Unit 2 Research Proposal Schedule (Updated) Week 6 2/19-Intro to research proposals & primary research Week 7 2/24-Interviews & Observations 2/26-Surveys & Short Research Proposal Peer review Minor Essay 2- Short Research Proposal Due Week 8 3/3-Research proposal subsections 3/5-Debates Week 10 3/17-Peer review & unit wrap up Research Proposal Final Draft- Due 3/17 by midnight

Today’s Goals Peer review & get feedback on research proposal rough drafts Finalize & reflect on unit 2 material Introduce informative writing for unit 3

Research Proposal Overview Title page Abstract (100 words or less) Identify research question, hypothesis, & research methods No nonessential information should be included here Statement of Purpose (usually 100+ words. Often the second longest section of the essay) State research question and hypothesis Convince readers why the research is necessary Statement of Qualification (approximately 100 words but may be longer) Explain why you are qualified to conduct this research Mention qualifications as well related personal experiences Try to have at least 3 qualifications Literature Review (200+ words. Often the longest section of the essay) Briefly sum up the secondary sources you are using Should have a very short introduction before going into sources (usually only a sentence or two and explaining how much research has been done so far in this field) Methods (approximately 100 words) Name your primary research method and explain your general strategy for it (i.e. what do you hope to find) References The APA version of a Works Cited page Appendix Usually includes supplementary information The appendix for our research proposals will include detailed information about your primary research (such as interview, questions surveys, or observation goals)

Group Activity: Rough Draft Evaluation Exchange drafts with one other student (different from your previous peer reviews) Share the first drafts of your research proposals. Answer the following questions for your partner’s draft: 1. Does the abstract sufficiently sum up the research question, hypothesis, and methodology in a succinct, economical manner? Try crossing out any words or sentences you think are unnecessary. 2. How does the purpose statement grab reader attention? Is this effective? 3. What are the student’s research question and hypothesis in the purpose statement? Take these word for word from the essay and write them here. Are they nearly the same as in the abstract? 4. In the statement of qualification, what reasons does the writer give that they are suited to conduct the research? Try to identify at least 3 separate reasons. If these are not present, additional time may need to be spent on the statement of qualification? 5. How many sources are evaluated in the literature review? (There should be at least four)Is a main idea identified for each? Is there an introduction in the lit review and explanation of how each source is related to the current research? 6. Does the essay follow the APA formatting conventions we have discussed in class? At this point, pay extra attention to the in text citations and references page 7. Finally, share your previous answers with the student. Do you both agree on answers 1- 6? If not, where was there a difference of opinion or perspective?

Journal Entry 22 Focus: Reflect on Unit 2 Please do this on a separate sheet of paper that you can add to your journals when they are returned Take a few minutes to remember the content from unit 2 of our class and the most important items within. Since February, we have learned about drafting a research proposal, the use of APA formatting, the primary research process, and applied our rhetorical theories and strategies in our class debate. What do you think the most important concepts from unit 2 were? How has your research question or understanding of your topic changed since you wrote your exploratory narrative? Was there any part of unit 2 that you found particularly easy or difficult? How has this class compared to your other English or research-based classes in college thus far? What was the most fun or easy activity in unit 2? The most difficult or onerous activity? What did you find most useful from unit 2? I urge you here to consider your major or field of study and how you might use what you have learned in this field in the future.

Unit 3 Goals Utilize genre and discipline specific visual rhetoric & document design strategies Conduct primary research (based on planning from unit 2) & incorporate results into informative writing

Informative Writing Article: thesis statement driven document that presents information in an surprising or engaging way Report: thesis question driven document that present the results of a fact finding or data gathering investigation Most of the publications we look at will fall into one of these categories. Which seems more appropriate for your subject matter?

Informative Writing We will be taking a separate look at 4 different styles of publications: Newspapers Magazines Scholarly Article Research Report What visual rhetorical strategies do these types of publications use? How might each organize information differently? Aside from their general purpose of being informative, what else might each of these publication styles be trying to accomplish?

Homework Research Proposal Final Draft Due Tuesday 3/17 to Turnitin.com by midnight Should include all sections of your research proposal Sign up for a class progress conference Not mandatory but strongly recommended Will go over individual grades for the course and your progress thus far Appointments start next week. Most will be brief (<5 minutes) and take place directly before or after class Sign up sheet on class website Begin conducting Primary research Finalize your interview/survey questions Make arrangements for your interviews or observations Create the online version of your surveys Preliminary research results due 3/27