Paper should include both data and secondary sources. The data may be written, spoken, observed, or quantified information. The type and volume of data you use depends the nature of your question. Check the handout from last quarter for potential data sources. For the secondary sources, your paper should include a minimum of 8-10 high-quality scholarly sources.
Format:
1 Frame: The frame is where you introduce the basic parts of your paper. The introduction introduces the whole project—the location, the stakes, the research question, and the argument. The introduction tells the reader what you will do in the paper and what they need to know to understand the paper. Your frame may also include a separate setting section, where you describe where your project is set, giving the essential background on time, place, and history. Finally, your frame will also include your literature review where you situate your argument within the broader literature and discuss what you will do differently in your paper. It would be possible to combine two of these sections (e.g., setting and literature review), but doing all three in one would be a real challenge.
2 Evidence and Methods
The evidence and methods section is where you describe what you have and how you will use it in your paper. Your section should make a case for your evidence and methods—tell the reader why your data are important, and why your method is the best way to work with these data. If you have a comparative project, you will also want to make the case for your comparison here as well. It’s possible to include the evidence and methods section in your introduction if you have a more historical paper, but you should check with me ahead of time.
3 Analysis
The analysis section is the heart of your paper. This is the section where you will work with all the material you collected. That analysis will vary depending the nature of your project and evidence. Some of you will have lots of tables and graphs. Others will have text alone. No matter what you do, make sure it is substantive and properly sourced, and that your figures and tables are clearly labeled.
4 Conclusion
The conclusion is where you discuss the implications of your research. This is your last chance to tell the reader what they learned. Leave them with a take-away point! For quantitatively oriented papers, you can also discuss the limits of your research and make suggestions for future projects. You can also use a separate discussion section before the conclusion for research design and data, though you would only want to do so if you had a major follow-up project in mind. Either way, the conclusion should be quick and to the point.
References
I would recommend that you use parenthetical citations and a Chicago-style bibliography. However, you may choose your style; just be sure to be consistent throughout the paper and the bibliography
A Breakdown of the Format
Introduction
Setting (optional)
Literature Review
Evidence/Methods
Analysis
Discussion (optional)
Conclusion
