ENGL101: Research and Writing 1
Essential Research Question Worksheet
Before beginning a research process, formulating a research question to guide your process
keeps you focused on the topic you are exploring. An essential research question is an openminded question that requires you to look at and explore both sides of your research. This
question will lead you through your research process but will also lead to additional essential
questions. These questions will help you narrow your topic, focus on important sources, and
interpret your research.
For this beginning step of the research process, use this worksheet to focus in on the research
question you will seek to answer. To do this, you will complete the following steps:
o Prewrite through a freewriting process to establish what you know
o Continue the prewriting process by developing a list of questions about your topic
you would like to know the answer to—the more the better!
o Seek patterns within the questions you generated to help guide your thinking
o Develop an essential research question to guide your research process. While this
question may grow and change through the process, it becomes your launching
point for the process.
Be sure to complete the above steps in order to ensure you have completely explored the
questions around your topic.
When you have completed the essential research question worksheet to develop your research
question, submit the worksheet to the course to receive instructor feedback. You can then
begin seeking the answer to your question.
Step 1: The Topic
Your topic:
Privacy rights
Step 2: Freewriting
Freewriting is a pre-writing strategy meant to allow free flowing, uncensored ideas. These
ideas should help you gather thoughts, ideas, and topics that you may want to explore as you
move forward.
To complete this freewriting, follow these steps exactly:
1. Set a timer for 10 minutes.
2. When you push start, begin typing and type continuously without stopping (in
sentence/paragraph form). If you run out of topics to write about, repeat the last word
ENGL101 – PP Essential Research Question Worksheet
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you wrote until another thought comes. [If you prefer to handwrite, feel free to write
this step out on paper and upload a picture with the rest of the Worksheet.]
3. This may be the only time you hear this in an English class, but do NOT worry about
mistakes in spelling, grammar, etc. Those are concerns for a draft, not the pre-writing
process.
4. When the alarm rings, finish your last thoughts before stopping.
What to write about: In the space below (or on a separate piece of paper), describe why you
chose your topic and discuss what you know about your topic already (before beginning the
heavy research process).
Privacy rights can mean a lot of things weather weather its its with patients or people with
disablitys or just you living in your home often so our privacy is broken by the law or just by
people with no respect succh as stalkers stalkers stalkers stalkers and what ever have you. I
feel as though privacy is very important important important Important important and it can
make or break break break break you and how you feel in your home home home home and
the worst feeling to me is to have your home violated violated violated sometimes the la
violates violates violates violates privacy with out your knowinf like wiretapping and many
more or scammers can hack into your accounts and get into all of your personal information so
a violation of privacy can come from many places places places with out your knodwadgle
that’s the most scarriest thing is knowing at anymoment your pivacy could be violated and life
can be changed
Step 3: Brainstorming Questions
Now that you have explored what you know about your topic, spend 15 or 20 minutes listing
questions about your topic. You want this list to be as long as you can make it. Don’t feel
confined by simple questions about background information. You will find that type of
information out as you research; instead, dig deeper into questions that encourage thought
and connections.
What is a volation of privacy?
How can privacy every day life?
What is coverd by privacy laws?
What sparked this topic and what made it so contraversal ?
Are there any laws and if so how many ?
Are there any contraversal court cases if so how many and what one stood out the most ?
ENGL101 – PP Essential Research Question Worksheet
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Step 4: Developing the Essential Research Question
Read through the questions you have generated. What questions are interconnected or
related? What patterns do you see? What questions can be combined into more detailed,
focused questions?
Mojrity of my questions are focused on the law aspect of privacy. So they are mostly connected
that way.i belive I can combine my non law questions to gether to get one more detailed
foucus.
Step 5: Writing the Essential Research Question
The Research Question you begin with helps you begin the research process, but it will change
and lead to more questions as you explore and learn.
Try using the below formats to get started generating an essential research question:
What is the relationship between __priavte_________________________ and
_____________public______________?
What effect does ________vilation of privacy have
_________________________________________________________________?
What difference does ___________________pubilc information have over
private__________________________________________________?
What is the best explanation for _____________private
information_______________________________________________?
Why does it matter that _____________certian things remain private
______________________________________________________?
What can society do about ____________respecting priacvy
_____________________________________________________?
ENGL101 – PP Essential Research Question Worksheet
How could things be better ___________with privacy
law_____________________________________________________?
What is more important ______________privacy or public
inofrmation_____________________________________________________?
What might be the cause of ______________________violation of
privacy__________________________________________?
Or formulate your own questions….
Step 6: Choose a Question
After exploring possible questions, pick one to be the focus for your research process:
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