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Writing
and Talking About History > Resources for
Writing Papers > Elements of a Research Paper
Elements
of a Research Paper
In
general, the research paper is graded on what
a student demonstrates about his/her:
- research
skills,
- ability
to think critically about a topic and the sources
necessary to study and limit that topic,
- ability
to combine information and ideas into a focused,
organized, supported argument,
- ability
to write a grammatical, stylistic, mechanically
correct essay, and
- ability
to document and list sources accurately and
usefully.
Specially,
the research paper is graded on:
- title
page (clarity, usefulness, accuracy)
- title
(usefulness, accuracy)
- introduction
(specificity, clarity, appeal)
- thesis
(clarity, initial presentation, use throughout
paper, thoughtfulness, accuracy)
- arguments/evidence
(breadth, logic, quality, use)
- organization
(clarity, logic, consistency, within paragrahs,
in overall paper)
- focus
- mechanics
- sentence
structure
- punctuation
(usage, spacing)
- voice
(avoidance of passive)
- person
(avoidance of first and second)
- tense
(logic, consistency)
- spelling
- proofreading
- page
numbering (in text, in notes, and in bibliography)
- use
of Turabian, (chapters 2-6)
-
research (depth, breadth)
- xploitation
of sources (in notes, in text)
- documentation
(giving credit for ideas, facts, words)
- documentation
style
- reference
notes (first citations, subsequent citations)
-
content/explanatory notes (usefulness, accuracy,
form)
- format
(full page [endnotes]; end of page [footnotes])
- appendices
(if applicable)
- quotations
(appropriateness, logic, ellipses and brackets,
identification of authors,
- punctuation,
transition into text)
- conclusion
(thoughtfulness, appeal, appropriateness, usefulness)
- Honor
Pledge (on title page, last page of text, or
blank page at end of paper)
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