Research essay requirements

Draft 1 DUE: April 28, 2011

10% of final grade (revision is counted as a separate grade)

BRING 3 COPIES to class.

950 – 1300 words (please write word count at top)

5 minimum cited sources, 2 non-Internet-based

Works Cited page (not included in word count)

Some thoughts/ reminders:

USING PRINT SOURCES

Even if a source is “non-Internet-based,” don’t list its medium as “Print” in Works Cited
page unless you were actually holding the material in your hands. But if it is in your hands:
Sources accessed in print, rather than web, do not need date of access.
Be as specific as possible about what part of the print material you used—if you only
read a chapter of a book, don’t cite the entire book. Cite only that chapter (Author. “Chapter
Title.” Book Title. etc…) and include the page range before the medium (… 110-118. Print.).

INTRODUCE SOURCES and use SIGNAL PHRASES

Unless you’re only using a source for one tiny fact, you should introduce its author (state
the credentials), the title, and even the publication or publication date if it seems relevant. The
following underlined phrases give an example:
In his New Yorker essay “Small Change: Why the Revolution Will Not Be Tweeted,”
popular author Malcolm Gladwell argues that the Internet is degrading the quality of social
activism.
Since you’ve included the author’s name right here—which refers your reader to the
Works Cited page—you don’t then need to use a parenthetical citation.

USE RELIABLE SOURCES

Sources like eHow, Helium.com, answers.com, Yahoo! Answers—all of which aggregate
information written by anonymous or pseudonymous writers or by site users—are not
authoritative or sophisticated enough to rely on for critical analysis or information. Sources like
scribd and reddit don’t publish original material, they aggregate material from elsewhere (or
serve as a point of access for unpublished material), so they shouldn’t be a listed as publication
or publisher. Instead, go to the original source.