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Guidelines for the Research Paper
Guidelines for the Research Paper
All projects should be inquiry based in nature. An inquiry based research paper involves higher level thinking skills and generally draws a conclusion. Compare/Contrast and Cause/Effect work well as the starting point for an inquiry based paper as well as how the topic made an impact on history. The topic should be treated as a problem, and you must try to find a solution.
An example of a problem-solving project is "Should the United Nations be abolished?
This guide from EBSCO takes you through the steps to write a quality research paper.
Body of paper
Body of paper
The length of the paper may vary, depending on the type of project, but it should be at least 3-5 typed pages (8th-12th grade) in length to adequately cover the topic. Follow your teacher's guidelines. The body contains the important facts that you have gathered from a variety of resources print or electronic including books, reference books, encyclopedias, magazines, and other resources. Remember that you are using your sources as evidence to back up your thesis statement.
Need Help with your Thesis Statement?
Need Help with your Thesis Statement?
All inquiry papers need to have a one sentence thesis statement within the first paragraph. This sentence is NOT your research question.
Find examples of how to write a good thesis statement from Easybib.
You can find a good explanation of how to construct a thesis statement from the University of North Carolina.
How to write a good thesis statement from the Writing Studio at Duke University
Need Help with Writing a Research Paper?
Need Help with Writing a Research Paper?
Easybib has created a writing guide to walk you through the process of writing a research paper.
NO DUMPING ALLOWED: avoid plagiarism
NO DUMPING ALLOWED: avoid plagiarism
Plagiarism, or copying word-for-word is not allowed, so use your OWN words.
You need to make sure that you are paraphrasing or summarizing from your resources.
Remember to use the THREE DIFFERENTS:
Different words
Different sentence structure
Different order of ideas
The Harvard Guide to Using Sources can help explain the difference between paraphrasing, summarizing, and quoting.
You should be able to read and understand all information contained in your paper.
The body should contain the material that you learned during the course of your research.
Conclusion of Paper
Conclusion of Paper
Briefly describe the knowledge that you have gained as a result of completing the research. The
conclusion may consist of one or two paragraphs describing the general ideas that you have
learned.
In-text/parenthetical citations
In-text/parenthetical citations
Adding in-text citations within the body of a research paper are required
Use MLA 9 format for in-text citations.
All information quoted, paraphrased, or summarized must be properly cited.
Common knowledge does not. Find out what MIT calls common knowledge.
Remember:
Every resource listed at the end of your paper must be cited within the body of your paper.
See Mrs. Griffin in the library for further assistance or email her: christan.griffin@jpschools.org
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