English II
Treadwell
The Research Project
The goals of this year’s research projects are to understand a particular period in American history in depth so
that we can better appreciate the literature written about and during this time period. We will study the history
of black and white race relations from 1877-1970, from the beginning of segregation to the end of the Civil
Rights era. Understanding the history of this period will help students better understand the historical
significance of the Pulitzer-prize winning novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. We will work as a class
to answer these questions about segregation and the Jim Crow Laws: 1) Why did this set of social rules,
behaviors, and consequences arise? 2) How did these social beliefs impact individual members of society? 3)
What had to happen in order for these beliefs to change? Or have they not changed? 4) And briefly, what is the
situation in society relating to these issues today?
Students may choose a specific topic from the attached list, or they may select a relevant topic of their own with
teacher approval. (The list of topics is also on the class website.) Confirm your choice with your teacher.
Components of the Research Project
Week one: choose a topic and confirm with your teacher. Only one student per topic per class.
Week two: begin finding sources and creating a works cited list. We will use index cards for this step.
The front of each card will contain a fact or a quote from the source, and the back of the card will
show the correctly formatted citation in MLA format. Ten cards will be due by Friday. (100 pts)
Homework: find one source on your topic and bring it to class on Tuesday. This may be a book, a
printed article, or an online source on an electronic device, provided it can be used by classmates in
class. *No Wikipedia articles. (100 pts.)
*Note: the final paper must have at least 5 credible sources and at least 10 in-text citations.
Week three: We will write thesis statements and make an outline for the research paper. We will also group the
quote cards into paragraph topics and practice writing a paragraph using sources. (100 pts)
Week four: We will practice writing intro and conclusion paragraphs. (100 pts.) Wednesday and Thursday we
will be in the media center using the computers and students should have a 2.5 page draft of their
paper uploaded to Turnitin.com by class time on Friday. (100 pts) On Friday, we will be in the
computer lab (room 529) for peer editing. (100 pts)
Week five: Writing/revising the paper on Monday and Tuesday in the computer lab. Draft due on Tuesday.
(100 pts.)
Homework: peer editing two papers on Turnitin.com using the class rubric. Due next Monday.
(100 pts.)
Week six: Completed research papers are due Wednesday, March 9. They may be submitted early. Late
papers will be docked 10% per day late. No papers accepted after Spring Break. (200 pts.)
The entire six-week research project will be worth 25% of the semester grade.
Please do not attempt to copy and paste a research paper from an online source.
Even if you work with others on research, remember that identical papers will not be accepted.
Either of these situations will result in a permanent zero for the assignment.
English II
Treadwell
Research Paper Rubric
Research papers are due in class on Wednesday, March 9. Papers will be submitted online through the website
Turnitin.com. Please note that the Works Cited page should be attached to your paper as pg. 4. Your paper
must use at least 5 credible sources and it must have at least 10 in-text citations.
Works cited page with at least 5 sources
20%
In-text citations*
10%
MLA format
10%
Length (3 pgs or 1000 words)**
20%
Writing (Content, Organization, Quality)
40%
Total:
100%
*In-text Citation: Every paragraph should have at least 1 in-text citation. An in-text citation looks like this:
(Author pg) or (“Title” pg). Create at least one in-text citation for each entry on your works cited page. You
will put the in-text citations inside your paper. They explain where specific facts or quotes come from.
**Format: Use 12 pt. Times New Roman Font. Double-space your paper. Delete spaces between paragraphs.
Set page margins to 1 inch. No exceptions. (See the MLA Style Guide for a sample paper.)
What do I write about?
In addition to explaining why your person, group, or event is important, in your paper you will do three things:
1. Describe the person, group or event as it/he/she relates to segregation or Civil Rights.
 For example, how was this person impacted by Jim Crow laws?
 Did this person or group rebel against the spirit of the times?
 Was this person part of the Civil Rights movement? Did they come before it and help inspire
others? Were they criticized for not doing more?
2. Discuss the attitudes of the time period and how the beliefs, laws, and social rules affected the
person, group or event you’re researching.
 For example, if your topic was Louis Armstrong, how did Jim Crow laws affect African
American males? How did the laws affect musicians? Were the rules different if you were
extremely popular and talented?
3. Contrast the social attitudes of that time period with modern day beliefs, laws, and social rules as
they relate to your topic.
 Has anything changed in society because of this person/group/event or others like them?
 Is there more work that needs to be done in this area?