RESEARCH PROPOSAL
In this DB, you’ll post your research proposal for the Research Paper (thoroughly review the RP instructions BEFORE starting this DB). It should be a one-paragraph proposal of what you intend to argue in your research paper, and it should do the following:
Announce the topic (as narrowly as possible)
Provide your research question (the answer to your research question ends up being your thesis)
State your tentative thesis
Provide any necessary context
State how you plan to organize/make your argument (how you plan to structure your paper)
What information you already know about your argument
What types of sources/information you think you will need to properly support this argument (be specific — do not just say “library databases”)
This will probably be a 7-8 sentence paragraph. First person is appropriate for this, but you must use proper grammar, spelling, mechanics, punctuation, and capitalization. Do not use second person.
For the subject of the DB, put a tentative (“working”) title or the name of your narrowed topic. You’re not married to that title — you can change it later. But you should not title it “DB” or “proposal.”
I will approve your proposal in my private feedback connected to the grade for this DB.
Grading:
70 points for your proposal as described above.
15 points each for your substantive responses to classmates’ proposals. Secondary posts (replies to classmate’s proposal) should be at least 75 words each. Remember what a substantive response is by reading the handout.
Follow the eCampus rubric.
Extra credit offered if you provide a relevant peer-reviewed journal article MLA citation.
You will not be able to see any of your classmates’ posts until you have posted your own.
Example student research proposal from a few years ago:
My essay topic will be the gas companies’ use of hydraulic fracturing and my research question is whether or not the practice should be more regulated, and if so, why. I will argue that “fracking” should be more strictly regulated because it is dangerous to the environment and to humans because it lethally contaminates groundwater, it pollutes the air, and it destabilizes tectonic plates. To begin my paper, I will need to explain the process of hydraulic fracking in the background information part of my introduction. I will then proceed through my three points in that order. I think the issue of contamination of groundwater is the most significant and has the most evidence, so I should start with it. I have watched the documentary Gasland, so I know some general information about the water and air pollution involved; however, I really do not know anything about the tectonic plate disruption, so that will require some research. My sources will primarily need to be scientific and medical journals because I want to show how the poisoned water and air negatively affect humans. Geology journals will also help with this topic. I hope to find those sources through the library databases as peer-reviewed journal articles and books. I might also be able to find government data regarding groundwater contamination in areas near fracking sites. My conclusion will reassert the need for stricter regulation based on the evidence that hydraulic fracturing harms humanity and the environment and will suggest solutions or possible areas for how to apply my research in other ways.
TRAAP-tested WC entry:
Brewer, Mark K. “Corporate Social Responsibility in the Age of Hydraulic Fracturing in the United States and the United Kingdom.” Creighton Law Review, vol. 51, no. 3, June 2018, pp. 577–602.
You do not have to do the journal article WC entry, but you will get bonus points if you do. To receive the bonus points, it needs to 1) actually be a peer-reviewed journal article and 2) be cited using MLA format.
