Chapter 12 is all about creating a strong and effective argument. The first part to this chapter is the ways to support your thesis statement. The first thing you want to do is to choose your reasons. You will want to have many reasons that will support your thesis. The reasons you choose will vary depending on the type of document that you are writing. The next step is to find evidence that supports those reasons. Each claim or reason you present you also need evidence to back it up. A good way to gather this evidence is from the sources you found, you can use things like visual images, quotes, and statistics. After that you have to decide how you are going to appeal to your readers. Are you going to appeal to them through authority, emotion, character, logic or principles,values and beliefs?
The second part to this chapter is how to assess the integrity of your argument. Something you can do is check for fallacies based on distraction. These are things like a red herring that are used in real life to throw prey off the scent. For example, "Why worry about the rising cost of tuition when the government is tapping our phones?" This is a red herring because "government surveillance has nothing to do with increases in college tuition" (215). Another thing you can do is look for fallacies based on questionable assumptions. An example of this is sweeping generalizations. The book provides the example of "arguing that the rich are conservative and always vote for republican...assumes that anyone who is rich is just like everyone else who is rich" (216). You can also search for fallacies based on misrepresentation. In my opinion, what shows up the most is something called stacking the deck, which is where the writer only provides reasons and support for one side of the argument. Therefore the other side of the argument is unknown the the readers leaving them wondering why the writer decided not to mention it. Lastly, you can try to locate fallacies based on careless reasoning. An example of this is non sequiturs. In the book these are described as "statements that do not follow logically from what has been presented" (217).
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Monday, April 22, 2013
Chapter 11-Developing Your Thesis Statement
This chapter is all about creating your thesis statement. The first thing the book talks about is how to use your sources and position statement to do so. The position you have taken on your issue is essentially your response to your research question. Therefore becoming the basis of your thesis statement. Before you start writing your thesis there are some things you should start with.
Reviewing your position is first. Think about your issue and the position you have taken. Ask yourself if you think that is represents exactly what you are trying to say.
Next is reviewing your notes. While doing this the book says to:
Reviewing your position is first. Think about your issue and the position you have taken. Ask yourself if you think that is represents exactly what you are trying to say.
Next is reviewing your notes. While doing this the book says to:
- identify important information, ideas, and arguments that you've come across in your reading
- consider whether the information, ideas, and arguments you've identified in your notes will allow you to pursue your personal, academic, an professional interests.
- review and elaborate on ideas and arguments that you've come up with as a result of your own thinking about the subject
- consider how your own ideas and arguments might allow you to pursue your interests.
Then reflect on your reasons for writing this paper and reflect on your readers. Ask yourself questions such as, have your purposes changed since your started? And has your role as a writer changed since you started your research project. Also consider whether or not your arguments "will help you address your readers' purposes, needs, interests, and backgrounds" (205).
The second part to this chapter is the drafting of your thesis. First, find the most important information and ideas you have collected on your issue. A good suggestion is to even try writing out more than one thesis, exploring different options. However, your final thesis "should convey your position in a way that addresses you purpose and your readers' needs, interests, values, beliefs, and knowledge of a subject" (206). When writing your thesis also be sure to keep in mind the type of document you are going to be writing. And lastly is to focus your thesis statement. To do this you can ask yourself questions about what you think will engage your readers.
Chapter 10-Searching for Information with Field Research Methods
Chapter 10 is another helpful tool that teaches us ways to search for information using field research methods. An important part of this chapter is to know when to use these methods. A good way to know when, is if the published sources that you're are finding don't seem to be helping anymore, if you're having trouble finding information on your issue, your issue hasn't been addressed, and lastly your issue could be better presented and researched by using a primary source.
A good way to collect information is through interviews. You have to decide who you're going to interview, then you need to plan it out by deciding where and when and how. Things like is it going to be over the phone, face to face, or through email? Another thing to make sure you're prepared is knowing the questions you are going to ask beforehand. Make sure to take notes on the information you are gives as well. The last thing is to analyze your results. Go back over your interview and notes and look for new ideas, contradictions, credible information, and anything else you find helpful.
Another way to collect information is through observations. Once you have decided that you are doing to do an observation you have to plan it out just like before with the interview. For example, what you're going to observe, things to look for, and if you should get permission before you start. Once again, after you have done the observing go back over your results. "Identify key features and patters of behavior, identify key individuals and describe their actions, look for unusual patters and actions, ask what you've learned about the issue through observation, look for patterns and actions that might be useful in providing context about the issue, look for patterns and actions that, if described, might help your readers better understand the issue or lead them to view the issue in a particular way" (191).
You can also conduct a survey. Surveys are used to gather information about peoples beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors that answer the what or who questions. Surveying is similar to the other ways I have explained in the ways that you go through the same process. Decide to do it, who you're going to survey, what you're going to ask, and how you're going to present it. And lastly analyzing your results.
Using correspondence is also helpful. Correspondence is social networking sites, letters, email, and faxes. Corresponding with an expert is usually the most beneficial, you can also correspond with relatives, friends, and strangers. Just make sure to introduce yourself, explain your project, ask questions, and thank them.
The last way to collect information explained in this chapter is using public events and broadcast media. This can include things like lectures, conferences, meetings etc. Also when recording these types of events you have to make sure that you're allowed to do so.
A good way to collect information is through interviews. You have to decide who you're going to interview, then you need to plan it out by deciding where and when and how. Things like is it going to be over the phone, face to face, or through email? Another thing to make sure you're prepared is knowing the questions you are going to ask beforehand. Make sure to take notes on the information you are gives as well. The last thing is to analyze your results. Go back over your interview and notes and look for new ideas, contradictions, credible information, and anything else you find helpful.
Another way to collect information is through observations. Once you have decided that you are doing to do an observation you have to plan it out just like before with the interview. For example, what you're going to observe, things to look for, and if you should get permission before you start. Once again, after you have done the observing go back over your results. "Identify key features and patters of behavior, identify key individuals and describe their actions, look for unusual patters and actions, ask what you've learned about the issue through observation, look for patterns and actions that might be useful in providing context about the issue, look for patterns and actions that, if described, might help your readers better understand the issue or lead them to view the issue in a particular way" (191).
You can also conduct a survey. Surveys are used to gather information about peoples beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors that answer the what or who questions. Surveying is similar to the other ways I have explained in the ways that you go through the same process. Decide to do it, who you're going to survey, what you're going to ask, and how you're going to present it. And lastly analyzing your results.
Using correspondence is also helpful. Correspondence is social networking sites, letters, email, and faxes. Corresponding with an expert is usually the most beneficial, you can also correspond with relatives, friends, and strangers. Just make sure to introduce yourself, explain your project, ask questions, and thank them.
The last way to collect information explained in this chapter is using public events and broadcast media. This can include things like lectures, conferences, meetings etc. Also when recording these types of events you have to make sure that you're allowed to do so.
Chapter 7-Avoiding Plagiarism
This chapter is all about plagiarism and the ways to avoid it. Knowing what plagiarism is the first step in avoiding it. The book defines it as "either unintentionally using someone else's work without properly acknowledging where the ideas or information came from or intentionally passing of someone else's work as your own" (121).
When you unintentionally plagiarize you don't use quotation marks, paraphrase that it's barely noticeable as any different from the original source, you don't make it super clear which words are yours and which aren't, and lastly you don't cite your source. When a writer gets caught unintentionally plagiarizing there are usually consequences. There is also intentional plagiarism. This is when you take bits and pieces from more than one source and combining them without distinguishing what is what and where it came from. Also making up your own citations, copying passages or an entire document and saying they're your own, and lastly buying a paper. Another potential way of plagiarizing is in groups.
Another part to understanding plagiarism is research ethics. This is defined as "an honest exchange of information, ideas, and arguments among writers and readers who share an interest in an issue" (124). There are three basic rules. First is to show some respect by acknowledging where your sources came from. Second, keep your information accurate. And third, use citations. We should also know what common knowledge means, which is " information that is widely known, or it might be the kind of knowledge that people working in a particular field use on a regular basis" (124).
If you are accused of plagiarism just be sure to go back to your sources and make sure you have used citations and double check the information you used, as well as talking to your teacher about ways that you can fix the problem.
Most importantly to avoid plagiarism the book suggests "conduct a knowledge inventory, take notes carefully, distinguish between your ideas and those drawn from your sources, cite sources in the text and in a works cited or reference list, recognize the misconceptions about intentional plagiarism" (126).
When you unintentionally plagiarize you don't use quotation marks, paraphrase that it's barely noticeable as any different from the original source, you don't make it super clear which words are yours and which aren't, and lastly you don't cite your source. When a writer gets caught unintentionally plagiarizing there are usually consequences. There is also intentional plagiarism. This is when you take bits and pieces from more than one source and combining them without distinguishing what is what and where it came from. Also making up your own citations, copying passages or an entire document and saying they're your own, and lastly buying a paper. Another potential way of plagiarizing is in groups.
Another part to understanding plagiarism is research ethics. This is defined as "an honest exchange of information, ideas, and arguments among writers and readers who share an interest in an issue" (124). There are three basic rules. First is to show some respect by acknowledging where your sources came from. Second, keep your information accurate. And third, use citations. We should also know what common knowledge means, which is " information that is widely known, or it might be the kind of knowledge that people working in a particular field use on a regular basis" (124).
If you are accused of plagiarism just be sure to go back to your sources and make sure you have used citations and double check the information you used, as well as talking to your teacher about ways that you can fix the problem.
Most importantly to avoid plagiarism the book suggests "conduct a knowledge inventory, take notes carefully, distinguish between your ideas and those drawn from your sources, cite sources in the text and in a works cited or reference list, recognize the misconceptions about intentional plagiarism" (126).
Monday, April 15, 2013
Chapter 6-Managing Information and Taking Notes
Chapter 6 provides the information needed to be able to organize your information, take notes, and keep track of it all. There isn't anything worse than finding a good source, or typing out a bunch of notes and then not saving it. You can organize your information in many different ways, such as in a folder on your computer or USB drive, your email, even your phone. Once you have found a place that works best for you to store your information be sure to label everything that you save. It will save you the time from having to go into the folder and click on each little thing each time you want to go back and look at something. All it takes is a few simple words that relate to what you are saving.
Taking notes is another key element to this chapter. Note taking is important because it not only is a good tool for keeping track of information and ideas you have encountered but it also helps you understand your sources better. It does this because instead of just highlighting and saving the site or page you are taking the time to read the source, comprehend what it is saying, and then writing down what is going to be most helpful to you. Also because when taking notes you should paraphrase and summarize in your own words what the document is saying therefore you're learning more about your topic and bringing your own contributions and ideas to your paper. Note taking is somewhat overwhelming to some people because they don't always know what they should be writing down or even how. This chapter helps with that. It doesn't matter in what form you write your notes as long as they are organized, and you stick with the same method throughout the entire process. As for the information that you write down.. if you think that in some way it pertains to your topic or issue write it down. You can also quote directly from the text, and in that case make sure to write down the author and where you got it from to avoid plagiarism.
The last part to this chapter is creating your bibliography. You should have a working and an annotated bibliography. One for the sites you have used and researched and the other for the sources you used when writing your paper and a few sentences on why you used that source.
Taking notes is another key element to this chapter. Note taking is important because it not only is a good tool for keeping track of information and ideas you have encountered but it also helps you understand your sources better. It does this because instead of just highlighting and saving the site or page you are taking the time to read the source, comprehend what it is saying, and then writing down what is going to be most helpful to you. Also because when taking notes you should paraphrase and summarize in your own words what the document is saying therefore you're learning more about your topic and bringing your own contributions and ideas to your paper. Note taking is somewhat overwhelming to some people because they don't always know what they should be writing down or even how. This chapter helps with that. It doesn't matter in what form you write your notes as long as they are organized, and you stick with the same method throughout the entire process. As for the information that you write down.. if you think that in some way it pertains to your topic or issue write it down. You can also quote directly from the text, and in that case make sure to write down the author and where you got it from to avoid plagiarism.
The last part to this chapter is creating your bibliography. You should have a working and an annotated bibliography. One for the sites you have used and researched and the other for the sources you used when writing your paper and a few sentences on why you used that source.
Chapter 3-Developing Your Research Question and Proposal
In this chapter we are exposed to the steps it takes to develop your research question. You should start by reflecting on all the work that you have already done. Some questions to ask yourself could be, is what you have learned changed your opinion on anything? Or what else do you want to learn? And lastly how has your initial understanding of the issue shaped your exploration of your topic and issue? These types of questions will help to determine whether or not you have accumulated enough information and what if any other information you can gather. The next step is to start putting together a list of questions on your issue, focusing on information,history,goals,policies, evaluation, cause/effect, reporting,compare/contrast, etc. If you try combining some of these you can create tailored research questions. Once you have done that you should frame your argument. In this step you pick a question that you are interested in and ties in the best with your issue. You look at the question you have picked and decide whether or not you would be able to work with it. Lastly you need to narrow your research question down and figure out the real focus of you question.
The second half of this chapter is creating a research proposal. A research proposal "is a formal presentation of your plan for your research writing project" (Palmquist,50). Basically this just includes an introduction to your topic and research question, review of literature, how you plan on collecting information, a timeline, and then your bibliography. I think that this chapter is going to very helpful when it comes time to start narrowing my topic and issue into a more formal research question.
The second half of this chapter is creating a research proposal. A research proposal "is a formal presentation of your plan for your research writing project" (Palmquist,50). Basically this just includes an introduction to your topic and research question, review of literature, how you plan on collecting information, a timeline, and then your bibliography. I think that this chapter is going to very helpful when it comes time to start narrowing my topic and issue into a more formal research question.
Tuesday, April 9, 2013
Chapter 5-Evaluating Sources
Chapter 5 in Bedford Researcher is all about reviewing and evaluating your sources. There are many factors that you should consider when evaluating your source. Making sure it is relevant to your topic is a big one. If you include things from your source that doesn't directly relate to your topic your paper could start to go in a different direction than you had intended, and your readers won't be able to understand what you are trying to say. This goes along with evaluating evidence, is there enough evidence to prove the points made in the source? And is it the right type of evidence? Another way to evaluate a source is by looking at the author. Is the author someone who knows what they are talking about? Does the author have too much bias towards the subject? Also evaluating timeliness of your source is a good way to know if the information is recent. If you are writing a paper that involves recent issues you want to watch out for things that were published years ago because that information may not still hold true. Lastly is evaluating the genre of your source. By doing this you can get a better idea of the type of audience that was intended and the type of arguments that could be made throughout the source. Such as if it is a blog post, it is most likely going to be the authors personal opinions and observations.By doing all these evaluations you will have a better knowledge of your source and the type of information it is going to contain therefore helping you decide whether or not it is going to be useful to you when writing your paper.
Most sources can be evaluated using those different approaches. The two sets of sources that you might have challenge with evaluating using the above guidelines are digital and field sources. With digital sources the websites might not contain all the information that you are looking for. However you can usually find links to a different site that will tell you more about the author, or FAQ's. For field sources some questions that you can ask would be are the questions in an interview, a survey, or correspondence still relevant to your research project? Is the information you collected in an observation still relevant? And are the individuals you interviewed or corresponded with as qualified and knowledgeable as you expected?
Most sources can be evaluated using those different approaches. The two sets of sources that you might have challenge with evaluating using the above guidelines are digital and field sources. With digital sources the websites might not contain all the information that you are looking for. However you can usually find links to a different site that will tell you more about the author, or FAQ's. For field sources some questions that you can ask would be are the questions in an interview, a survey, or correspondence still relevant to your research project? Is the information you collected in an observation still relevant? And are the individuals you interviewed or corresponded with as qualified and knowledgeable as you expected?
Monday, April 8, 2013
Chapter 4-Reading Critically
Being an active reader...or reading critically is a good technique to have. For those of you that may not know what this means, being an active reader is someone who isn't JUST reading the text, you are making notes, asking questions, underlining things, reading for meaning, making connections and thinking about how it applies to you and your paper. Reading critically also means reading with an attitude. When you first start out with your topic you may have more of an attitude of wonder and curiosity, but as you continue researching and reading you become more engaged and start thinking of questions and having a more open mind that allows for creative thinking and ideas to think about while reading.
Some strategies to use to ensure that your are reading actively are things like identifying key information, ideas and arguments, write down questions, take notes, and marking your source. Annotating your sources is another way to do this as well, because you are not only writing down what was important but it is a helpful tool if you ever look back on that source and wonder why you chose it.
Important things to pay attention to as you read are the type of source it is, the main point, things you find hard to understand, reasons and evidence. Knowing these things you can learn a lot more about the source and your topic as well. However you don't want to spend too much time on one source if it doesn't contain the type on information you would include in your paper. It's usually a good idea to just skim through it first and if you catch anything that could be useful go back and make notes next to it and highlight things.
In my opinion skimming is extremely helpful because it saves you a ton of time when finding sources. You don't have to read the entire source to find out if it's going to be of any use, with skimming you can get the general idea and know if there is anything you would include in your paper. And once you have done that then you can go back and read it thoroughly and actively and pick out what is most important.
Chapter 2-Exploring and Focusing
How can you start writing a paper if you don't know anything about your the topic you are writing on? Well this is what this chapter is all about...exploring your topic. One thing you can do to get some information about your topic is to talk to others. Anyone who knows about it or have been in some way affected by it could help you gain insight that you wouldn't necessarily be able to get from any other source. Observations are also a good way to learn about your topic. Depending on your topic you can observe peoples reactions to it and things like that. But the main way to gather information is through different sources such as your library, the news, the internet. However once you start gathering information make sure that you are taking notes on what you find and staying organized so you know where it came from.
The other part to this chapter is focusing on an issue. Identifying different ways to approach your topic is going to be helpful when collecting your information as well. You want to try and find the central concepts, broad themes, and the disagreements to your topic. After finding these things you can start to figure out which issues you are most interested in and begin to get rid of the ones that aren't. A strategy in doing this could be asking some of the same questions I had referred to in an earlier post such as are my readers going to be interested in this issue? does it fit the type of paper I am writing? Etc.
From my experience I have found that this is helpful to lay out the different issues that relate to your topic and evaluate them, because it's easy to stray from your main points and start talking about other issues.
The other part to this chapter is focusing on an issue. Identifying different ways to approach your topic is going to be helpful when collecting your information as well. You want to try and find the central concepts, broad themes, and the disagreements to your topic. After finding these things you can start to figure out which issues you are most interested in and begin to get rid of the ones that aren't. A strategy in doing this could be asking some of the same questions I had referred to in an earlier post such as are my readers going to be interested in this issue? does it fit the type of paper I am writing? Etc.
From my experience I have found that this is helpful to lay out the different issues that relate to your topic and evaluate them, because it's easy to stray from your main points and start talking about other issues.
Chapter 1-Getting Started
After reading chapter one from Bedford Researcher, I feel a little bit more prepared for the getting started process of writing a research paper. This chapter begins with explaining how to research and write with confidence. All it takes is a little bit of personal investment in your writing and understanding your topic. To do these things ask yourself questions about the type of assignment you have been assigned and how it would help with pursuing your future goals. Even if at first the assignment may not interest you, you can still find ways to make it at least somewhat intriguing by relating it to yourself. Understanding the research writing process is also helpful, not knowing what it takes to write a research paper could make it a bit more challenging. "Learning about your topic, taking a position on that topic, and sharing your position with your readers" (Palmquist,4). Those things are what a research paper is all about. Once you understand and work with those, they will help you in accomplishing your paper.
Another important aspect in the getting started stage of writing your paper is making sure that you are organized, and not just with doing things step by step, but with your sources as well. Keeping the sources you have found in one place makes it easier to go back and look at them later. Developing your own strategies to help you manage your time will be a big help throughout your process.
Choosing a topic as always one of the hardest things for me when I get assigned a writing project. The best thing to do is to look at what your teacher has asked of you and what they expect in your paper and go from there. A couple things you can ask yourself are who is reading your paper? what is going to influence my readers? and what type of document am I writing? Brainstorming is one of the best ways to start getting your ideas out. A few different types are free writing, looping, and clustering.
This is only the getting started stage of writing a paper, and I think by knowing these things I will be able to look back at this and use it when writing my paper.
Another important aspect in the getting started stage of writing your paper is making sure that you are organized, and not just with doing things step by step, but with your sources as well. Keeping the sources you have found in one place makes it easier to go back and look at them later. Developing your own strategies to help you manage your time will be a big help throughout your process.
Choosing a topic as always one of the hardest things for me when I get assigned a writing project. The best thing to do is to look at what your teacher has asked of you and what they expect in your paper and go from there. A couple things you can ask yourself are who is reading your paper? what is going to influence my readers? and what type of document am I writing? Brainstorming is one of the best ways to start getting your ideas out. A few different types are free writing, looping, and clustering.
This is only the getting started stage of writing a paper, and I think by knowing these things I will be able to look back at this and use it when writing my paper.
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