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For this assignment, students will compose an investigative, narrative research essay as discussed in class based on any topic of their choice with one very important caveat: It MUST BE on a topic you’re curious about yet lack a definitive position on until AFTER the research journey has concluded. This IS NOT a paper where you declare your position at the beginning & then spend the entire paper proving why you’re “right.” The investigation will be unbiased & explore as many sides as possible in an objective manner. You WILL NOT create an “echo chamber” in your paper. Here is a link to the Purdue OWL website that describes what an investigative/exploratory paper is & how it works:
https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/common_writing_assignments/exploratory_papers/organizing_an_exploratory_essay.htmlLinks to an external site.
*Excerpts from Purdue OWL: “[Investigative] Exploratory essays are [somewhat] different from argumentative essays. In fact, an exploratory essay is likely different from any other essay you’ve written. Instead of writing to convince an audience of the validity of a thesis, you will be writing to find out about a problem and perhaps to form some preliminary conclusions about how it might be solved.”
THIS PAPER MUST BE NO LESS THAN FOUR FULL PAGES. Any papers that fall short of this length WILL NOT BE PROVIDED ANY FEEDBACK and will simply be awarded an INCOMPLETE grade. At that point, the student immediately forfeits the traditional post-grade revision opportunity and will instead use that time Respectfully, I ask that you do not attempt to manipulate the page in anyway just so you can meet the minimum. Your line spacing anywhere on within the document cannot be more than DOUBLE. Your margins cannot be more than ONE INCH all around. Do not begin your first page in the middle of the page. In general, don’t do anything to try and cheat the process because you will receive an incomplete grade. A sample MLA formatted essay will be posted for you to use as a visual guide. Make sure your paper looks exactly like that formatting-wise. The support/evidence for your argument will come from credible outside sources AS WELL AS your own experiences and basic knowledge. In terms of source limits, you’ll need to include at least FOUR outside sources with a maximum of EIGHT. Of course, this is negotiable if you find yourself REALLY into the paper topic & writing significantly more than the page minimum. I’m willing to allow students more sources if it gets to that point. All you have to do is ask & state your case. The support/evidence for your argument will come from credible outside sources AS WELL AS your own experiences and basic knowledge. In terms of source limits, you’ll need to include at least FOUR outside sources with a maximum of EIGHT. Of course, this is negotiable if you find yourself REALLY into the paper topic & writing significantly more than the page minimum. I’m willing to allow students more sources if it gets to that point. All you have to do is ask & state your case. You must use standard essay formatting that is appropriate to college-level writing (paragraphs, indents, transitions, introduction, thesis statement, body paragraphs, conclusion, etc.). Use proper MLA style for this and all writing assignments moving forward in this class. Information on MLA style can be found within the Little Seagull Handbook and Bedford Handbook (If you have it), as well as anywhere online. Here is the link to the Purdue OWL website which is very helpful: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/13/Links to an external site..
Because this is a research-based essay, a Works Cited Page is required (MLA Style).
You must explain your ideas in detail in order to make any clear claims.
Make sure your essay is written only in the first & third-person when appropriate. Do not use second- person (“You”). Also stay away from the use of “Us” and “We” if not appropriate.
PLAGIARISM
– Simply put, plagiarism of any kind will be penalized in accordance with the plagiarism policy found within the course syllabus (see syllabus). This policy is non-negotiable and no exceptions will be made.
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