Research Skills

Students are currently working on the following project which is due Friday: Name: ____________________________ Research Skills Review / Argument and Persuasion The following interactive quest will take you through a review of research skills, databases, and writing an argument and persuasion essay. Please complete every single task in its entirety. 1. Choose a controversial topic for an argument and persuasion essay. This must be something you feel very strongly about. If you really want a challenge, you can choose a topic for which you have strong opinions, but then take the opposing viewpoint! For a comprehensive list of topics, visit the following: http://databases.abc-clio.com/Authentication/LogOn?returnUrl=%2F (via the High Point library site). Enter the username: highpoint and the password: wildcats. Then click on Issues, and again issues. A second database of issues is Sirs, or http://sks.sirs.com/cgi-bin/hst-portal-display?id=SNJ0022-0-5536 Enter the username: hprhs and the password: wildcats. Then click on Pro vs. Con, More Issues… Once you choose an issue, record it here: ______________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ 2. Next, you need to create a thesis statement. Your thesis reflects a decision to follow a certain direction in your research. It is one sentence that displays what you will prove in your paper. In this case, you will be arguing one side of a controversial issue. Make sure your thesis is not too broad, too narrow, or self-evident. It must be a declarative statement. Also, make sure that your thesis is scholarly and does not contain “I” or “you.” The Pro vs. Con database even provides you will sample thesis statements. Record your thesis statement here: ___________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ 3. Now that you have a topic (your issue) and a direction (your thesis), you will need factual support (research) to help your argument. Visit the databases that you looked at above (SirS and ABC-Clio) and find your topic. Using these databases, find two different facts from two different articles that will help your claim. Copy these facts exactly as they appear, word for word, and copy the “MLA works cited citation” found on the bottom of the article word for word. Pay attention to details. Punctuation, capitalization, italics, underlining, etc. all matter. (For each fact, also create the in-text citation. (This will usually be the author’s last name only in parenthesis. If you are not sure what this should look like, ask me!) • Fact #1: • MLA works cited citation for Fact #1: • In-text citation for Fact # 1: o Fact #2: o MLA works cited citation for Fact #2: o In-text citation for Fact # 1: 4. You are now ready to start writing and incorporating your properly cited facts into your own thoughts on this topic. Please use the template below and read the notes within thoroughly. If you follow these directions you should have an excellent piece. (Before you are done, make sure you also complete the Works Cited page.) MAKE SURE YOU SAVE YOUR WORK REGULARLY THROUGHOUT THIS PROCESS! Use the template below and type directly over the highlighted information that I have provided. Your Name Teacher’s Name Class/Subject Due Date Original Title Your introduction will begin here. A good rule for writing an introduction is to move from the more general to specific; thus your thesis statement will be the last sentence as it is the most specific piece of your introduction. Your thesis is one sentence that displays what you will prove in your paper. In this case, you will be arguing one side of a controversial issue. Make sure your thesis is not too broad, too narrow, or self-evident. It must be a declarative statement. Also, make sure that your thesis is scholarly and does not contain “I” or “you.” Place your thesis statement here. Now you can begin your body paragraphs. You are going to argue your point in one to two well-developed paragraphs. Almost all of this will be your original writing and your own ideas. Make sure you have chosen a topic that you feel strongly about. Within your own writing, you are going to incorporate two researched quotes. Make sure your facts are in quotation marks and cited correctly with the in-text citations. If you do not cite, then it is plagiarism! The following is an example of a cited quotation: One author writes that “Twelfth grade students spend plenty of time reading, writing, and analyzing literature throughout the school year. The one task that always seems daunting to them, however, is writing an analytical research paper” (Gonzalez 24). Notice it says ‘one author writes’ before the quotation marks and quote. This is a signal phrases, also known as a lead in, and must be used to lead in to your quote. You do not want a quote just stuck in there hanging around. Also you see ‘Gonzalez 24’ in parenthesis. This is your in-text citation. The ‘24’ is the page number and ‘Gonzalez’ is the author’s last name. If your sources do not have page numbers then you would simply leave them out of your in-text citation. Finally, notice that the punctuation, a period, comes after the in-text citation. Please follow this format exactly when incorporating your quotes.