A Practical Guide to Preparing Your Final DraftHave you includ.docx
- 1. A Practical Guide to Preparing Your Final Draft Have you included a Title page with your name, course name and number, date, and title of the paper? Have you numbered your pages? Have you carefully proof-read your paper for spelling and punctuation? Have you used your computer’s spell-checker and then checked your paper over yourself for anything the computer might have missed? Are there paragraphs that seem to be too long (say, a page or more), or which seem to deal with two distinctly different ideas? If so, find a way to split such paragraphs into smaller paragraphs. Are there paragraphs which seem to short (say, a sentence or two) for no recognizable purpose? If so, join the short paragraph with another nearby paragraph or move it to another part of the paper. Have you looked at your transitions? Look at the first and last sentence of each paragraph. Do you lead your reader through the paper, preparing him or her for what is to come and making clear connections and distinctions between one paragraph/section and the next? Have you examined your paper for excess repetition? Does any particular word appear too often? If you find that you are using very similar thoughts, ideas, or sentences over and over, can you group them together or add a new spin the second or third time around? Have you varied your sentence length and structure? Do you
- 2. avoid using the same word to begin several sentences within the same paragraph? Does your conclusion do more than simply repeat the introduction? Have you used material in your conclusion that might work better if it were moved to the introduction? Does your conclusion leave the reader something to think about? Have you provided dates and place names and other details where they would be helpful? Have you given your paper a unique and helpful title? Have you accurately and consistently cited your sources, using the Chicago/Turabian style required in your School? Have you been sure to cite quotes, paraphrased material, and summaries? Have you used a sufficient variety of sources, according to the wishes of your instructor? Have you mixed those sources instead of using just one for several pages at a time? Do you use signal phrases (or “lead-ins”) to prepare your reader for quoted material? Will your reader fully understand why you’re using each particular quote? Have you checked to be sure that your quotations are not unnecessarily long? Can you delete portions of the quote or use ellipses to shorten any overly long quotes and still make the same point? Have you set off (correctly indented) any quotes longer than three full lines? Have you underlined (or italicized) book titles? Have you used quotation marks for article titles? If you have done these things, you are well on your way to a
- 3. good paper. !!! http://writingcenter.gmu.edu/resources-template.php?id=17 Page 2 Format for Research Papers To recap the Format of the Paper: • Title Page of the Paper. The title of your paper should be brief but should adequately inform the reader of your general topic and the specific focus of your research. Keywords relating to parameters, population, and other specifics are useful. The Title Page must include the title, name, course name and number, and Professor’s Name. I. Introduction, Research Question, and Hypothesis: This section shall provide an overview of the topic that you are writing about, a concise synopsis of the issues, and why the topic presents a “puzzle” that prompts your research questions, which you will include. This section will be 1-3 pages. This section can be preceded by an epigraph that creates interest in the topic. Ensure that you follow proper format for epigraphs!! You did this section in HW1. II.Review of the Literature: All research projects include a literature review to set out for the reader what knowledge exists on the subject under study and helps the researcher develop the research strategy to use in the study. A good literature review is a thoughtful study of what has been written, a summary of the arguments that exist (whether you agree with them or not), arranged thematically. At the end of the summary, there should still be gaps in the literature that you intend to fill with your research. It is written in narrative format and can be from 5-7 pages depending on the scope and length of the paper. You did this in HW2. III. Methodology and Research Strategy: This section provides the reader with a description of how you are planning to conduct research. It explains what research approach you
- 4. have chosen, and where you will seek data to test your hypothesis. It describes any special considerations and defines any limitations and terms specific to this project, if necessary. This section can be brief or more complicated, depending on the project, written in 3 - 5 pages. You considered what approach and data collection method would be right for your projects in HW1. IV. Findings and Analysis: This section provides the results of your research and the analytical arguments that will make as a result of your findings. In a quantitative project, this section would provide the results of the data collection and an analysis of what it illustrates in empirical terms. This section should also provide the evidence that proves (or disproves) the hypothesis. This section could be 3 - 5 pages depending on the length of the paper and scope of the project. The outline will be short. V. Conclusions: This section will contain the concluding analytical arguments based on what research has revealed to answer the research question. Like any conclusion, it should provide a synopsis of the project, the strategy, and the results and what they add to the body of knowledge. This section should also offer suggestions for avenues of future research for other scholars, as all knowledge is evolutionary. This section can be 3-5 pages depending on the scope of the project. The outline will be short!! VI. References (or Bibliography): This section will contain all references, cited in Turabian format and alphabetically arranged. Entitle this section as either “References” or “Bibliography” depending on the type of citation you use in the rest of the paper. You should have been compiling these and adding to them as you’ve gone along. They should be error free!!! CONDUCT A CHECKLIST OF THE FINAL DRAFT!!
- 5. I LOOK FORWARD TO READING YOUR PAPERS!! 2 Directions for 500Level Research Paper At this level, you are learning the core concepts of the discipline and you will produce a graduate level paper that presents a research “puzzle” relevant to the subject matter of this class. The paper will be 10-15 pages in length. The requirements for this project will mirror the requirements for all graduate papers. The paper will be typed in 12 pt. Times New Roman, Calibri, or other standard font, with margins of 1” all around. It will be double-spaced except where the format calls for single spacing, for example, block quotations and the list of complete citations. Citations will conform to the Turabian format whether you choose to use the Parenthetical/References style or the more traditional Foot- or end-notes/Bibliography style. To recap the Format of the Paper: • Title Page of the Paper. The title of your paper should be brief but should adequately inform the reader of your general topic and the specific focus of your research. Keywords relating to parameters, population, and other specifics are useful. ALWAYS use a Title Page for graduate work! Your title page will include the title, name, course name and number, and Professor’s Name. I. Introduction, Research Question, and Hypothesis (1-2 pages): This section shall provide an overview of the topic that you are writing about, a concise synopsis of the issues, and why the topic presents a “puzzle” that prompts your research questions, which you will include. This section can be preceded by an epigraph that creates interest in the topic. We encourage the use of epigraphs, but please follow the proper format for epigraphs!! II.Review of the Literature (3-5 pages): All research projects include a literature review to set out for the reader what
- 6. knowledge exists on the subject under study and helps the researcher develop the research strategy to use in the study. A good literature review is a thoughtful study of what has been written, a summary of the arguments that exist (whether you agree with them or not), and are arranged thematically. The literature review is not an annotated bibliography and should be written in coherent narrative style. At the end of the summary, there should still be gaps in the literature that you intend to fill with your research. III. Methodology and Research Strategy (1-2 pages): This section provides the reader with a description of your strategy to conduct research for this paper. It identifies your variables and how you operationalized your research approach. It describes the data you found and how you analyzed it for your Analysis and Findings. This section describes any limitations you discovered about your strategy and how you overcame them. Given the length of the class, this section usually identifies the independent and dependent variables and describes how the researcher plans to analyze them to arrive at reasonable findings. IV. Analysis and Findings (3-4 pages): This section provides the results of your research and the analytical arguments that the paper makes as a result of an analysis of the variables. In a quantitative project, this section would provide the results of the data collection and an analysis of what it illustrates in empirical terms. However, given the length of the term, most projects will be qualitative. This section should also provide the evidence that proves (or disproves) the hypothesis. V. Conclusions (2 -3 pages): This section will contain the concluding analytical arguments based on what research has revealed to answer the research question. Like any conclusion, it should provide a synopsis of the project, the strategy, and the results and what they add to the body of knowledge. This section should also offer suggestions for avenues of future research for other scholars, as all knowledge is evolutionary. VI. References (or Bibliography): This section will contain all
- 7. references, cited in Turabian format, properly indented, and alphabetically arranged. Entitle this section as either “References” or “Bibliography” depending on the type of citation you use in the rest of the paper. You should compile these and add to them as you’ve gone along. They should be error free!!! School of Security and Global Studies Preparing the next generation of security professionals through curriculum and teaching excellence. Assignment Instructions General Instructions for Assignments and Rubrics All assignments should be written in Word and uploaded as attachments within the Assignments section of the classroom. Use Times 12 pt. font and double-space (Arial 11 is also okay). Be sure to put your name and class information on the document and put your name on the file. Insert page numbers. Assignments will be graded using a rubric appropriate for your class level. Graduate Rubric 500-600 Level Specific Instructions For this paper you will apply the theories of socialization, interest convergence, and behavior to analyze a particular case study. The requirements for this project will mirror the requirements for all graduate papers. The paper will be typed in 12 pt. Times New Roman, Arial 11, or another standard font, with margins of 1” all around. It will be double-spaced except where the format calls for single spacing, for example, block quotations and the list of complete citations. Citations will conform to the
- 8. Chicago/Turabian format and citations should be in-text parenthetical citations (Author date, page). Here's the Format of the Paper: • Title Page of the Paper. The title of your paper should be brief but should adequately inform the reader of your general topic and the specific focus of your research. Keywords relating to parameters, population, and other specifics are useful. ALWAYS use a Title Page for graduate work! Your title page will include the title, name, course name and number, and Professor’s Name. I Criteria Exemplary 16-20 Accomplished 11-15 Developing 6-10 Beginning 0-5 Total Synthesis of Knowledge Foundation of Knowledge Application of Knowledge
- 9. Organization of Ideas/Format Writing and Research Skill Total Click on the attachment "GradeRubric" for details about each category of the rubric. Supporting Materials · ResearchPaperGuidelines.docx (31 KB) · Format for research papers.docx (30 KB) · Preparing the final draft.docx (26 KB)