Immigration & Identity/Barbata
Research Paper Assignment (200 Points)
You are writing a 6-8 page paper that conjoins a discussion of your own ethnic roots with historical research.**
For the historical/research aspect of your paper, you need a minimum of twelve different sources for your paper,
at least two of which must primary sources. For the roots aspect of your paper, you will need to complete at
least two personal interviews of your relatives. There are several stages of this project, and you cannot move to
the next stage without completing each previous stage. The key to this paper is synthesis: you must combine
different sources to produce something new. This is not a book report; you aren’t reading, then merely
summarizing what you’ve read, nor are you simply recording a biography of your ancestors. You’re
synthesizing your past with the historical record.
** If you are an immigrant yourself or your family immigrated more recently, please talk to me and we can easily amend this paper to be based on your own
experience. Additionally, some of your families may have lost track or may simply not know the individual stories of the people in your family who immigrated here. If
you need help finding materials, please ask me and we can easily amend this paper so that it works for your experience.
DUE DATE SCHEDULE:
1. Thursday, August 28th:
Assignment #1 (5 points): Paper Topic Meetings. Come to class prepared with an idea for your paper topic.
You should think about (and be able to answer/discuss) the following questions: Will you explore your maternal
or paternal ethnic roots, or both? From where did your ancestors immigrate? When did they arrive? What stories
do you know about your ancestors? What connections can you make between your ethnic roots and the history
of immigration and/or current events concerning immigration?
2. Thursday, September 11th:
Assignment #2 (20 points): Research Proposal & (Working) Annotated Bibliography. On a typed, doublespaced page, answer the following questions. Your answers should be specific, clear, concise and thoughtful:
1. What group of immigrants will you explore? Why?
2. Will you explore your maternal or paternal ethnic roots, or both? From where did your ancestors
immigrate? When did they arrive?
3. What stories do you know about your ancestors?
4. What questions do you have about their experience?
5. Of your ancestors, whom will you interview? Why? How will you complete this interview? (Discuss the
logistics of the interviews.)
6. What primary sources will you incorporate/investigate in your research? (Ex: I plan to read…)
7. What connections can you make between your ethnic roots and the history of immigration and/or current
events concerning immigration? What similarities/difference do you observe? What might account for
these similarities/differences? (Use your research notes/annotated bibliography to help answer question #7. This is where you
will link the history of your ancestors with the historical past. Eventually, you will work to develop an argument about either how your
ancestors’ experience compare/contrast to the experience of other immigrants from the same time and place context/region or how your
ancestors’ experience compare/contrast to the experience of immigrants today.)
Attach your (working) annotated bibliography to your typed responses to these questions. Your annotated
bibliography should contain five different sources. For each source, you should include a properly-formatted
Chicago-style citation. Use your annotation (about one paragraph) to record facts, ideas, observations, or
connections between sources or ideas. (You will need to submit your complete annotated bibliography as part of Assignment
#4, but talk to me if you would prefer to submit your research notes, rather than a working annotated bibliography, as part of
Assignment #2.)
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3. Monday, September 29th (EXTENSION):
Assignment #3 (25 points): Personal Interview & Write-up. Conduct a 60-90 minute personal interview with
someone who knows about your family’s immigration past. (You will need to generate some additional
interview questions in addition to the ones provided below.) Write up your answers to these questions and/or
record a transcript of the interview. Don’t forget to additionally respond to the reflection questions.
1. What can you learn about your interviewee’s life in their home country?
2. What were the push and pull factors that motivated this person to come to the U.S.?
3. When he or she initially arrived in the U.S., what was his/her experience? What were living conditions
like? How were they treated? Did they experience discrimination?
4. How did your interviewee’s relationship to American society change over time?
5. To what extent did your interviewee adapt and/or assimilate? To what extent did she/he reject
assimilation? Did he/she maintain certain cultural practices from their home country?
6. REFLECTION: What did you learn? What was significant? What was the most important/useful
information you learned?
Your answers should be specific, clear, concise and thoughtful. Keep in mind that you will use portions of this
write-up in your final paper. While you will not submit a formal write up for your second interview, you should
complete at least two personal interviews for your paper.
4. Thursday, October 9th:
Assignment #4 (20 points): Thesis Statement and/or Introduction & Annotated Bibliography
Grading Criteria for Thesis: Develop an argument that links the history of your ancestors with the historical
past. Specifically, how does your ancestors’ experience compare/contrast to the experience of other immigrants
from the same time and place context/region? Be sure to especially address WHY your ancestors’ experiences
were similar or different from the status quo. OR How does your ancestors’ experience compare/contrast to the
experience of immigrants today? Be sure to especially address WHY your ancestors’ experiences were similar
or different from the experiences of immigrants today.
Your thesis will also be assessed based on:
Specificity: Your thesis should be clear, specific, narrow, and qualified.
Novelty: Your thesis should take a clear stand and articulate a clear position/claim.
Clarity: Your thesis should be a model of clarity. It should be the best written sentence in your paper.
Attach your annotated bibliography to your typed thesis statement/introduction. Your annotated bibliography
should contain at least twelve different sources; TWO must be PRIMARY SOURCES (one of which may be
your personal interview), TWO must be scholarly books, and TWO must be scholarly articles. For each source,
you should include a properly-formatted Chicago-style citation. Use your annotation (about one paragraph) to
clearly and concisely record facts, ideas, observations, or connections between sources or ideas.
5. Tuesday, October 21st (TWO DAYS EARLIER):
Assignment #5 (10 points): Thesis Revision & Outline: Incorporate teacher comments into a revised thesis
statement; be sure to attach this assignment to your graded Assignment #4. Additionally, attach a brief outline
with your plan for your paper (in whatever format works best for you—but, even in outline form, this should be
about two pages).
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6. Thursday, November 13th:
Assignment #6 (20 points) First Draft (Peer Review): Bring a completed first draft of your paper to class. It
should be typed, double-spaced, six to eight pages, with an accompanying works cited page containing no fewer
than twelve different sources and at least two personal interviews, all of which must be cited in the paper.
Chicago style and formatting is mandatory for all drafts. No exceptions. Your paper should address all the
following topics/questions:
1. Context: From where did your ancestors immigrant? From what historical context did they immigrate?
What was life like in their home country? What were the push and pull factors that motivated your
ancestors (and other immigrants like them) to come to the U.S.?
2. Arrival: When your ancestors initially arrived in the U.S., what was their experience? What were their
living conditions like? How were they treated? Did they experience discrimination? What were some of
their challenges? Successes? (Be sure to make connections to the experience of other immigrants from
the same region as well.)
3. “Assimilation”: How did your ancestor’s relationship to American society change over time? To what
extent did your ancestors adapt and/or assimilate? To what extent did they reject assimilation? Did your
ancestors maintain certain cultural practices from their home country? What connections, if any, do you
have to your ethnic history and to these cultural practices? (Be sure to make connections to the
experience of other immigrants from the same region as well.)
4. Historical Connections: How does your ancestors’ experience compare/contrast to the experience of
other immigrants from the same time and place context/region? Be sure to especially address WHY your
ancestors’ experiences were similar or different from the status quo. (Make an effort to draw these
connections throughout the paper, in addition to providing an extended discussion towards the end.) OR
How does your ancestors’ experience compare/contrast to the experience of immigrants today? Be sure
to especially address WHY your ancestors’ experiences were similar or different from the experiences of
immigrants today.
5. If you are an immigrant yourself, focus your paper on your personal responses to these questions.
6. If you are taking your paper in a different direction, feel free to revise the above questions, but be sure to
talk with me to clarify the expectations for your paper.
7. Monday, November 24th
Assignment #7: (100 points) FINAL DRAFT: Submit your paper to turnitin.com by the end of the school day
and bring to class a hardcopy of your final paper. Your final paper should be in Chicago formatting and should
contain no more than 2-3 proofreading errors. Be prepared to “present” your paper and research in class.
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