Specifications: 7-8 double-spaced pages
12 point TIMES NEW ROMAN font, 1 inch margins
MLA format for in-text citations and Works Cited page
Must include 8 sources.
Have a working title. Draft an original title that reflects what you imagine the paper will be over time.
Begin with an Introduction. The Introduction should:
Include a statement of your refined research question
Mention the theoretical framework/s that you will use
Explain the nature and significance of your topic. Think of your paper as intervening in a pre-existing topic with the goal of adding a new understanding. Where does your paper come on the scene, in relation to what’s already known? Where are you jumping into the conversation, exactly? Give this some thought.
In the Body of the paper you should improve on everything you did in your first draft, namely:
Provide background that explains key facets of your topic
Use case and theoretical materials together
Support claims with evidence
Open paragraphs with a topic sentence, and keep paragraphs are focused on a single issue
Put different sources in conversation with each other—most of your sections (see below) should reference at least two sources
The Body of the paper should now have sections identified by a subheading:
The different sections of your paper should all relate in a clear way to the argument or project you are developing
Use subheadings to clearly delineate the different sections of the paper
Each subsection should consist of at least two or three paragraphs, with the first paragraph containing a clear statement of the project or argument that will be covered in that section
At least 2 of your sources should offer counter-arguments, differing perspectives, or ask questions that complicate or add new layers of analysis to the issue. This is one key to doing well in this course. Real life situations are generally not tied up with simple either/or thinking, but are much more complex and nuanced.
You are still not ready to write a Conclusion.
1 End with a Works Cited page, written in MLA format, on a separate additional page. This page does not count towards your required 7-8 pages.
Key elements to focus on:
1 You are revising and extending Draft 1, not only by lengthening, but also by layering. This means developing existing points, adding a new perspective to them, or even replacing information and arguments with new and better information and arguments.
1 Support claims with EVIDENCE. Evidence can take the form of data gleaned from research, quotation, examples, etc. Watch out for conjecture, assumptions, and guesses masquerading as analysis.
1 Your paper should begin taking a clear position in response to your Research Question. Similarly, your subsections should present original analytic claims related to the central argument or research question. This requires presenting various positions and analyzing them as opposed to merely summarizing.
1 Put effort into coming up with a strategic plan for laying out the organization of your paper. This means you need to pause and think about it for a while.
1 Explain your plan explicitly in your paper. This explanation is called “signposting” and usually comes after the introduction/background, and at the beginning of subsections. For example: “This research will analyze the arguments of X, Y, and Z as they relate to the problem of A. The first section “title” looks at L, in order to lay the foundation for my argument about M and N, which will be treated in the final two sections of the paper.”
