Research Project Step 2 DESCRIBE YOUR TOPIC

• RESEARCH YOUR SOURCES • PLACE IT INTO HISTORICAL CONTEXT • EXPLAIN ITS HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE

Step 2 – Skills

u Research: this step is the big one for research! You will read your sources, finding information to include in your submission.

u Analysis: keeping your research question in mind, look back over your notes and sources, choosing the best information to include in your submission.

u Interpretation: why do you think this topic is historically significant?

u Synthesis: be sure you have information from multiple sources throughout your submission.

u Organization: historians like to work chronologically – which just means presenting your information in the order in which it happened in history.

Step 2 = Description of your topic, with context and significance

u NO intro, NO conclusion, forget the whole concept of 3 body paragraphs. u Remember, this is going to be just one section of your final paper.

u Around one page, double spaced, Times New Roman 12pt font, 1” margins.

u This should be a description of your topic – not a justification of your choice, not arguing a position. Just describe it, as if your reader had no idea at all about it.

u Start with research!

Research

u Read your secondary sources, keeping in mind: u The Five Ws

uWhat is your topic? What was involved? uWhen and where did it take place? uWho was involved? uWhy is it significant?

u Look for pieces of information to help you compose your topic description.

u Keep those 5 Ws in mind!

u Don’t answer your research question, but be thinking about it.

u Highlight the sources or take notes, being sure you have something for each W.

Analysis & Synthesis

u Go back through the sources you have highlighted, or through your notes. Consider the information, and how well it will help you describe your topic.

u Choose what you feel are the best pieces of information to help you compose your topic description.

u Be sure you include information from each of your sources (synthesis), and that you cite your sources of information throughout your submission.

u Be sure you cover the 5 Ws.

Interpretation

u There are two brief lessons on context and significance in the module – be sure you review them.

u 1. Context – what else was going on at the time of your topic? What can you tell us to help us understand the world in which your topic arose? What defines the times?

u 2. Significance – why do you think this topic is historically significant? In other words, why should we study this topic? Why is it important? Why do we care?

Organization u Make an outline for the Step 2 submission – here is an example. Each

section could/should be its own paragraph of at least three sentences.

I – WHAT: the simplest, plainest statement that explains what your topic is. Is it a war? A social movement? What is it?

–follow that by explaining the historical context.

II – WHEN and WHERE did it take place? III – WHO was involved? IV – WHAT else was involved? V – Historical significance

u Try to discuss your information in chronological order – the order in which it happened.

Cite your sources

u Every time you include information from one of your sources, you must cite it.

u You can do this with footnotes/endnotes, or parentheses.

u Your citation must follow the sentence with the information, so each paragraph should have multiple citations.

u You can follow an established format, such as APA, MLA, or Chicago, or

u You can include parentheses with the author name and page number of that particular secondary source.

u For primary sources, just name the source as briefly as possible.

Pro-Tips u As mentioned earlier….

u No quotes. None. Period. EVERYTHING must be in your own words.

u Don’t use first-person pronouns. No “I think,” or “we see that…”

u Use information ONLY from approved, scholarly secondary sources, and your primary sources.

u Use proper paragraph structure. u Each paragraph should have a topic sentence, followed by at least two sentences to

support/explain that topic sentence.

u If one of your paragraphs is more than half a page, it is probably too long.

u Meet the minimum length requirement of one page, and although it is fine to go a little over, don’t exceed two pages.

u Formatting counts! Times New Roman 12pt font, double-spaced, 1” margins.