personal meeting in which information is obtained from a person with subject knowledge Quotation Resource—book with famous quotations by various people Biographical reference book---book with brief biographical information on a person Electronic card catalog—electronic database of information within the Media Center

Research Aids n n Copyright page—lists the publisher and date when a book was published Table of Contents—list of information in the book Index—Alphabetical list of all the topics covered in a book with the page numbers listed Cross-reference—an entry that tells you to see another topic for additional/related information