Answering Your Research Question: Argumentation & Organization Examples of how to develop the answer to your research question and organize your essay. English 112 4 December 2012

Answering the Research Question Consider all the possible responses you think you could give. Decide which ones will be most relevant and convincing to the audiences you identified. Consider which responses you have, or will have, evidence (whether primary or secondary) to support. Decide which responses you will give as your answer to the research question. Basically, these should be, “narrowed down to those that are reasonable, supportable, and feasible” (Wadsworth 176) given your purposes, your audiences, your context, your topic, and your research. You could decide to support one response in-depth or you could decide that the research question requires or deserves a combination of the responses you discovered. See Wadsworth 176-178 for a cluster map approach to this.

Answering the Research Question These responses can often become the reasons to support your claim. Your claim (or initial answer to the research question) combined with your reasons, become your thesis statement. See also Wadsworth 178-180.

Thesis & Arrangement Thesis Statement (See Wadsworth 178-80) Claim Reason Evidence Warrant Body Paragraph or Section

Thesis-Driven Arrangement (See Wadsworth 209-12) RQ: How can the most common types of bridge collapse be prevented? Intro – Twin Cities bridge collapse Engineering design, though boring, is vitally important Thesis - three most common types (inferior materials, natural disaster, bridge fatigue) and their preventions Bridge Collapse 1 – Inferior or incorrect materials Boston Big Dig Problem Design materials weren’t followed Types Quality Solution Bridge Collapse 2 – Natural Disaster "Galloping Gertie” Tacoma Narrows Bridge Problem Design didn’t consider actual environmental conditions Solution Bridge Collapse 3 – Bridge Fatigue Mianus River Bridge Design maintenance not followed Questions: Conclusion? Order of bridge collapses?

IMRAD – Research-Driven Arrangement I – Introduction Captures, confirms, and solidifies audience’s interest in the subject matter (possibly even identifying to whom this research should be interesting and important ) Uses secondary source information to all necessary background knowledge for readers to understand the subject matter/problem being researched. Uses secondary source information and logical reasoning to argue why the research problem & research question is important to research. Presents and presents the research question.

IMRAD – Research-Driven Arrangement M – Methodology Lays out in detail how you did your primary research in detail Includes… The method of primary research used How and on what timeline it was conducted The population that was researched, why they were researched, and how they were contacted. How data was collected What survey/interview questions were asked(might list all of them in text or appendix or give a general impression what kinds of questions were asked). Any complications that causes you to change how you conducted research or that may bias or hinder the data you received. May begin by using research plan in Research Proposal, but must revise to make more specific, detail what you actually ended up doing, and put in past verb tense.

IMRAD – Research-Driven Arrangement R – Results Layouts how the results of the data collected from primary research. Principally focuses on the data that is most relevant to determining the answer to the research question. In Surveys, may report each relevant question asked and the proportion of answers. May also use charts, tables, graphs, etc., to visually display results. In Interviews, may report each relevant question asked, generalizations of the kinds of answers given, and quotations of typical answers to those questions. Might use tables or charts to display these results visually. In Observation, may describe observations, including when and where observations were made or use a table or chart to display them.

IMRAD – Research-Driven Arrangement A – Analysis Interprets the data in “Results,” making conclusions about what the data means in order to answer the research question. In answering the research question, posits a thesis statement and uses both primary research data in “Results,” and secondary source information to prove that answer. Might Follow….

IMRAD – Research-Driven Arrangement D - Discussion Concludes the article by doing many of the following… Summarizing results of research and your conclusions. Wrapping up any loose ends or additional questions readers might have. Making a final argument for your answer to the research question. Reaffirming why this research, and your answer to it, is important to consider. Speculating about what new research should be done in the future by other researchers.