Research paper: children's mental health

General overview:

Research is at the foundation of all work that goes on at a university. What’s more, it is a crucial part of the life-long learning educated people undertake when they encounter an important new subject or issue. This set of assignments is designed to help you become an expert on a topic of your choice and to develop an effective argument on that topic. In the process, you will learn skills that will be important to advanced work in university classes.

 

You will begin by choosing a controversial issue related to an academic field of you choice, such as English Literature, Biology, Earth Sciences, History or Psychology. You might want to choose a topic based your major field of study around which to focus your research. How will you discover such a topic? You might have a conversation with a professor or TA about their current research and the topics that interest them. You might come across big questions or interesting debates in classes you are currently taking. Additionally, you might consider exploring some high-quality periodicals for general audiences (such as national newspapers or news magazines) to find discussions of current issues that relate to your field of study.

 

Next you will need to ensure that sufficient published information exists for you to develop a well-informed research essay. Thus, your library homework assignment will require you to create a short list of sources related to your topic. Introductions to library resources will help you to locate and evaluate such sources. After I have approved your choice of topic and preliminary list of sources, you will write a paper proposal in class to try out your ideas. The final research essay will be the culmination of all the work you have done over the course of the term in ENGL135. Thus, you should expect to bring analytical, rhetorical, and stylistic as well as research skills to bear on this project. Lastly, make it clear in your essay who the audience is.

 

Preface the rough and final drafts with a self-assessment, i.e. a description of what you thought you did well and what you struggled with. This should be at least 150 words but can be as long as you like.  It will not affect your grade if you are self-critical.  It will just assist me and your peer partner in helping you with feedback. On the final draft, note all of the major revisions that you made. On this assignment, a particularly lengthy and outstandingly self-critical self-assessment on your final draft will earn you a bonus 1% on the paper’s grade while a lack of a self-assessment will result in a 1% deduction from your paper’s grade..  A lack of a self-assessment will result in a deduction of 1%. In terms of formatting, at the top of the page in your Word document, put your name, my name, the course name (English 135), and date of submission.  Make sure your essay has a title.  Single spacing is fine (although maybe not for other professors). Use Times New Roman, 14 point font.  Label your Word document with your name and the essay name, e.g. Name Research Essay.doc. Underline your thesis statement and put your topic sentences in bold.

Research essay

 

Length: 1800-2000 words (not including your audience analysis and reference list)

 

Overview

This paper involves creating a research question on a narrow topic and developing a “critical conversation” (“They Say/I Say”) between you and various secondary sources in a field of study.  You are to forward your own argument on the topic but also respond do what others have said on the topic as well. Consider this final paper to be your opportunity to demonstrate your ability to use the reading, writing, research, and rhetorical skills you have learned in ENGL135. How can you best establish your ethos as the author of this essay? What kinds of pathetic appeals will be most persuasive for your audience? What is the most effective order for making your logical arguments? What kinds of exigency can you suggest to convince your audience to recognize the seriousness of this issue? You will also want to utilize the language skills you have honed over the course of the term in order to present your arguments not only correctly but also with coherence, clarity, and style.  Underline your thesis statement and put your topic sentences in bold.  The essay should follow the standard essay format of introduction—body-paragraphs—conclusion.

 

Research

To complete this paper, continue your research so that your bibliography contains as many sources as you need, although make sure not to use so many different sources that your own argument becomes obscured in the process. The idea is that you are synthesizing and creating conversations with secondary sources, but your argument should be front and center in the essay. For most topics, that will mean a minimum of ten sources, including books, articles, non-print media, government sources, and interviews as appropriate. You must use a minimum of five academic, peer-reviewed articles. Make sure that your materials are up-to-date and that you select the most persuasive arguments. As you have learned more, your views may have modified, may have grown more complex, or may even have changed entirely. Your final paper must demonstrate competence in using and citing sources properly and in ways that support your position and purposes. Parenthetically cite your sources in either APA or MLA format (be consistent throughout the paper; just use one system or the other) and create a works cited list in the format you chose.

 

At this point, you will likely find that some sources from your Library Homework Assignment and Proposal assignments are no longer very useful for your current task. For example, articles that helped you create an overview for your topic in the Paper Proposal may not assist you in writing your own sharply focused argument. Having become much more familiar with the current debate, you may discover alternative key terms that will present new avenues for research.

 

That said, the work you have done up to this point should not be discarded. You might rework a paragraph or two from your Proposal. As you work on this long paper, I strongly encourage you to recycle and revise material from earlier assignments.

 

Audience and Purpose

Conceptualize your readers as a group that requires convincing either because they are neutral or because they are opposed to your position. Arguing with people who disagree with you is the most challenging rhetorical situation, the one requiring the greatest skill from an arguer in selecting, arranging, and phrasing arguments. Though arguments addressed to those who are opposed rarely overturn their convictions, a well-argued case can nevertheless demonstrate to them that a reasonable and moral person can hold a different view. Arguments for a neutral audience have a good chance of influencing and even winning over readers.

 

Because your choice of arguments, your arrangement of those arguments, and even your wording depends so much on your audience, you will need to describe your intended audience and explain your assumptions about that audience in detail in a written audience analysis – APPEND A PARAGRAPH DESCRIBING YOUR AUDIENCE TO THE END OF YOUR PAPER.  A lack of this will result in a 1% deduction from your grade on the essay. This is basically just a statement about who you think your intended audience is.  Rather than just the general audience that we saw in the first paper, this one is geared at a more specific audience, one that will vary according to your particular topic and argument.  Think about who would be interested in your paper, who would be more interested in reading it and the research question you are exploring.  You might often, in fact, have multiple audiences in mind so explore those a little bit in the audience statement. Shoot for at least 150 words.

 

 

Arrangement Advice

This paper must be longer than the others you have written this semester in order to give you a chance to develop your own arguments in detail – backing them up with appropriate support – and to respond to other positions. A full argument on a genuine issue where something is at stake deserves special care and preparation.

 

The parts of a full argument (which we will cover in class) will help you to develop and organize your argument. You will need to contextualize the debate and let your readers know how you will discuss key issues. The most important decision you have to make is how to distribute the confirmation (arguments for) and refutation (arguments against). Should you refute the opposition first? This is the usual arrangement strategy when an audience believes the opposing arguments. Or should your positive arguments come first? It is sometimes suggested that, even with hostile audiences, strong arguments boldly framed are more likely to persuade. Or perhaps characterizations of other positions should be mixed with refutation, concession, or bridging. The possibilities are extensive, so planning is necessary.

 

 

Research Essay

Draft Worksheet

 

Author’s name:

 

Editor’s name:

 

Read through your author’s draft, and underline anything you want to bring to this person’s attention.  You may also make notes in the margins. Then answer the following questions and use them to open a discussion about how to improve this paper.

 

1. For what position does the author argue?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. Describe the audience this paper seems intended for, and make a special note if the paper seems intended for a different set of readers than those described in the audience analysis. What beliefs does the author seem to think his or her readers hold? Is this paper written for a hostile or neutral audience?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. How does the author establish exigency for the argument in the paper? Is this strategy effective or not?

 

 

 

 

 

 

4. What kind of ethos does the author establish? Give two examples. Is this ethos appropriate for the intended audience?

 

 

 

 

 

5. How has the author contextualized the debate? How does the history or background information provided help the argument?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6. List at least three positive arguments the author offers. How might the author improve one of them?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

7. How has the author arranged the arguments? Is this arrangement strategy appropriate for the intended audience or not? If not, please suggest specific changes the author might make.

 

 

 

 

 

 

8. List at least three opposing arguments that the author refutes, concedes to, or bridges with. How is the concession, refutation or bridging handled? Are you convinced that the author deals with these opposing and alternate arguments satisfactorily? Why or why not?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Research Essay

Grading Rubric

 

 

GRADING CRITERIA (graded globally, these things that I am looking at)

1. PROSE: Does the paper engage in the effective use of language, including eloquence, precision, flow, and grammar?  How is the style of the paper?  Is it appropriate to the assignment, e.g. formal or informal language?
2. ORGANIZATION AND SENSE OF AUDIENCE:  How well in the paper organized at the essay and paragraph levels?  Does it have a clear structure that makes sense for what it is trying to accomplish? Does it have a sensible layout into introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion? How well does the paper address its imagined audience with reader-based prose? Does it lead the reader through a step-by-step development of an argument with lots of navigational cues?  How well does the paper take the audience’s view into account through empathy? How well does the paper make use of counterargument?
3. ASSIGNMENT, TOPIC, COHESION AND FOCUS:  How well does the essay fulfill the requirements of the assignment? Is it the right length according to the assignment’s word requirement? Based on the assignment, is it an interesting topic?  How well do all of the parts of the paper, both paragraphs and sentences, work together to form a larger, coherent and ‘organic’ whole? Is there a focus that is appropriately sharp, given the length and scope of the project, i.e. does it try to cover too much or too little? Does the paper as a whole stay on topic or veer away from it? Does each paragraph stick to one main topic?
4. CONTENT, ARGUMENT AND EVIDENCE: Is there an excellent, interesting, focused and debatable thesis as well as a set of topic sentences that frame the essay’s argument?  How good is the content of the paper? Does the paper make a compelling and clear argument with assertions and supporting evidence, including concrete and specific examples?  How effectively and deeply does the paper analyze the evidence? If applicable, does it make effective use of quotations, including analysis of them in conversation with the paper’s argument?
5. RESEARCH:  How effectively does the paper use outside sources as part of a critical conversation with the paper’s argument, i.e. using sources to both support and contrast the student’s argument?  Is the student able to briefly summarize and then analyze an outside author’s position? Is the research thorough enough for the purposes of the paper?  Are the sources good, useful, and relevant to the argument?  Where did the outside sources come from, e.g. a peer-reviewed journal or academic book?

 

 

 

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