pecifications:

*Title Page (single page)

*12-15 page paper (it”s not that long once you include images, work cited, appendices if required)

*9-12 sources (not just internet sites)

*3-4 images (graphs, tables, charts) if applicable

*MLA style

I need a (Hard B) on this assignment
I have also posted a 3 page draft of what to write about.

Purpose: Choose an academic topic of personal interest that is within your major.  It may be possible to choose a topic that will be relevant to a current or future job.  Most students choose a more academic topic based on lectures or readings from classes they have taken in their major.

For example, an exercise science major was preparing to apply for an internship in a rehabilitation center at a local hospital. The student planned on working with prosthetics in the future. Her current studies addressed prosthetics but only in one lecture. She focused her 305w paper on leg prosthetics for mobility and athletic training. Her project was to present the current state of leg prosthetics to amputees between the ages of 18-30. The research she did for the paper provided a base of knowledge that included a history of prosthetics, the controversies in world-class athletics, and the positive nature of becoming mobile once again.  The information this student gained from her 305w research project was very helpful for her rehab internship.

Many students achieve success on this assignment when they choose a topic that interested them in a previous class in their major, which they are interested in exploring further.  For instance, one student researched and wrote about serial killers.  She argued that such individuals are often influenced by severe child abuse.  Because this student was very intrigued by her topic, the research process held her interest, and she earned good grades on both the paper and the project.

A Few Considerations:

Make sure you choose relevant images. Images (in this class: photos, tables, charts, drawings) ought to provide example of your discussion. Do not just choose any image willy nilly. The image may be eye-catching, may be very cool, might even be incredible statistics, but if you are not specifically addressing the image, do not use it. The image becomes distracting.

If you have never written more than 12 pages, think of this paper as 2 large papers, or 3 medium papers. Here”s your chance to research and think through an interesting topic or issue. What did you find out? What do you think others should know? What”s important to remember?

This is the paper that sometimes causes strife for students. They wait too long and work deadlines come up, family issues arise. Start working on this paper early. Set a mock-deadline for yourself of 1 week before it is actually due. Do not copy text from a website and toss a few quotations around the several paragraphs, sometimes pages, the copied text takes. This is a form of plagiarism. If you are feeling overwhelmed and believe you need to take desperate measures, try emailing your instructor—early.

Specific Elements of the Research Paper:

Title Page—Always make sure your title is specific to the purpose. Use keywords that will help other researchers find your paper. There should be no doubt what the paper”s content is according to your title. Be sure to follow style guidelines (either APA or MLA) to correctly format the title page.

Abstract—An abstract is most common with scientific and technical papers, but in this class, all papers will have an abstract. The purpose of an abstract is much like a summary, except you purposefully keep it condensed. Abstracts are generally 100 to 200 words. Readers should have a good idea what your paper is about.

Use subheadings, outline heads, and your table of contents as a guide when you write your abstract. For the abstract, write an introduction (purpose), middle (results and conclusions), and conclusion (recommendations). Notice how this pattern keeps coming up. You know how to do this.

Table of Contents—List your subheadings from your paper along with their page numbers. List the Abstract first, then the body of the paper with subheadings if you use them, any appendices, then bibliographic citations.

Introduction—Provide context for your topic and state your argument clearly, in a well-defined thesis statement.  If you need to provide background on your topic, here”s where you do it. For a long paper like this, introductions take about a page, BUT if you”re providing background, then it could be about 2 to 3 pages.

Body —Seems familiar? It should. This part is basically the main points you want to discuss. Lay out your argument logically, using direct quotes and paraphrased information from your sources to lend support and credence to your claims.  Be sure to document your sources thoroughly to avoid any hint of plagiarism.  Use topic sentences and transitions to keep your argument focused.

Conclusion —Never put new data or a new discussion in the conclusion. The conclusion is based on the discussion provided. Remember that many people jump right to the conclusion FIRST. So, the conclusion needs to stand on its own. It”s okay to repeat, in general, what you already said (for this class).

Additional Sections—If you”re providing an appendices (handouts, samples of data, larger images, stuff that doesn”t really fit in the discussion because it”s too distracting, then make sure you have a single page entitled Appendix followed by the items you want to include. Also make sure to put Appendix with the page number on the Table of Contents.

Works Cited or References is the last item you should have in your paper.  Use APA or MLA style, and make sure the citations are formatted precisely according to the style guidelines.  See for the Cline library page for citation references.

This should give you an idea of a general standard research paper expected from your upper division courses.

Purpose: Choose an academic topic of personal interest that is within your major.  It may be possible to choose a topic that will be relevant to a current or future job.  Most students choose a more academic topic based on lectures or readings from classes they have taken in their major.

For example, an exercise science major was preparing to apply for an internship in a rehabilitation center at a local hospital. The student planned on working with prosthetics in the future. Her current studies addressed prosthetics but only in one lecture. She focused her 305w paper on leg prosthetics for mobility and athletic training. Her project was to present the current state of leg prosthetics to amputees between the ages of 18-30. The research she did for the paper provided a base of knowledge that included a history of prosthetics, the controversies in world-class athletics, and the positive nature of becoming mobile once again.  The information this student gained from her 305w research project was very helpful for her rehab internship.

Many students achieve success on this assignment when they choose a topic that interested them in a previous class in their major, which they are interested in exploring further.  For instance, one student researched and wrote about serial killers.  She argued that such individuals are often influenced by severe child abuse.  Because this student was very intrigued by her topic, the research process held her interest, and she earned good grades on both the paper and the project.

Note: It is actually very easy to notice that a paper was written for another class whether by you or by another person. Because you post discussions and various assignments throughout the term, your writer”s voice is made public and easy to recognize. Please mind NAU”s plagiarism rules, and if you are tempted to submit a plagiarized paper (you cannot plagiarize yourself either), please reconsider that option.

Plagiarism is considered a choice. Researchers read various work, reflect, discuss, and think about new perspectives, approaches, and conclusions. The newness of thought is original thinking. Original thinking is highly valued, highly respected, and is always given credit specifically in writing. When writers do not give credit, the assumption is that the writer alone imagined and created new ideas without reading or leaning on another person”s thinking.  Everyone”s original thinking comes from borrowing another person”s thinking (even when that thinking is faulty).  Please review quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing. All writers, students and professionals, are fully expected to cite sources.

When caught with a plagiarized paper, students receive an automatic F and a mark on their academic records. You could face possibly dismissal from the university meaning you will be dropped, reprimanded and never allowed back into NAU. Plagiarism is a severe offense at all US universities. Turning in a paper that you mostly copied from the web is simply not worth the consequences.

Please submit your best work and make sure you know how to cite your sources.

Further NAU sources for writing.

Objective: Write a traditional research paper. You selected a topic in your field, hopefully of personal interest, and you will do some research that supports an argument.

A Few Considerations:

This paper ought to be an example of what you have learned in the course. Many papers lose points because the student did not take the time to edit.

Make sure you choose relevant images. Images (in this class: photos, tables, charts, drawings) ought to provide example of your discussion. Do not just choose any image willy nilly. The image may be eye-catching, may be very cool, might even be incredible statistics, but if you are not specifically addressing the image, do not use it. The image becomes distracting.

If you have never written more than 12 pages, think of this paper as 2 large papers, or 3 medium papers. Here”s your chance to research and think through an interesting topic or issue. What did you find out? What do you think others should know? What”s important to remember?

This is the paper that sometimes causes strife for students. They wait too long and work deadlines come up, family issues arise. Start working on this paper early. Set a mock-deadline for yourself of 1 week before it is actually due. Do not copy text from a website and toss a few quotations around the several paragraphs, sometimes pages, the copied text takes. This is a form of plagiarism. If you are feeling overwhelmed and believe you need to take desperate measures, try emailing your instructor—early.

Specific Elements of the Research Paper:

Title Page—Always make sure your title is specific to the purpose. Use keywords that will help other researchers find your paper. There should be no doubt what the paper”s content is according to your title. Be sure to follow style guidelines (either APA or MLA) to correctly format the title page.

Abstract—An abstract is most common with scientific and technical papers, but in this class, all papers will have an abstract. The purpose of an abstract is much like a summary, except you purposefully keep it condensed. Abstracts are generally 100 to 200 words. Readers should have a good idea what your paper is about.

Use subheadings, outline heads, and your table of contents as a guide when you write your abstract. For the abstract, write an introduction (purpose), middle (results and conclusions), and conclusion (recommendations). Notice how this pattern keeps coming up. You know how to do this.

Table of Contents—List your subheadings from your paper along with their page numbers. List the Abstract first, then the body of the paper with subheadings if you use them, any appendices, then bibliographic citations.

Introduction—Provide context for your topic and state your argument clearly, in a well-defined thesis statement.  If you need to provide background on your topic, here”s where you do it. For a long paper like this, introductions take about a page, BUT if you”re providing background, then it could be about 2 to 3 pages.

Body —Seems familiar? It should. This part is basically the main points you want to discuss. Lay out your argument logically, using direct quotes and paraphrased information from your sources to lend support and credence to your claims.  Be sure to document your sources thoroughly to avoid any hint of plagiarism.  Use topic sentences and transitions to keep your argument focused.

Conclusion —Never put new data or a new discussion in the conclusion. The conclusion is based on the discussion provided. Remember that many people jump right to the conclusion FIRST. So, the conclusion needs to stand on its own. It”s okay to repeat, in general, what you already said (for this class).

Additional Sections—If you”re providing an appendices (handouts, samples of data, larger images, stuff that doesn”t really fit in the discussion because it”s too distracting, then make sure you have a single page entitled Appendix followed by the items you want to include. Also make sure to put Appendix with the page number on the Table of Contents.

Works Cited or References is the last item you should have in your paper.  Use APA or MLA style, and make sure the citations are formatted precisely according to the style guidelines.  See for the Cline library page for citation references.

This should give you an idea of a general standard research paper expected from your upper division courses.