CAPSTONE PROJECT: The I-Search Paper
My topic is: ______________________________________________.
My due dates are:
- First Due Date: By 05.02, you will have a topic selected and a one
page proposal, typed and ready to be shared. (Part I)
- Then, during the week of 05/16-05/18, you will conference with me
1:1, and in hand, you will have a completed research matrix & intro
paragraph.
- By 05.21, you will have an extended outline due in class.
- By 05.23, a rough draft & a practice bibliography is due.
- By 05.30, you will present your essay in class. Prepare a 5 minute
speech about your research and findings.
- By 06.01, you will have a final draft due on turnitin.com by 5pm.
Details and Instructions:
Part I: The Proposal
At this point, you are ready to embark on
your I Search journey. But before you
begin, it is important to be sure that you know where you are headed. In order to ensure as successful of a process
as possible, you need to submit a proposal about the topic you intend to
research. This accomplishes two very
important goals:
·
Fist, it gives the instructor and your peers the
opportunity to give you feedback on your topic and to provide you with any
necessary input regarding the need to narrow or broaden your topic, or perhaps
consider another topic.
·
Secondly, it holds you accountable to a specific
topic, a goal you can begin to push yourself toward through thinking,
researching, and writing.
·
Thirdly, it is your first opportunity to begin
writing about your topic.
|
|||
 |
|||
Research Matrix:
Research
matrixes can be done by hand or typed. It should be a helpful outlining
tool that allows you to keep all your sources in order and ready for synthesis.
Sample:
Topic:
_____________________________________________________________________
|
MLA Formatted Source
|
Annotation (“Summary”)
|
First Area of Research
|
Second Area of Research
|
Third Area of Research
|
|
1.
Print
|
|
|
|
|
|
2.
Print
|
|
|
|
|
|
3.
Database
|
|
|
|
|
|
4.
Database
|
|
|
|
|
|
5.
Other
|
|
|
|
|
|
6.
Interview
|
|
|
|
|
Example:
Topic: Corporal Punishment in the home is bad
for children.________
|
MLA Formatted Source
|
Annotation (“Summary”)
Tip: Think about how you’d introduce it in the
essay….
|
First Area of Research: Does it really help
change behavior?
|
Second Area of Research:
Can it be considered abuse? Where’s the line?
|
Third Area of Research:
What are the lingering emotional scars and
effects?
|
|
1. Ferguson, Christopher J. Spanking, Corporal Punishment and Negative
Long-Term Outcomes: A Meta-Analytic Review of Longitudinal Studies.
Department of Psychology and Communication, Texas A&M International
University. June 2011.
|
This is a statistics
heavy argument. The author re-evaluated the American Pediatrics and
Psychologists research and found that the link between negative outcomes and
spanking was not as strong as originally suspected.
|
According to Ferguson, there are no effects.
Children do not behave better or worse thanks to spanking; important to note
that he only looked at spanking.
|
|
See area 1.
|
|
2.
|
|
|
|
|
|
3. Lenta,
Patrick. “Corporal Punishment of Children”. Social Theory and Practice
38.4 (2012): 689–716. Web. 16 November 2015.
|
Lenta attempts to place the corporal punishment
of children in historical and global perspective by showing how many nations
and schools leave the practice sanctioned. Furthermore, he discusses the
changing political and social attitudes concerning the practice.
|
|
|
“Several researches done across the globe have clearly
established the fact that use of corporal punishment at home, school or
alternative settings is associated with higher prevalence of externalizing
behaviour of youth, substance use, depression, juvenile delinquency, poor
academic performance and marital conflict as an adult” (697).
|
|
4.
|
|
|
|
|
|
5.
|
|
|
|
|
|
7.
Interviews with parents
|
I interviewed my own parents, asked my best
friend who does use corporal punishment in her home, and my brother and his
wife who do not.
|
My best friend showed me the entire process, and
after watching, it’s difficult not to be convinced of how well it works. Her
son listens well, rectifies behavior immediately, and seems to rarely
relapse. Notably: no bad side effects have been seen. Also a note: He is only
20 months old.
|
My brother and parents feel it’s abusive. Note:
My parents were also never hit, and generationally, we’ve been raised to see
it that way.
|
|
Extended Outline:
Due on 05.21. The
visual below provides rough guidelines. Feel free to be create the outline you
need. I love this visual, but the text book also provides a more linear one.
Thesis: _______________________________________________________________________________
Sample: The federal
government must respond to pollution and its effects on the environment.
Preview:
______________________________________________________________________________
Preview: US policy and
budget should be directing meaningful, science-based efforts towards limiting
pollution; viable options include recycling programs, private car production
bylaws, and policing corporations known for crimes against nature.
|
Topic Sentence:
Sample: Recycling has the potential to help the
environment, and yet without federal buy-in, its impacts are limited.
|
Topic Sentence 2:
Sample: Recycling helps homes lessen their
footprint, but car companies can contribute as well; by ensuring that
companies make a cleaner product, the government can begin to do better.
|
Topic Sentence 3:
Sample: Considering how deeply damaged the earth is,
meaningful work means taking as many approaches as possible. The government
cannot stop at recycling and cars alone; they must also begin to finally
exercise the policies already in place and ensure that companies follow through
and respect the laws that protect our endangered environment.
|
|||
|
Concrete Details/Evidence:
at least 2
|
Reaction:
remember to maintain a 3:1 ration
|
Concrete Details/Evidence:
|
Opinion / Reaction:
|
Concrete Details/Evidence:
|
Opinion / Reaction:
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Conclusion Sentence:
Transition Sentence:
|
Conclusion Sentence:
Transition Sentence:
|
Conclusion Sentence:
|
|||
OTHER INFO:
What you need to
know?
I’m primarily interested in seeing how you determine what
information is important and what to leave out. I’m also eager to see you
integrate material from several different sources into a paper written by
oneself; appropriately citing sources. To
be successful, you must discuss the material you have obtained in a thoughtful
and organized fashion. Before you begin,
make a list of what you see as the
main focus points for your paper. See if
you can position these points in your paper in a logical order. As you begin to move from your exploratory
draft into the first draft of your paper, pay attention to this list; it will
guide you in keeping your paper on topic and your paragraphs in a logical
order.
Your paper will be
assessed for the following:
- Your ability
to analyze your sources and present your material clearly and analytically
- Your
ability to effectively integrate your sources into the text of your paper
- Your
ability to select and use quotes effectively and appropriately
- Your
ability to be a critical reader of your own text
 |
Successful papers
will include:
- - 5-8
pages of work
- -interesting
section titles that show you paid attention to my specific requests
- -careful
and clear wording
- - good
transitions from one paragraph and topic to another
- -
choosing the best wording for your writing
- -
consistency of verb tense and attention to proper grammar and mechanics
- - an
appropriate title, and sound introduction and conclusion
- -
correct MLA format, documentation, and Works Cited page
- -a
component of personal narrative or commentary
- -at
least 5 blended quotations
- -all
sources being integrated in and made use of
- -strategic
introductions of research
- -an
attempt at ethos, pathos, and logos
- -the
discussion of at least one logical fallacy
- -a bibliography
REMEMBER, as always, you must:
·
Word Process your paper, MLA format, size 12
font, Times New Roman
·
Your paper must be a minimum of three pages and
no longer than five
·
Name and page number must appear in the upper
right corner of all pages
