March 3, 2012

TEACHING CRITICAL RESEARCH AND WRITING SKILLS

NICOLE LUSIANI ELLIOTT

INTRODUCTION

Today’s Participants will leave with: An understanding of the Research Paper process

Tools for how to teach the Research Paper

Ideas for how to structure the Research Paper process

Methods for how to assess the Research Paper

GOALS FOR TODAY

Students engage in the research process with a trusted adult as their guide.

Students distinguish between valid and less valid research sources.

Students apply their knowledge of literacy vocabulary to the social sciences.

Students build an academic narrative about a subject that interests them.

Students learn basic use of citations and references.

Students develop a valuable and transferable skill that will serve them in college.

GOALS FOR TEACHING THE RESEARCH PAPER

Research Paper Goals Students engage in research

process with a trusted guide.

Students dist inguish between val id and less val id research sources.

Students apply their knowledge of l i teracy ski l ls to the social sciences.

Students bui ld an academic narrative about a subject that interests them.

Students learn basic use of citat ions and references.

Students develop a valuable and transferable ski l l that wi l l serve them in col lege.

How those Goals get Met Teacher is with them each day and

each step.

Teacher guides students though source selection.

Teacher guides students as they develop thesis, claims, etc.

Teacher provides an opportunity for students to choose a topic that interests them.

Teacher instructs students about basic citations and references.

Students complete the process with pride and boost in confi dence. They start col lege with a strong foundation.

THE RESEARCH PAPER MEETS ITS GOALS

Content Incorporate it into an existing unit Use it as a way to teach a new unit

Skill Teach it as a stand alone unit

Both Use it as a way to review their favorite topic Use it as a way to bring depth to a topic that you glossed

over

WHAT IS THE RESEARCH PAPER?CONTENT, SKILL, OR BOTH

WHAT IS THE RESEARCH PAPER?OVERVIEW AND TIME COMMITMENT

Backward Mapping

Start with the end goal, plan backward, then move forward.

Choose this option if you want to prove a particular point and/or already have a clear destination for your paper.

Frontward Mapping

Start with step one and move forward step by step.

Choose this option if you are clear about your general topic but open as to the point you want to prove and/or your end destination.

PREPARING F0R THE RESEARCH PROCESS: DECIDE DIRECTION

Establ ish Your Thesis.

Breakdown Claims.

Find Evidence.

Note Evidence.

Pause.

Revise.

Col lect Further Evidence.

Final Outl ine.

Draft, Edit , Revise.

Final Steps

Breakdown Ideas.   Find Sources.

Note Evidence.

Develop Thes is .

Breakdown Cla ims.

Pause.

Col lect Further Ev idence.

Pause.

Col lect Last Ev idence.

Final Out l ine.

Drafts , Edi t , Revise.

Final Steps

BACKWARD V. FORWARD

Teacher NeedsLibraryComputer LabProjectorConfidencePatienceSupport for Resource

and/or EL StudentsSupport from the

English department and/or your course team

Student Needs Index Cards or

Equivalent Library AccessComputer AccessTrust in the TeacherTrust in ThemselvesWillingness to take risks

and work hard

PREPARING F0R THE RESEARCH PROCESS: DETERMINE NEEDS

Set up structure that is solid and serves the needs of your students.

Stick to that structure, even if they push the boundaries.

Reassure them.

Provide them with the final draft rubric on the same day as the checklist.

Tell them the “Why?”

Have them repeat after you, “Trust the Process.”

TEACHING THE RESEARCH PAPERSET THEM UP FOR SUCCESS

Book Sources

Read through the Table of Contents and/or Index

Read a page or two to see how it feels.

Use the bibliography to find other books on the topic.  

Internet Sources

Distinguish between .com, .gov, and .org

Avoid: sloppy or unorganized it almost always indicates you need to move to a

diff erent source, any organization that exists to tear down another group or

idea, and site that uses judgmental language

Seek out sites that lists sources/references

Scholarly Articles

EVERY SOURCE THEY USE OR CONSIDER USING THEY MUST WRITE DOWN THE PUBLICATION INFORMATION

TEACHING THE RESEARCH PAPERFIND SOURCES

Summarize

What? Record the general idea of a large amount of material.

When? Do this when you’ve read a large section (for example, a page in a

book) and you just want to sum it up in one statement.

Paraphrase

What? Restate the information in your own words.

When? Do this when you want specific information but not necessarily the

exact wording.

Quote

What? Record the information exactly as it is written with quotation marks

around it.

When? Do this when you want to use and/or make a strong statement and

anytime you are using something that is already quoted in your source.

TEACHING THE RESEARCH PAPERNOTE EVIDENCE

PUT ONLY ONE PIECE OF INFORMATION ON EACH CARD. USE ONLY ONE SIDE OF EACH CARD.

A sample note card for a book or periodical source looks like this:

“The tactics of the Japanese indicate they will never surrender.” President Truman, July 1945.

Source C, page 52

A sample note card for an Internet source looks like this:

“The tactics of the Japanese indicate they will never surrender.” President Truman, July 1945.

Source C, 3/25/11

TEACHING THE RESEARCH PAPERNOTE EVIDENCE

Lay out evidence cards.

Consider trends, questions, etc.

As they consider their evidence, an overall position about the topic should surface. This will ultimately be the thesis.

Modeling how to write that thesis is key.

TEACHING THE RESEARCH PAPERESTABLISH THESIS

Below-average: I think the U.S. was r ight to drop the bomb and you wi l l , too, after reading my paper.

Average: The U.S. was r ight to drop the Atom Bomb on the Japanese in August of 1945.

Above-average: The United States was desperate to end WWII and since the Japanese had no intention of surrendering, the U.S. was total ly justifi ed in dropping the Atom Bomb.

Excel lent: After four years and thousands of l ives lost, by August 1945 the U.S. was desperate to end WWII. The government compiled strong evidence that the only way to bring the war with Japan to an end was to do something drastic and devastating; therefore, the U.S. was justifi ed in dropping the Atom Bomb.

TEACHING THE RESEARCH PAPEREXAMPLE THESES

Establish strong thesis fi rst.

Take the thesis and break it into parts.

Guide them though the process of turning these parts into claims: clear, concise, and take a position.

Modeling is key

TEACHING THE RESEARCH PAPERDEVELOP CLAIMS

Here’s our excellent thesis: After four years and thousands of l ives lost, by August 1945

the U.S. was desperate to end WWII. The government compiled strong evidence that the only way to bring the war with Japan to an end was to do something drastic and devastating; therefore, the U.S. was justifi ed in dropping the Atom Bomb.

Here’s our excellent thesis broken down into parts: 1-After four years and thousands of l ives lost, by August 1945 the U.S. was desperate to end WWII.

2-The government compiled strong evidence that the only way to bring the war with Japan to an end was to do something drastic and devastating;

3-therefore, the U.S. was justifi ed in dropping the Atom Bomb.

TEACHING THE RESEARCH PAPEREXAMPLE CLAIM BREAK DOWN

Claim One Examples based on, “After four years and thousands of lives lost, by August 1945 the U.S. was desperate to end WWII.”

Average: The U.S. was desperate.

Above Average: After four years of bloody battle, the U.S. was desperate to end WWII.

Excellent: Because the human and monetary costs of the war were spiraling and Americans at home were anxious both financially and emotionally, the U.S. government was desperate to end WWII.

TEACHING THE RESEARCH PAPEREXAMPLE CLAIM

Once thesis and claims are established, guide students though a preliminary outline.

Goal is to see where more research is needed.

The next day or two should be dedicated to fi lling in those gaps.

TEACHING THE RESEARCH PAPERWHAT’S NEXT?

Sample Student Directions

Spread your cards out over a large sur face so you can see and read a l l the ev idence you have so far.

Organize your cards into c la im pi les . Your c la ims should be so l id by now; i f not , you wi l l have t ime to rev ise them when you out l ine.

As you sort , you may come across cards that don’t fi t into c la ims and/or cards you want to use e lsewhere ( l ike the int roduct ion or conc lus ion) . Pul l those out for now.

Within each c la im pi le , put your cards in logica l , s torytel l ing order. Establ ish the order by how best i t fl ows together to prove your po int .

Now that your c la im pi les are in order , dec ide which c la im pi le goes fi rst , second, and so on.

I f you pul led out cards for the int roduct ion, put them on top in order ; i f you pul led out cards for the conc lus ion, put them on the bottom in order ; i f you have cards that don’t fi t , recyc le them. When you are done you wi l l have one stack of cards that te l ls the story of your ent i re paper.

NOW, NUMBER YOUR CARDS! Wr i te a number on the top r ight corner of each card, chronologica l ly f rom number one. ( I f you have twenty-fi ve cards , they should be numbered 1-25.) These numbers are cr i t ica l ly important for the out l in ing, the draft ing, and the c i tat ion process .

TEACHING THE RESEARCH PAPERORGANIZING THE RESEARCH

They hate it.

They need it.

The goal is to establish the skeleton for the rough draft.

What if they refuse? So be it.

TEACHING THE RESEARCH PAPEROUTLINE

Introduction WWII global war lasting

roughly five years

Allies and Axis powers

Hundreds of thousands of lives lost, impact on millions by 1945

Potsdam conference abroad, Manhattan Project at home

Card #1

(Thesis)

(Claim One) #2 #3 Commentary #4 Commentary #5 #6 Commentary

Card #7 Commentary #8 #9 Commentary

TEACHING THE RESEARCH PAPERFINAL OUTLINE EXAMPLE

MLA

APA

CMS

Basic Citations with Footnotes

TEACHING THE RESEARCH PAPERDRAFT WITH CITATIONS

Self Edit

Revise

Peer Edit

Revise

Teacher Edit?

Revise

TEACHING THE RESEARCH PAPEREDIT – REVISE – EDIT

Reference Page

Title Page

The Importance of Polish

Congratulations

TEACHING THE RESEARCH PAPERFINAL STEPS

Each day you check in with each student

Assign points on the spot, keeping track on their checklist

Include some kind of stamp or other “ok” to prove it was you who assigned those points

They lose the paper, they lose the points. Consider it a lesson in responsibility.

The checklist comes in with the final draft and the final draft rubric. The bulk of your work is already done.

ASSESSING THE RESEARCH PAPERCHECK LIST

Use a rubric

No comments on the paper

Set a time limit per paper

Stay focused on the “why?”

ASSESSING THE RESEARCH PAPERFINAL DRAFT

“The class saved my a$$ in college. I wished I had taken the class in junior high rather than senior year high school. It would have saved me many tears.”

Kathy B l iss , Graduate Saint Mary’s Col lege

SHE WAS TAUGHT THE RESEARCH PAPER

“I had your classes twice in my 4 years at SLz and I think the most important thing I learned is that the ability to write a research paper is so much more than writing the paper itself. It is important to know that having the ability to research, and research the right way will help a student in almost every facet of college life. As opposed to spending hours mindlessly sifting through the internet and textbooks you are able to quickly and confidently find pertinent information for your research. The term ‘research paper’ sounds so specific but the abilities you learn while writing one can be used in many diff erent ways.”

Jackson Tady, Graduate, Holy Names Univers i ty

HE WAS TAUGHTTHE RESEARCH PAPER

Testing

Pressure to Cover More Content

Increased Class Sizes

Fear

WHY DON’T WE TEACH IT ANYMORE?

More First Generation Students Going to College

Increased Cost of College

Recent Graduates’ Feedback

WHY AM I TALKING ABOUT IT NOW?

SKILLS I WISH I LEARNED IN SCHOOL:

BUILDING A RESEARCH PAPER

I FEEL THAT STRONGLY

“I’ve always struggled when it comes to research papers. This guide gave me step-by-step instructions to develop top-notch papers.”

Devonte Jackson, B.A . Candidate Univers i ty of Cal i fornia, Berke ley

“Most professors today assume that since you are in college you know how to research, but many of us don’t. This guide is easy to follow and contains all the steps necessary. It makes life easier.”

Jazmin Marquez, B .A . Candidate, Univers i ty of Cal i fornia, San Diego

THEY WERE NOT TAUGHT THE RESEARCH PAPER

SO I WROTE A HANDBOOK

Index CardNameEmailSchoolFree E-book?E-Copies of today’s handouts? (plus)Other updates?

FOR YOU, MY THANKS AND A FREE E-BOOK

QUESTIONS?