Wrt 205: critical research Friday, February 8th, 2019 Week 4, Day 3 WRT 205

Overview Introduce Major Research Project Research Questions Wrap-up

Major Research Project Form into 6 groups. 2 groups will be assigned to each assignment section. Each group will present their understanding of the assignment to the whole class. 1: Planning Research 2: Planning Research 3: Conducting Research – A 4: Conducting Research – B 5: Synthesizing Research – A 6: Synthesizing Research – B

Research Questions Freewrite: How would you define/describe a: “research question” What are the qualities of a “research question”? How is a “research question” different from a “research topic”?

Research Questions What effects did the most recent government shutdown have on economic research, and how might that change how economists gather and use data in the future? What role should the US government have in supporting the research & development of pharmaceutical drugs, and how should the general public benefit?

Research Questions Form into 5 groups Each group will re-write their question to be a better research question. Each group will share their question & their changes and talk about why they made the changes they did.

Research Questions Why am I asking you to come up with a (set of) research question(s)? Research questions help writers focus their research by providing a path through the research and writing process. The specificity of a well- developed research question helps writers avoid the “all-about” paper and work toward supporting a specific, arguable thesis. (https://writingcenter.gmu.edu/guides/how-to-write-a-research- question)

Wrap-up Today: Reviews the major research project Began discussion of research questions Next time: Reading: Driscoll Focus: Primary Research & Research Methodologies Recommendations: begin brainstorming potential topics/subjects you might want to research