Junior Research
Paper
AP English 11
2012
Points…Can you Afford to Not
Care?
 Note Cards = 100 Points Class work
 Outline = 100 points Class Work
 Rough Draft= 100 Test Grade
 Research Paper = 200 Test Grade
Points
 Total = 500 Points.
 All Late Assignments are only worth
50% of their original value.
 Stay organized, stay motivated, and
stay on task!
Choose a Topic
 Choose
a topic based on the following
elements:
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Your interest in the topic. If you don’t care
about the topic, it will be hard to maintain
motivation for a month of study.
Resources available. If you choose a narrow or
very creativity topic, (Brittany Spears should not
have custody of her children), know that this will
be a very difficult topic to find print sources. You
will need to have extra motivation to find the
information needed to complete your paper.
Media Center Research
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Find books relating to your topic using the library
reference search on their computers.
Look through the book to see if they have
information you need.
Complete the Source Information on your
Source sheet for any book you use. Label the
source (#1, #2, #3)
Complete a note card for each fact you find.
Paraphrase and summarize the information (you
learned how to do this sophomore year!).
You will need a total of 60 cards
Source Information Sheet
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Source Type:Book
Source #
Author/Editor:______________________________________
_____
Book
Title:______________________________________________
Publication
city:__________________________________________
Publisher:__________________________________________
_____
Copyright
date:__________________________________________
Title of Article in
Book___________________________________
Author of Article in
Book_________________________________
Pages of article in
Book__________________________________
Source Information Sheet
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Source Type: Book
Source #
1
Author/Editor: Craig Wallace
Book Title:_The Best of You____________
Publication
City:__Chicago________________________________
Publisher:__Oyster Mining Company____________
Copyright
date:___2007____________________________
Pages used in
Book__________________________________
Note Cards and Book Research
 Once
you have completed your source
information, find facts that support your
position, relate to your topic, or support
the opposition (you will only need 3 main
facts concerning your opposition).
 Write one fact per note card. Remember
to paraphrase. You may ONLY have 5
note cards with direct word for word
quotations (indicated by quotation marks
around the passage).
Note Card Format
Source #
Student Last Name and
Note Card #
1-2 Facts Summarized. Only 5 cards may have
direct quotations (word for word).
MLA Citation
(Author Last name and Page)
Subcategory
Note Card Format Example
Source # 1
Thompson 1
60% of the world’s water contain pollution,
and 25% of the world’s rivers contain pollution.
(Whitton 25)
Main Argument 3
Internet Sources
 Remember
you must have at least two
print sources (books) that you will use in
your paper.
 If you cannot find books in our library, try
your local public library.
 When finished with book research, you will
search for internet research.
Use library resources
 On
your favorites bar, go to “SVHS
library catalog”
From here you can access Bigchalk or the
public library
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If you find information that you may use, first copy
the citation information from the bottom of the
article onto your source page or copy and paste it
onto a Word document (SAVE IT)!
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Source Citation:Schweiger, Larry J. "A call for urgent
action.(NWF VIEW)(global warming)." National
Wildlife 46.1 (Dec-Jan 2008): 8(1). General Reference
Center Gold. Gale. NC WiseOwl Thomson Gale
PowerSearch. 6 Nov. 2008
<http://find.galegroup.com/ips/start.do?prodId=IPS>
Be sure to number this source
Look for the author’s last name at the bottom or
top of the article. Use this for your citation. There
will be no page number.
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(Schweiger)
(Modern Science)
Internet Resources and Articles
 If
you cannot find articles on Bigchalk,
then you may Google to find other
articles.
 CAUTION: You need to evaluate the
sources for credibility. Make sure it is not a
blog, a personal web page, or a web
page not accredited by an organization.
Internet Source Information
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Source Type: Internet
Source #
Author:_________________________________________
Title of Web
Article:________________________________________
Title of Web
Page:________________________________________
Publication Date/Last
updated/Revised:_______________________
Date Website
Visited:_____________________________________
Web Address: http://
_____________________________________
Completing an Internet Source
 Make
sure the site is credible
 Write down all of the information on your
source page.
 The date revised or updated may be at
the top or bottom of the page. If it is not
listed, put N/A
Internet Source Card
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Source Type: Internet
Source #
Author:_________________________________________
Title of Web
Article:________________________________________
Title of Web
Page:________________________________________
Publication Date/Last
updated/Revised:_______________________
Date Website
Visited:_____________________________________
Web Address: http://
_____________________________________
Use the following page to complete this card.
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1370/is_n
9_v21/ai_6100947
Internet Note Cards
 Remember
to label the source # in the
upper left hand corner.
 The MLA citation will only be the author’s
last name. There will be no page #’s
(Brown).
 If there is no author, use the title of the
web page (FEMA).
Note Card Organization
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Once you have completed all of your note cards, you
need to organize your note cards in the following manner.
You MUST have 5 sources (at least 2 print) for your paper.
Introduction: Any interesting/startling facts (1-3),
anecdotes, or information that would be a great “attention
getter”
Counter Argument: Three facts that support the opposing
view point of your topic
Your Argument Main Point #1: Any facts that support this
point
Main Point #2: Any facts that support this main point
Main Point #3: Any facts that support this point
Conclusion: Any facts that are profound and would help
“call reader to action” or strongly impact the audience.
After you have placed your note cards in the correct order,
label the subcategory on each card (introduction,
counterargument, point 1, point 2, point 3, conclusion).
Outline
 Using
your organized note cards, create
an outline for your paper.
 You may use the Sample Outline on my
web page and add your information.
 Although the outline will take a great deal
of time, it will make your paper much
easier to write.
Outline for Junior Research Paper on Controversial
Issue
Outline Example-Introduction
Title:
I. Introduction
 Attention
Getter (Question, Startling/Interesting
Statistic, Startling Statement, Anecdote, Quotation,
etc.)
 Description and definition of the issue (What is global
warming?)
 Importance of the issue (How does it impact our
society?)
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Brief Overview of Opposing Position: Counterargument
 Describe the basic view point of the opposition
 Many would argue that cloning should be legalized because it may
cure diseases.
 Provide the supporting arguments and facts (supported by references to
texts and well-known authorities)
 For example, some scientists say that cloning may provide clues to
genetic mapping and diseases (Bogo 1).
 Additionally, research seems to show that cloning allows individuals to
have a “back-up” of their specific blood, plasma, and even organs
(Samson 2).
 Elaborate/Analysis and summary of perspective A:
 To summarize, supporters of cloning believe that it is medically
beneficial to humans.
 Your Thesis: Three “big ideas” explaining why your position is better.
 Indeed, many might believe cloning is beneficial. However, cloning
should not be legalized because it is dangerous, expensive, and
unethical.
Outline Example: Body Paragraph
1
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Your Argument: Main Point #1 (Strong Point)
 Initially and first “big idea” in
 Initially, cloning should not be legalized because it is dangerous.
 Provide the supporting arguments and facts for Main Point #1 (supported
by references to texts and well-known authorities) from your notecards.
 For instance, forty percent of sheep cloned had mutations or medical
problems that resulted in death (Siler).
 Likewise, only ten percent of sheep cloned lived over five years (Brown
8).
 Cloning has only been in existence since the 1950’s (Brown 10).
 More Note Card Facts
 Elaborate/Analysis: So What? What does this information mean?
 Based on this research, cloning is a medical practice that has only
been used in recent years. The results of cloning are not always positive
and are often unreliable.
 Closing Sentence for Main Point #1
 In summation, if cloning presents this amount of risk and danger for
sheep, why should society allow this practice to occur with humans?
Outline Example: Body Paragraph
2
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Outline Example: Body Paragraph
Your3
Argument: Main Point #2 (Stronger Point)
A.Describe
your second Main Point from thesis
A.Furthermore,
B.Provide the
research shows that human cloning is expensive.
supporting arguments for Main Point #2
A.To
illustrate,
B.In addition,
C.Facts
D.Facts
C.Elaborate/Analysis: So
What? What does this information mean?
A.Obviously,
D.Closing
A.As
Sentence for Main Point #2
a result,….is this research worth the cost?
Outline Example: Body Paragraph
4
 Your
Argument: Main Point #3 (Strongest Point)
 Describe
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Ultimately,
 Provide
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your 3rd Main Point from thesis
Supporting Facts/Evidence for Main Point #3
In particular,
Similarly,
Fact
Fact
 Elaborate/Analysis:
So What? What does this information
mean?
 Closing Sentence for Main Point #3
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Therefore, ….
Outline Example: Conclusion
Conclusion
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Restate thesis summarizing your main
points
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In conclusion,
State the importance, impact, or affect
on American society
Provide a final, profound thought that
“calls the reader” to action
Outline to Paper
 Go
on the web site under “MLA
Formatting Tips” and follow the guidelines
for creating a paper or open the sample
research paper and edit the information
to make it your paper.
 Copy and paste your outline with source
information onto the paper.
 Delete the outline numbering system and
make the facts flow into sentences. Be
sure to include citations.
 Create your Works Cited page when
finished by using www.bibme.org
Sample MLA Paper
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This is an example illustrating what your final MLA research
paper should look like.
http://www.dianahacker.com/pdfs/Hacker-Daly-MLA.pdf
Do not risk plagiarizing any part of your paper. If you are
short on length, find more information and document it
correctly.
Plagiarism is copying someone else’s work and presenting it
as your own. If you are using someone else’s direct words,
you must use quotation marks.
For all information that is not common knowledge, you
must provide the parenthetical citation (Brown 7).
Your paper must be 2-4 pages (standard) or 4-5 (honors
and AP)
You must have 5 sources (at least 2 print)
You must have a title page, outline, paper, and works cited
page.