Like writing itself, research should be approached as a process. In our class, we'll emphasize two key points: research as a process that takes time and research as a search which begins with questions, not with preconceived conclusions.
First, no matter what type of project you're doing for any class, one of the most important steps you can take to be successful is to START IN TIME. Researched projects are usually lengthy, so assignments are given a long time before the due dates. Don't interpret this as time to procrastinate. Since you never know when your intended topic won't work out, all sources on your topic will be unavailable, or your internet access will crash, you should start any research project early enough to spend more time than you think you need on every step in the process.
As we integrate AI tools into our research process, we'll use a Think-Write-Prompt approach that ensures your critical thinking drives the research, not the technology. This three-step foundation applies whether you're brainstorming topics, developing research questions, or analyzing sources:
THINK first: Before turning to any tool—AI or traditional search—spend time considering what you already know, what genuinely puzzles you, and what questions emerge from your own experience and observations.
WRITE your thinking: Capture your initial thoughts, questions, and assumptions on paper or screen. This written record becomes your intellectual anchor, helping you maintain ownership of your ideas as you gather information.
PROMPT strategically: Only then engage with AI or other research tools, using specific prompts that build on your preliminary thinking rather than replacing it.
Another essential point to remember as you choose and focus your topic for research is that, with a true research process, you do NOT begin with your mind made up and look for sources to agree with you. You should begin with a general idea of what you'd like to learn more about. Start with topics connected to your own life (absolutely do not Google "research topics" or ask AI to "give me research topics"; you'll probably get worn-out or enormous topics with no real connection to your own life). For a shorter project like this one, it is perfectly fine to begin with something you already have an opinion on; just remember to keep an open mind and look at multiple perspectives.
The Think-Write-Prompt approach becomes especially important when working with AI because these tools can quickly generate impressive-sounding content that might short-circuit your own thinking process. By thinking and writing first, you ensure that AI becomes a research assistant rather than a replacement for your intellectual curiosity and critical analysis.
Researchers committed to critical thinking always begin with questions rather than carved-in-stone opinions, and they examine issues in all of their complexity, taking the time to find out why people hold a variety of views on the topic. This commitment to exploring multiple perspectives is one of the reasons why research takes time: successful researchers do not just use the first three sources they find—whether those sources come from traditional databases, AI-generated suggestions, or web searches.
Now that you understand the importance of starting your research process with genuine curiosity and questions rather than predetermined conclusions, it's time to apply the Think-Write-Prompt approach to your own project. The prewriting chart that follows will guide you through a systematic process of discovery that puts your thinking at the center while using AI strategically to expand your possibilities.
THINK Phase (Steps 1-2): You'll begin with extended freewriting about topics connected to your own life—your intended career field and community issues you genuinely care about. This isn't busy work; it's the intellectual foundation that will make everything else in your research process more meaningful and focused.
WRITE Phase (Steps 1.5-2): You'll capture your thinking in writing, generating initial topic ideas based on your own interests and observations. This written record becomes your anchor point—the ideas that are authentically yours before you engage with external sources.
PROMPT Phase (Steps 3-5): Only after establishing your own thinking will you engage with AI tools, using carefully designed prompts that build on your preliminary work rather than replacing it. Notice that the AI prompts require you to input your own ideas first—the AI cannot help you effectively until you've done your own thinking.
This structured approach ensures that when you do engage with AI, you're using it as a research partner rather than a substitute for your own intellectual curiosity. You'll be able to evaluate AI suggestions against your own interests and knowledge, asking better questions and recognizing more promising directions for research.
The chart also builds in multiple checkpoints for reflection, helping you maintain ownership of your project even as you gather information from various sources. By the time you complete this prewriting process, you'll have a research topic that genuinely engages you and a clear sense of why it matters—both to you personally and to your broader audience.
Remember: the goal isn't to find the "perfect" topic immediately, but to discover a question worth pursuing through the research process.
After working through the prewriting chart, you've moved from broad self-reflection to three focused topic possibilities. Now comes a crucial step in the research process that many students skip: testing your ideas with real people before committing to a final topic.
Remember that research is ultimately about communication—you're investigating questions that matter to communities of people, and you'll eventually make recommendations to specific stakeholders. The topic selection conference gives you a chance to see how your ideas land with an actual audience before you invest significant time in research and writing.
This isn't just about getting approval for your topic. Your classmates will help you discover which of your three topics has the strongest combination of personal engagement, research potential, and real-world relevance. They'll also help you identify aspects of your topics that you might not have considered—potential stakeholders, angles for focus, or ways to narrow broad issues into manageable research questions.
The conference continues the Think-Write-Prompt cycle on a collaborative level:
THINK together: Your group will help you think through the practical and intellectual challenges each topic presents.
WRITE your reflections: You'll capture feedback and insights from your peers, adding their perspectives to your own preliminary thinking.
PROMPT your next steps: The feedback you receive will help you develop more focused and strategic approaches to your chosen topic.
This isn't a formal presentation—think of it as a focused conversation where you briefly share your thinking and your peers help you strengthen it. You'll spend most of your time listening to feedback, asking clarifying questions, and taking notes that will guide your next steps in the research process.
By the end of the conference, you'll have not just a topic, but a clearer sense of what makes it worth pursuing and how to approach it strategically. Most importantly, you'll have chosen a topic that genuinely engages both you and your potential readers—exactly the kind of authentic curiosity that drives meaningful research.