1. Getting Started
Research writing

2. What is research? An in-depth study of a topic of interest.
Fueled by questions you want answered.
Involves reading multiple sources to gather information.

3. Why research?
Making informed decisions requires gathering information from multiple sources.
What kind of big decisions have you made or will you make in the near future?
How is research helpful when making these decisions?
Why would you want to gather information from more than one place?

4. What do researchers do?
Researchers begin with a simple wondering or curiosity.
What are some of the big issues facing our society today?
Do these issues have an easy solution?
When published writers conduct research, they draw conclusions based on evidence.
What is evidence?
Why do we need evidence to support our ideas?
Where do we find evidence?

5. Choosing a topic
Look for issues which interest you, which arouse your curiosity or your passion.
Consider your audience:
What kinds of issues have we discussed in class? What would interest your peers?
Consider your purpose:
Issue Analysis studies an issue and proposes solutions.
Persuasion takes a stand and defends against opposing points of view.

6. What’s the point? Writing is powerful – your voice counts!
Questioning the world around you and writing for social change.
Communicating a message, taking a stand and committing to a position.
Make a point – a solution, recommendation or plan of action.

7. Topics Immigration Teen Depression Depression Racial stereotyping
Drug Abuse
Anxiety Disorders
Hate Crimes
Prison Overcrowding
Global Warming
Alcoholism
Pollution/ all types
Social Class
Teen Pregnancy
Homelessness in the U.S.
American Dream
Drugs in sports
Factory Farming
Animal Cruelty
Teen Crimes
Teen Dropouts
Increasing Crime rate
School Violence
Anorexia/Bulimia
Waste Disposal
Blood Diamonds
Domestic Violence
Alzheimer's
Sexual Identity
Sexual Harassment
Hunger
Gay Rights
Health Care for the poor/elderly
Drunk Driving
Lobbyists in Washington
Autism
War Against Drugs
Education (low income kids)
Hazing
Renewable Energy
Gender Equality
Religion and War
Steroids
Hearing Impaired
Gangs
AIDS in Africa
Terrorism
Veterans of War
Down’s Syndrome
Divorce
Literacy
Affirmative Action
Child Abuse
Obesity

8. Let the questioning begin!
Now that you have selected a topic of interest, it’s time to figure out where you want to go with your research.
Fill Out your Topic Graphic Organizer:
Fill in the columns with as much information as you can.

9. Thick and Thin Questions
Thick Questions
Answers are involved, complex and require research
Make you think and wonder
Why? What if? I wonder… How come? What happens when…
Thin Questions
Deal with specific facts
Answers are short, easy and usually found directly in the text
Where is? What is?

10. Example: American Jail System
Know
Overcrowded, high minority population, costs a lot of money, over half of prisoners return, lacking rehabilitation services, 3 strikes law, non-violent offenders (drug charges), poor living conditions, most offenders lack high school education.
Want to Know
Why are our prisons overcrowded? Do minorities commit more crimes or are they unfairly targeted? How is social class tied to crime? Would rehabilitation services be more cost effective? Do we spend more money on prisons than schools? How would education decrease crime?

11. Narrowing your focus
Now it’s time to take your big topic and concentrate on one problem or issue.
Use your questions from the previous activity to narrow your focus.
What do your questions have in common?
What part of the issue interests you the most?
What needs to be changed? Why?

12. Example: Narrowing your Focus
Jail system: What does it do?
Rehabilitate or produce more criminals?
Focus
The jail system is ineffective because…
Overpopulation, inadequate resources, doesn’t fix the problem
Proposed solutions
More behavior modification, more money to schools, get people out of poverty

13. Using thick questions to fuel your research
A critical thinker is always asking questions to gain understanding.
As you work through this process, continue to write down questions as they arise.
Your research will seek to answer these questions.
By always asking yourself why something is so, you gain a deeper understanding of your topic.

14. Review
Research is a powerful tool to gain understanding, convey your opinion and make change happen.
All researchers constantly ask questions and seek answers to those questions.
Your research topic needs to be focused and manageable.