PAPER 1 DRAFT DUE ON
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 26TH --
BRING A PAPER COPY TO CLASS THAT DAY.
FINAL PAPER DUE MARCH 10
|
GUIDELINES
FOR RESEARCH QUESTIONS |
| GRADING SHEET |
| 1. |
The
research question should be an issue that is central to
the course content
-- African American Studies. It should be sociological
-- for example, stating that a particular social pattern
has
unintended consequences or focusing on the causes of a particular
social pattern. |
| 2. |
The topic should be a research question asking about the relationships between two concepts in a particular population. Define the two concepts, the relationship, and the population. The question should not have a "yes" or "no" answer. |
GUIDELINES
FOR THIS PAPER |
| 1. |
The paper title should be a
phrase that includes at least two sociologically relevant
variables and identify a population to be studied. |
| 2. |
State
your research question -- in a complete sentence which
ends with a question mark. Begin
your paper with this sentence. Your research question
should have the following characteristics:
- a question
about a relationship between two or more variables;
- a narrow
topic which can be thoroughly studied in one semester;
- a population
the relationship applies to;
- a sociological
or anthropological problem that is not yet resolved;
- does
not have a "yes" or "no" or a
dichotomous (either/or) answer;
- you care
about it
|
| 3. |
The rest of the first paragraph
should elaborate on the meaning of this thesis sentence or
research question. |
| 4. |
Then, for a few paragraphs, explain why this is an important
topic to study. Be
specific and concrete, with a focus on facts, not opinion.
-
How would understanding this better contribute
to our knowledge of African American Communities in Sociology or Anthropology?
-
What
policy issues are relevant to this topic? How
would a better understanding of this area aid in
making better policy decisions -- people or organizations or communities doing things differently.
-
Why
are you, personally, interested in this topic? How
does it relate to your own observations and experiences?
|
| 5. |
Find at least 5 peer reviewed journal articles which can help answer your research question. Sources
must be ORIGINAL SOURCES not secondary sources, and at
least five of the sources must be in PEER REVIEWED journals
To find at least 5 good sources, you will have to identify and read a lot more than
5.
Explain how these sources help to answer your research question. . |
| |
As you summarize and evaluate
the research evidence which answers your research question. Ignore those parts
of the literature which are not related to your
research question. |
| |
The body of the paper should be your analysis of what the articles can tell us about your research question.
IMPORTANT: Evaluate the level of strength or weakness
of the evidence you present.
IMPORTANT: Include a citation of your source each time to discuss an idea or research result from one of the articles you are including. |
| 6. |
End the text with a
clear concluding paragraph. |
| 7. |
The
text part of the paper should be followed by a list of references, in the specified
ASA format. |
THE
BASICS |
| * |
LENGTH: 5-6 pages in WORD
or RTF format (not WORKS!!) submitted through the DROP
BOX on this web site. |
| * |
Use
the ASA format, as described in: http://www.calstatela.edu/library/bi/rsalina/asa.styleguide.html |
| * |
Do
not turn in your first draft! Your paper should
be free of spelling and grammatical errors.
Avoid plagiarizing. Cite the source of everything in your paper.
^^TOP OF PAGE^^ |
