UNIVERSIDAD DEL TURABO DECANATO DE EDUCACION GENERAL LANGUAGE DEPARTMENT GURABO, PUERTO RICO

What is a Research Paper?

 A research paper analyzes a perspective or argues a point.  To analyze means to break a topic or concept down into its parts in order to inspect and understand it, and to restructure those parts in a way that makes sense to you.

 In an analytical research paper, you do research to become an expert on a topic so that you can restructure and present the parts of the topic from your own perspective.

 An argumentative research paper needs to support your stand on an issue.  An argumentative research paper is analytical, but it uses information as evidence to support its point, much as a lawyer uses evidence to make their case.

 For example, you might try to find research to back up the stand that ancient Egyptian women were the first feminists. Argument uses evidence to take a stand on an issue Analysis uses evidence to support a perspective on a topic

 Regardless of the type of research paper you are writing, your finished research paper should present your own thinking backed up by others' ideas and information.

 A research paper is an expanded essay that presents your own interpretation or evaluation or argument.essay In an essay, you use everything that you personally know and have thought about a subject. In a research paper, you build upon what you know about the subject and make a deliberate attempt to find out what experts know.

 A series of steps, starting with developing a research question and working thesis, will lead you through writing a research paper.  As you move through these steps and actually create the research paper, you may find that you can't move through all of them in chronological order, and that's o.k.

 The one big mess that you can get into, as a student, comes from doing too much unfocused research before identifying your own viewpoint, the one that you will eventually need to support.  If you do too much unfocused research first, then the tendency is to try to include all of it in the paper.  The result is a hodgepodge of information that's not focused, developed fully, or indicative of your own thoughts.

 These steps will lead you through writing a research paper:  One Big Mess... One Big Mess...  Developing a Research Question Developing a Research Question  Developing a Research Thesis Developing a Research Thesis ◦ Thesis Characteristics Thesis Characteristics  Finding Sources Finding Sources  Evaluating Sources Evaluating Sources  Taking Notes Taking Notes  Working with Quotations Working with Quotations  Writing Summaries & Paraphrases Writing Summaries & Paraphrases  Building the Essay Draft Building the Essay Draft  Documenting Sources Documenting Sources ◦ Documentation Formats Documentation Formats  Revising and Proofreading the Draft Revising and Proofreading the Draft

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