Identify the specific topic or problem that you have selected. Provide context by explaining important background information about this topic. For instance, discuss any details that are helpful to understand the specific history or controversy around this topic.
Identify the specific topic or problem that you have selected
Introduce the Topic
Identify the specific topic or problem that you have selected. Provide context by explaining important background information about this topic. For instance, discuss any details that are helpful to understand the specific history or controversy around this topic. Explain why this is an important issue. Why should Americans care about this topic?
Potential Solutions
You will then discuss potential solutions to the problems you identified above. Provide compelling arguments that support your position. It is helpful here to draw upon your research sources. Include relevant citations or quotations that reinforce your recommendations. What can be done to improve the situation?
You might consider the following questions. Are there any specific laws or programs that should be implemented? Are there any actions that should be taken? If so, what? What level of government might be most effective at addressing this situation (city, county, state, national)?
Both Sides of the Debate
Briefly consider both sides of this issue. What would your political opponent say about this issue? What are the most compelling arguments on the opposite side of the debate? Why might someone else see the issue differently? Do you feel there is any merit to their perspective?
(For instance, if you are advocating for a “pro-choice” perspective on abortion, what do you consider to be the most compelling “pro-life” arguments? Or vice versa.)
Bibliography
Include a properly formatted and alphabetized bibliography that shows what books, websites, articles, or websites that you used to write your essay.
First, you will want to understand the difference between a subject and a topic. A subject is broad and general, such as Education or Sports or Film — too big to be the focus of your research paper. You need to look within the broad subject area to find your topic. A topic is more focused, more precise; it is a narrower subset of a subject. For example:
- For the broad subject Education, your topic might be to investigate whether female students in all-girl schools perform better academically than their counterparts at co-ed schools.
- For the broad subject Sports, you might explore the controversy surrounding the use of Native American images and symbols as sports mascots.Here are some tips to help you develop a manageable and interesting topic:
- Choose a subject area that interests you and that will interest the readers. Try to avoid topics that are overly used such as abortion or gun control. It is important to choose a topic that is academic in nature – something that people will be doing research on.
- Do some background research on any subjects that you are interested in using encyclopedias and websites. This will provide you with an overview so that you gain a better understanding of the subject area and you can see what issues are related.
- It is a good idea to state your topic in the form of a question to stay focused on what it is that you are trying to explain or prove. For example, if you want to do research on advertising and body image among teenage girls, you might ask:
What impact does advertising have on the body image of teenage girls?
- When you come up with a topic, choose the main concepts in your research question (for the question above it would be “advertising”, “body image”, and “teenage girls”) and do an initial search with them in the Library catalog or databases. If you are getting way too many hits, you might need to narrow your topic more. If you are not getting enough hits, you might need to broaden your topic. Some common pitfalls include choosing a topic that is too:
broad narrow recent local
- Once you are sure you have a manageable topic that is interesting and that has enough research out there you can use in your paper, create a thesis statement. This will be an answer to your research question or a statement that explains the purpose of your research.
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