Introduction of the Research Paper

Rhetorical Situation for Research Papers

• We’ve learned this semester that very piece of writing has a “rhetorical situation.” This is the set of circumstances under which the piece of writing is produced, and it affects the choices a writer makes. What is the “rhetorical situation” of piece of writing that is classified as “research”? – What is its purpose? – – – What is its audience? What is its tone/stance? What is its medium?

The Purpose of Our Research Paper

• • Make a CLAIM about your chosen issue and defend that claim using reputable sources and your own analysis of the issue. How do I discover and defend a claim? – ASK a research question that invites further discussion. – RESEARCH/READ a variety of sources about your question, and take notes. – DECIDE, based on your research, where you stand on your question, and put that stance into a thesis/claim. – DEFEND your decision (your thesis) in your paper.

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Don’t ask a question to which you think you already know the answer.

Audience for our Research Paper

• Assume a general audience of other college level students and professors. Your audience is interested in your topic, but may not be familiar with your specific issue. You will need to provide appropriate context.

Tone and Medium of Research Paper

• • Tone: I will expect the paper to have a clear point of view on the question you choose, but I will expect the paper to be professional and respectful of those who might disagree. (If you wouldn’t say it to the face of someone you respect but disagree with, it doesn’t belong in your research paper.) Medium: Written paper, with the option of credited images throughout. Also, if you choose to do the extra credit, you may use video and internet sources in your presentation.

Expectations for Style:

• • This paper should be written in an academic style. Some extra points to remember: – No text-speak (“u” for “you,” for example) – Precise, academically appropriate language – Severely limit use of “I” and “me” to absolutely necessary, relevant examples that could not be explained without the use of personal experience.

Brainstorming for the Research Paper Question

• • • Make a list of ALL of the issues/topics might like to write about. Come up with some rough questions about each of these topics. (You can refine them later.) Be curious! What are connections you’ve always wondered about? What are things you’ve noticed that you’d like to explore in more detail? What are readings from our book that intrigued you? What more do you want to know about those topics?

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Formulating a Research Question

A successful research question will: – Narrow a sufficiently debatable issue down to a manageable question for a 4-5 page paper. – Be specific. – Invite discussion about the answer to the question. Some poor research questions: • How does technology affect society? (Too broad… What kind of technology? Affect society in what way? And who is “society” referring to, anyway?) • What are some good ways to study? (“Good” is too subjective. Also, what are you studying? What do you mean by “good”? And what is your purpose in ranking these study methods?)

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Research Question, cont.

Improved Research questions: • How have smart phones and social media changed the way that political activists and protestors organize and communicate with each other and the public? • What are some of the best ways to study if a student needs to memorize and retain large amounts of information quickly? (For example, the bones in the human body, states and capitals, etc.) Remember, your research proposal needs to have your research question at the top, followed by a discussion of what is at stake, who might be affected, and what you need to find out before

deciding where you stand.

Example Research Question:

• • • • I had a student once who asked, “Should Deaf children be in school that are specifically designed for the needs of the Deaf, or should they be in mainstream classes with accommodations, such as interpreters?” To whom might this issue matter? What is at stake when making decisions about this issue? What other questions might you need to ask before deciding on an informed opinion?

Rough Research Question

• • • • • Turn at least one of the topics you brainstormed into a rough research question. Now, ask yourself, to whom does this issue matter? Who do you think is most likely to have a strong opinion on this issue? Why is it important for this issue to be argued? Where should I go next to find out what other people with credible knowledge and experience are saying about this topic? Finally, ask yourself, why am I interested in this question? What observations or experiences have led me to ask this?

The answers to those questions are what make up the paragraph for your research proposal.

Ok, I have a research question. Now what?

• • Have your research question(s) checked by me. Continue refining them. Begin to draft your research proposal that you will later type.

What should I be doing this week for the research paper?

• • • • Research Proposal Start finding possible sources. Keep track of where you find them. Read at least five possible sources. If they are relevant, annotate/highlight/take notes. Keep track of which ideas came from which source.

Begin to notice common debates or themes in your sources. What are the big issues that show up over and over again as you research?

There are Three Steps to Using Sources:

• • • Find sources and choose the best ones for your purpose.

Read the sources carefully, keeping track of your own reactions to the author’s ideas and using your sources as a springboard for your own contribution to the discussion. Use the sources in your essay, giving proper credit in the body of the essay and at the end, using MLA format.

Finding/Choosing Sources

• Why do you need to include sources in your essays? – To show your audience that you are aware of the conversation that is already going on. – To give your audience context for an argument you will make. – To support a point you are making. – To provide an example of an opposing point of view that you will then counter.

Where Can I Find Sources?

• • • • College Databases College Library Public Library The Internet – Especially useful resources include: – Government sites – .org sites produced by interested non-profits – Google scholar

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Library Resources

Library Databases can be accessed through the Ventura Library website. – Databases are collections of articles that have appeared, either in print or online, in various publications. – When you are on your VC portal page, you can get to the library resources by clicking on “Ventura College Online Databases.” Then, you can click on the database you want, or explore databases by subject. – You may also explore VC’s collection of paper-and-ink books by searching the catalogue at the top. Potentially useful databases: – Academic Search Premiere (EBSCO) – Proquest Research Library – EBSCO ebook – CQ Researcher – Opposing Viewpoints

Some Tips on Using the Databases

• • • • • • Database searches are most effective when you identify the “key terms” that are likely to show up in sources you are interested in. – Don’t put long questions into the search fields in databases. For example, don’t put, “What should parents of a deaf child do about school?” Instead, try “Deaf children education” Pay attention to the suggestions the databases make about related subjects. Make sure to check the “full text” search option so that you will be able to access any results you want. Email or save any results that interest you to read later. You may also print out articles here if you have a print card. Make sure that you keep a record of any sources you use from the databases. As you research, keep an eye out for other “Key words” used to discuss your issue, and do new searches with these key words.

Suggestions for Beginning Research

• • • Make a list of terms and phrases that might get you good search results for your question. – For example, for my Deaf children and education question, I might make the following list: – Deaf students education – Deaf children school options – Deaf students mainstream – Deaf students accommodations – Deaf students specialized education – Etc.

Try different combinations of words that might get you results. If you don’t find what you want immediately, change your search terms and try again.

Once you do find a source or two, see if there are any common phrases you might add to your list.

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Sorting Through Your Database Search Results

Read the title of the article. Does it look like it might have information that is relevant to your issue? How old is the article? Click on the article if you think it might be useful. Is there an abstract? (This is a summary.) If so, read it. It will help you decide whether or not the article is worth your time. If there is no abstract, read the first paragraph and decide whether or not to add it to your “read later” list.

Evaluating Online Sources

• • • Any sources you find through the databases are likely to be “reputable” sources, but what about typing your search terms into google or another search engine?

This can be an excellent way to find resources that are very new and haven’t been included in the databases yet, BUT there’s a lot of junk out there. SO, how can you tell the junk from the good stuff?

Evaluating Online Sources

• • • • See p. 344 of Everyone’s an Author Who takes responsibility for the piece of writing? Is it a publication with an online presence? Is it an organization with a good reputation?

In what ways does the author establish credibility? Is the piece of writing presented well? (Are the points well argued/explained? Does the author display an awareness of the ongoing conversation? Does the piece of writing use clear grammar, spelling, and punctuation?)

Step 2: Read the Sources You Chose

• • • • Read them all the way through unless you decide after the first paragraph that the source is not useful to you. Reading the article completely is important. How can you possibly respond to a source you’ve only skimmed? If the article is an argument, identify the author’s big claims. Do you agree with them? If so, do you have anything to add to the author’s support? If not, how would you counter the author’s argument? If the article is informative, highlight pieces of information that are relevant to the question you are exploring. Keep notes on your sources. Highlight. Write questions in the margins. Make connections between what one source says and another source says.

Step 2: Read the Sources You Chose

• A couple more things about sources… – Just because you find a source and read it doesn’t mean you have to use it. If you read a source and don’t like it, keep looking. – Keep researching throughout the writing process. If you find a wonderful source with all kinds of good ideas you want to respond to after you wrote a draft, that’s fine. Include that source and your response when you revise. – Keep track of every source you use ideas or quotes from in your paper. You will need to be able to find the source again when you give it credit.

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Step 3: Using Sources and Giving Credit

You’ve found your sources, read them, annotated them, and you’re ready to use your sources in your essay. So… which quotes should you use? – Quotes that contain ideas you want to respond to. – Quotes where the original source’s wording is especially good or important to your response. – Quotes where the original source explains a complex idea clearly and succinctly.

– Quotes that contain ideas that would make most people want proof. Any quote you use should have an explanation/response that is TWICE AS LONG as the original quote. If a quote takes up two full lines of your paper, the explanation/response to that quote should take up FOUR.

Avoiding Plagiarism

Introduction to MLA Format and the Annotated Bibliography

Three Basic Rules for Avoiding Plagiarism:

1. Make sure all word-for-word quotes have quote marks showing where they begin and end. Also, make sure to make the difference between your ideas and your sources’ ideas clear when paraphrasing or summarizing. 2. Identify where each quote OR paraphrased idea came from in the body of your paper using in text citations. 3. Make sure that each source you quote or paraphrase in your paper is correctly listed on your Works Cited page.

Some Myths about Plagiarism

• • • • • • Myth 1: As long as I have a source on my works cited page, I don’t have to mention it in the body of my paper. WRONG! Any time you use ideas or words from a source, you must include an in-text citation. Myth 2: As long as I change one or two words in a quote, I don’t have to put quote marks around it or do a citation. WRONG! Changing one or two words in a quote and replacing them with synonyms is STILL PLAGIARISM if you keep the original ideas and/or sentence structure.

Myth 3: As long as I paraphrase correctly, using my own words and sentence structure to express an idea, I don’t need an in text citation. WRONG! Even if you use your own words, if the idea originally came from somewhere else, you must cite it.

Myths about Plagiarism

• • • • • • Myth 4: I don’t need to cite exact words, ideas or information I find on the internet. WRONG! Treat your internet sources with the same respect you have for your print or online database sources.

Myth 5: It is appropriate to use an old essay from a friend, buy an essay, or have someone help me write an essay using his or her wording instead of mine.

WRONG! All of these are called collusion, and they are all plagiarism.

Myth 6: I won’t get caught if I plagiarize. WRONG! Plagiarism is quite obvious to most professors, and many of them use plagiarism detecting software.

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Resources to Help you Avoid Plagiarism

P. 401 – 406 of Everyone an Author for avoiding plagiarism. P. 407-415 for In-Text Citation. P. 416-445 for Works Cited entries. P. 446-462 for example research paper. Online plagiarism tutorial and quizzes from Simon Fraser University http://www.lib.sfu.ca/node/10442 Plagiarism Self Test from Western Carolina University http://www.wcu.edu/12083.asp

University of Southern Mississippi’s Plagiarism Tutorial http://www.lib.usm.edu/legacy/plag/plagiarismtutorial.ph

p The Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL) https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/

What Is MLA Format?

• • MLA Stands for “Modern Language Association” The MLA makes rules for the writers of research papers in English and the Humanities so that everyone who is doing research is following the same set of rules and we can all

understand each other.

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What kinds of things do I need to do to have correct MLA Format?

Part of MLA style is format. – Margins – – Heading Font, etc. – Please see the formatting example that is in the file with your syllabus for my expectations on formatting. Part of MLA style is citation. – This means giving credit to your sources and avoiding plagiarism. – Citation is also meant to make is easy for your reader find your sources if he or she wishes to read them.

Two Required Methods of Giving Credit in MLA Format

– Method #1: A Works Cited page – Where is it? On its own page at the end of your essay – Lists every source you used in alphabetical order by the last name of the author – Each source on your works cited must contain specific information in a specific order. Consult your text books or the OWL website for more details.

Two Required Methods of Giving Credit in MLA Format

– Method #2 Parenthetical (in-text) citations – What is it? A way of indicating which source you just quoted or summarized. – Where is it? In the body (main text) of your essay. – When do I have to use it? • • After a direct quote that you took word for word from a source.

After a paraphrase of an idea that you did not write or think of yourself, you must indicate which source you are using in order to avoid plagiarism.

MLA Format Citations Work Together

• • In-text citations and the works cited page work together in order to help your audience know where your quotes or paraphrases came from, and to help your audience easily find the source themselves. Each in-text citation should use the FIRST name or words that appear in the works cited entry for that source. This way, you are linking your quote to an entry on your works cited page.

To Cite, or Not to Cite

• • • You do not have to cite facts that are undisputed common knowledge. – Ex: The Battle of Gettysburg began on July 1, 1863.

– Ex: Water is made up of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom. – Ex: Dublin is the capital of the Republic of Ireland.

However, once you start needing to use ideas about these common, everyday facts that you found in your sources, you must cite the source of the idea. When in doubt, cite! And if you have time, ask!

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How to Use TurnItIn to Check for Plagiarism

After you have uploaded your essay to turnitin, you will have the ability to check YOURSELF for any plagiarism. Your originality score should be less than 25%. This means that no more than 25% of your essay should be identified as word for word from a source, even if sources are quoted correctly. Any portions of your essay that turnitin highlights should have quote marks around them, a correct MLA in-text citation, and a works cited entry at the end that gives credit to the quote.

What Happens if TurnItIn Finds Plagiarism?

• • • If you have time before the due date, you can fix the problem and upload a new, corrected file that will replace the old one. This means that it would be a good idea to give yourself time to correct any errors before the due date. If you discover accidental plagiarism after the due date, I will give you the opportunity to revise.

What about intentional plagiarism?

• • Intentional plagiarism is cheating that is not the result of an accident, a lack of knowledge, or a citation error. For example, uploading an entire essay you bought or copied from a website is not an accident. What happens if turnitin identifies intentional plagiarism? – Hope you’ve given yourself enough time to take it down and upload something you actually wrote before the due date. – Because if I catch you, I will fail you on the assignment with no hope of revision so fast it’ll make your head spin.

What is an annotated bibliography?

• • • An annotated bibliography has two parts: First, it is a list of Works Cited entries for sources you

have already read.

Second, each source is followed by two paragraphs: – One paragraph that summarizes the source's claim(s) – A second paragraph that tells why the source is trustworthy and relevant to your question, and explains why you have chosen to use it in your research paper. What unique perspective does this source offer? Why would a quote, paraphrase, or summary from this source a valuable addition to your own writing about the topic?

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Format of Annotated Bibliography

See p. 377-378 of Everyone’s an Author for general information about annotated bibliographies, and see p. 379-380 for an example annotated bibliography with three sources (remember, you will need FIVE). Your annotated bibliography will need… – Five sources – Each source put into MLA works cited format (as in example) – – Sources alphabetized A paragraph following each source discussing requirements on previous slide. – Please skip a line between MLA works cited entries and paragraphs. (See example.)

Analyzing Arguments

• • Who’s arguing, and where are they coming from? – Important question to ask of your sources (remember our discussion of credibility) – Important for you to establish as a writer • Also, important for you to tell your reader about your sources What’s at stake? – See 4 questions on p. 279 of Everyone’s an Author

Exploring Different Types of Appeals

• • • • • Emotional (pathos) - appeals to feelings Ethical (ethos) – appeals to values Logical (logos) – appeals to reason/logic Each different rhetorical situation you find yourself in will call for you to use a different balance of these three types of appeals. See p. 284-295 in Everyone’s an Author

Types of Appeals: Logos

• • • • One type of appeal appeals to your readers’ rational sides using facts and logical explanations. See p. 289 of

EaA.

This is called logos, which is related to the word "logic.“ By making sure that your facts are relevant and well documented, you will increase your credibility as a writer. An example of logos might be: “We should purchase book A for our students instead of book B because book A is less expensive by $20, but the quality is the same, and that would save our school money.”

Types of Appeals: Ethos

• • • You may be appealing to your readers’ sense of what is ethical (in this context “ethical” means “the right thing to do”) by asserting that you share common values with them. See p. 285 of EaA. An appeal to values/ethics is an appeal to ethos, which shared a root with the word “ethical.” An example of the use of ethos might be: “We should increase school funding because every child should have access to a high-quality education.” This claim appeals to the values of fairness and equality.

• • • •

Types of Appeals: Pathos

You may also be making an appeal to emotion. See p. 284 of EaA This is called pathos. It shares a root with the word "pathetic," which originally mean “inspiring pity.” It originally meant appealing to the emotions without the negative connotation of weakness that modern English gives it. You are trying to get your audience to really feel for whatever cause you are arguing for. An example of the use of pathos might be: “Children in this school district are not able to take their text books home because schools are underfunded. Imagine a child who is already struggling with math. His parents may not be able to help him, and he had trouble understanding the day’s lesson. He looks at his worksheet, and because he cannot refer to the textbook for help, he is lost. He gives up, doesn’t do the homework, and falls further behind. He tries to follow along in class, but the lack of resources has already done its damage. He fails math, and becomes one more child who passed through our school system without the basic skills needed for college or for life.”

Balancing Logos, Ethos, and Pathos

• It is your job as a writer to balance facts, values, and emotions. Too much of one and not enough of the others can make for an unbalanced argument. Be especially aware of overusing emotional appeals. People are smart, and they don't like being jerked around by their emotions. This is especially true when writing for a mixed audience… people who disagree with you will be on the lookout for emotional manipulation.

How can I use claims and appeals in my own writing?

• • • • Identify what’s at stake. Take some time right now to ask yourself, who might be affected by my issue? If you haven’t chosen an issue yet, now is the time. Also, be on the lookout for sources who can give you more info on what’s at stake. A lot of times, we don’t know exactly what’s at stake until we do the research. What types of appeals might be useful for you? How might you use emotion? How might you use logic? Values? Be on the lookout for all types of appeals, or the building blocks of all types of appeals, in your sources as you read.