Tips on how to write a good

Research Paper

Top 10 Mistakes Students Make in writing a Research Paper

1) Must cite your sources!!!2) Each footnote is a NEW number3) Do not use only the first name or

abbreviations/contractions 4) Thesis must be obvious from the start5) Don’t skip a space between paragraphs,

12 pt font, 1 inch margins6) Spelling---PROOFREAD!!! (Read aloud)7) Each paragraph should be its own topic8) Avoid personal pronouns and generalizations (always,

never, most, etc.)9) Use quotes, but don’t just string all together10) Use correct format for works cited page

A: above and beyond expectations; no grammar errors, well-supported thesis

B: Clear position, few errors, argument supported

C: answers the question briefly, but supported

D: Clear position but not enough support; many grammar errors

E: No direction, doesn’t answer the question

0 for even 1 sentence of plagiarism!!!!

 

4 3 2 1 0

 Position

andElaboration

 Points x 3

Takes a clear position and supports it consistently with well-chosen reasons and/or examples/illustrations/ quotations that are cited.   Uses persuasive strategy to convey an argument.  2 or more full Pages

Takes a clear position and reasonably supports it with relevant reasons and/or examples/ illustrations that are cited through much of the essay.  2 or more pages

Takes a clear position and supports it with some relevant reasons and/or examples/ illustrations.   Uses citations.  At least 1 and a half pages long.

Takes a position and provides uneven support.   May lack development in parts or be repetitive OR essay is no more than a well-written beginning.

Attempts to take a position (addresses topic), but is very unclear OR takes a position but provides minimal or no support.  May only paraphrase the prompt.

 Organization

  

Is focused and well organized, with effective use of transitions and/or formatting.

Is well organized, but may lack some transitions and/or formatting.

Is organized in parts of the essay; other parts are disjointed and/or lack transitions and/or formatting.

Is disorganized or unfocused in much of the essay OR is clear, but too brief.

Exhibits little or no apparent organization.

 Conventions

  

Errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation are few and do not interfere with understanding.   

 

More frequent errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation, but they do not interfere with understanding.

Errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation sometimes interfere with understanding.

Errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation interfere with understanding in much of the essay.

Errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation prevent reader from fully understanding essay.

WHAT Is plagiarism?

“Plagiarism means using the work of someone else, in whole or in part, without giving credit. . . .You can plagiarize by obtaining a paper (free or for purchase) from a “paper mill”; by copying a paper from another student; . . .by copying a published paper. . .; or by using ideas or words from any source (written or oral) without proper attribution. Plagiarism may be committed with the intention to defraud (as in the first few examples), but may sometimes be committed unintentionally (as in the last example). This is why it is important for students to learn to recognize and avoid plagiarism.”

From Roosevelt University’s “Academic Integrity: A Guide for Students” http://www.roosevelt.edu/plagiarism

Pick an opinion and stick with it. Do not be wishy-washy!

This is NOT a Biography. This is a persuasive essay, so you MUST argue/prove something!

EVALUATING INTERNET RESOURCES

1) Who is the author and what makes them an authority on the topic? – this info should be easy to locate on the page (check at the bottom).

2) Check the web address. Good sources of information will end in .org, .fed, .gov, or even .net. Sites ending in .com can still be valuable, though.

3) Can you verify the information? Does the author provide the sources or can you find the information on another site or in a book on the subject?

4) Is the information current or was it written several years ago?

AVOID Wikipedia, eHow, Yahoo answers as a source.

A copy of this organization chart is on the webpage if you want to print/use it.

You must cite your source if:

You may use parenthetical citations (author #) or footnotes

1) It is a direct quotation (word for word)2) facts and statistics3) ideas, examples, arguments or opinions of a

source that you put into your own words (paraphrased)

You do not need to cite the source if the information is common knowledge (can be found in five or more sources). Example: You do not need to cite that Lincoln wrote the Emancipation Proclamation or that Franklin Roosevelt was elected in 1932.

Common Citation format Sites

1) APA Stylehttp://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/

2) MLA Style http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/

Parenthetical

Citations

(Author #)

Footnotes

Click on the References ribbon in 2010.

Click here to format the type of footnote/endnote. The format box will pop up

You can change location & style: Use #s or Roman numerals

2003 ( use the “Insert” heading, then click “Reference”, “footnote/endnote”)

Footnotes

Endnotes

Parenthetical

Citations

APA Style

Perhaps the best argument against the death penalty as a deterrent pertains to comparing the crime rates of states with and without the capital punishment. Schuessler (1952) conducted a study that involved comparing the crime rates of neighboring states with and without the death penalty. His findings were quite surprising. In the majority of states, the crime rates were fairly similar but there were a few non-death penalty states that actually had lower crime rates than their counterparts. To cite an example, in 1999 in states with capital punishment there was roughly 5.5 murders per 100,000 people whereas in non-death penalty states there were about 3.6 killings per 100,000 people (Berliner, Gardner, & Thibault, 1998).

To illustrate this point on a state level, Grogger (1990) analyzed daily homicide rates for California during the 1960s for a period of two-four weeks after known executions. Using Poisson and negative binomial regression models, he was unable to find any real short-term deterrent effect (Grogger, 1990).

Works Cited

Works Cited APA Style

Braga, A. (2001) The Effects Of Hot Spots Policing On Crime. The Annals of the American Society of Science, pp. 104-125 Braga, A., Kennedy, D., Waring, E., Morrison Piehl, A. Problem Oriented Policing, Deterrence and Youth Violence: An Evaluation of Boston’s Operation Ceasefire. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency 38(3):195-225. Cordner, G., Biebel, E. (2003). Research for Practice: Problem Oriented Policing in Practice. U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, April 2003. Decker, S.H., Rosenfold, R. (2004). Reducing Gun Violence: The St. Louis Consent to Search Program, U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs. Eck, J., Maguire, E. (2000) Have Changes in Policing Reduced Violent Crime? An Assessment of the Evidence. In Alfred Blumstein and Joel Waldman (eds.) The Crime Drop in America (Cambridge: University Press) pp. 207-265.

Difference between Works Cited and Bibliography: WC it only list of sources cited in your paper; Bib is ALL sources you looked at in writing the paper, even if you didn’t use anything from that source.

Works Cited

Besthoff, Len. “Cell Phone Use Increases Risk of Accidents, but Users Willing to Take the Risk.” WRAL.com. Capitol

Broadcasting, 9 Nov. 1999. Web. 12 Jan. 2001.

Farmers Insurance Group. “New Survey Shows Drivers Have Had ‘Close Calls’ with Cell Phone Users.” Farmers. Farmers Insurance Group, 8 May 2000. Web. 12 Jan. 2001.

Haughney, Christine. “Taking Phones out of Drivers’ Hands.” Washington Post 5 Nov. 2000: A8. Print.

Ippolito, Milo. “Driver’s Sentence Not Justice, Mom Says.” Atlanta Journal-Constitution 25 Sept. 1999: J1. eLibrary

Curriculum.Layton, Lyndsey. “Legislators Aiming to Disconnect Motorists.” Washington Post 10 Dec. 2000: C1+. Print.

Lowe, Chan. Cartoon. Washington Post 22 July 2000: A21. Print.

Pena, Patricia N. “Patti Pena’s Letter to Car Talk.” Cartalk.com. Dewey, Cheetham, and Howe, n.d. Web. 10 Jan. 2001.

Redelmeier, Donald A., and Robert J. Tibshirani. “Association between Cellular-Telephone Calls and Motor Vehicle Collisions.” New England Journal of Medicine 336.7 (1997): 453-58. Print.

Quotes-

• Use an ellipsis to indicate any omission of words.

Example: “We discussed comma usage, non-reference sources. . . in class already.”

• An omission at the end of a sentence requires four spaced periods.

For example: “Use an ellipsis to indicate any omission. . . .”

• Use square brackets to insert your own words into a quotation.

For example: “The entire class [8th period] turned in their paper on time.”

• Long quotations (more than four lines) need to be indented. Do not put quotation marks around a long quotation that is indented.

Long Quotation(more than 4 lines)

Words to watch: Do not misspell these words!!!

• whether/weather• lead/led• affect/effect• their/there/they’re• its/it’s• too/two/to• were/where/wear• your/you’re• than/then

If you send rough draft as a Word file attached to email, I can edit it on the computer.