Research Strategies for English 101

1
Research Strategies for English 101

• What?
• When?
• Where?
• How?
• Who?
• Why?
• Why me?

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Two General Approaches

• Research to Answer
• Questions
• - Answers are Unknown
• - Often begins with general research on an
  unfamiliar topic
• - Authors stance/position is not determined
• - Questions are often specific and pre-formulated

• Research to Support an
• Established Position
• - Some Answers are Known
• - Author often has familiarity with topic
• - Stance and arguments are partially
  pre-determined
• - Research questions are formulated to support
  main arguments

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Three Types of Research

• 1. Field-Based Research
• 2. Library-Based Research
• 3. Web-Based Research

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Field-Based Research

• Direct Observation
• Reflected Experience
• Interviews
• Polls
• Site Visits (brochures, pamphlets, etc.)

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Field-Based Research

• Advantages
• Connects to personal writing
• Connects to local community
• Creates Author-ity
• Cant Plagiarize
• Makes it Real
• Opportunity to learn something new
• Opportunity to Apply efforts in Real-World

• Disadvantages
• Time Consuming
• Difficult for students to do
• Difficult for students to use
• No Texts to work with
• Students dont want to do it
• Can reinforce existing opinions rather than teach
  something new

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Library-Based Research

• Books
• Journals (scholarly)
• Magazines (popular)
• Newspapers
• Films

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Library-Based Research

• Advantages
• Text-Based
• High quality sources
• Various perspectives
• Students are more familiar with how to do it
• Students are familiar with how to use it
• Prepares students for future course-work and
  research

• Disadvantages
• Time consuming
• Texts can be out of date
• Plagiarism concerns
• Students dont want to do it
• Students are not as familiar with the Re part
  of Research

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Web-Based Research

• Web Sites/Pages
• E-Zines (popular)
• Print media posted on the Web
• E-Journals (scholarly)

Our Children arent Fish Dont let them get
caught in the Net.

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Web-Based Research

• Advantages
• Its Quick
• Its Easy
• Students CAN find quality sources
• A very wide VARIETY of sources
• Students are increasingly adept at it
• Students tend to want to do it

• Disadvantages
• Its Quick
• Its Easy
• Often very Low Quality sources
• Plagiarism is a major concern
• Tends to replace all other research skills
• Students want to do it

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Bright Ideas for Avoiding Problems

• General Strategies
• Require printed/photocopied versions of all
  sources to be turned in with final paper.
• Assign specific research methods for each paper
  (and outlaw others)
• Incorporate activities In-Class to give students
  practice with different methods
• Assign (and workshop) lists of key subject/search
  words, and specific research questions

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Field-Based Activities/Ideas

• Observation
• Prepare Them early in the class with
  observational-analysis activities that can be
  used in Essay 1 or 2.
• Observe architecture (school or casinos)
  describe its features in detail, analyze
  values/actions promoted or constrained by its
  form.
• Observe nature (plants or animals) sketch and
  describe it in detail, research latin name, life
  cycle, reflect on what it means to you.
• Observe people describe them in detail, then
  turn them into characters, decide on which
  details to emphasize or omit.

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Field-Based Activities/Ideas

• Interviews and Polls
• Prepare them well in advance for their interviews
  with regard to paper topics, questions, and
  practice.
• Sample questions make up sample questions that
  are good (open-ended, focused) and bad (yes or
  no).
• Assign 10-20 interview questions (and a
  1-paragraph summary of topic) for an in-class
  workshop
• Show sample polling questions that are
  statistically useful and assign polling questions
  for workshop.
• Discuss choosing a polling sample and the use of
  polls.

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Library-Based Activities/Ideas

• Familiarize them with the Library
• Group scavenger hunt for specific articles,
  books, quotes.
• Library tour or smart classroom demonstration
• Familiarize them with Texts
• Have them write and workshop summaries in class
  (of their own texts or a text they have all read
  together)
• Require a certain number of print sources for the
  paper

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Web-Based Activities/Ideas

• Familiarize them with the Web
• Smart class (or library projection room)
  demonstration
• Web-based scavenger hunts for specific sites,
  quotes, perspectives
• Problem Prevention
• Assign they find at least two Opposing
  sites/articles
• Require print outs of all web-based sources be
  turned in with paper
• Outlaw web-based sources all together (or unless
  they have been printed previously)

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Assigning Specific Research Methods for Each 101
Paper

• Suggested Paper Sequence
• Paper 1 A Personal Narrative
• Paper 2 An essay about Place
• Paper 3 An informally researched
• essay with a thesis.
• Paper 4 A paper that specifically refers to two
  or more texts.
• (Paper 5) optional Various topics.

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Paper 1 Personal Narrative

• Assign Interview questions for themselves, or for
  a friend/teacher/family member that is part of
  the narrative.
• Develop interview questions as a class, and have
  classmates interview each other about the event
  their narrative is based on and what it means to
  them.

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Paper 2 Place

• Assign observational research to be done at the
  place they are writing about.
• Develop research questions yourself or as a class
  for conducting observation analysis.
• If place is a cultural space, then assign
  interview questions.

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Paper 3 Informal Research

• Assign one of each type of research for use in
  the paper (field, library, and web-based)

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Paper 4 Two or More Texts

• Assign two types of text-based research as
  primary sources (library and web-based)
• Provide several text-based sources in class have
  them choose one to focus on, and assign one
  outside, text-based source to use as a foil
  (comparison/contrast)

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Parting Advice

• Prepare in advance for each paper what kind of
  research you want them to do.
• Spend time teaching them how to research and
  explain what you expect and dont expect
• Design assignments to make them find a variety of
  sources and work directly with those sources
• Design research requirements to avoid plagiarism
  concerns.

Dont get weighted down by research!