write a research essay

The Audience and Purpose Identify your audience. Who are you trying to convince? Who can do something about this issue? With this audience in mind, critically read about and extensively research a topic, considering what information from your selected sources are important to defend and explain your thesis. Your goal is to persuade your audience that your argument or explanation the optimal one. Project The Research Essay What is it? This final essay in English 112 provides you with an opportunity to showcase the skills you have learned in this class: critically reading and annotating sources, analyzing your audience, developing a clear, argumentative thesis, thinking logically through your argument, supporting your claims by connecting sources, creating relevant counterarguments, and correctly documenting sources. Since these skills are foundational to academic writing, you are required to develop and write a researched essay in order for you to get a final grade in this class. How is this different from the other essays? The researched essay assignment is similar in purpose to the synthesis essays (to create an organized, developed argument or explanation of your own, and use outside sources to support your ideas). However, in the researched essay, you will be asked to come up with an issue and to locate sources on your own. No topic discussion will occur in class! The Format Your essay should be typed in Times New Roman (or a similarly proportioned font), size 12. It must also be double-spaced with one-inch margins on all sides. Pages must be numbered with your last name and page number in the upper right-hand comer - or at least a page number. Your essay must have a title but no title pages are required. In addition, be sure to include a Works Cited page using proper MLA format for the sources you will be using. Finally, don't forget to also cite ALL sources in your essay! Your assignment this time is to write a researched essay of 7-10 pages using 6-10 sources. Your sources should be varied, reputable, and credible for your topic. You will also have the opportunity this time to conduct a survey or an interview for use in this essay, though it is not required. We will also be doing an in-class workshop after rough drafts are handed back to aid you in completing this project. Essay Components 1. Title 2. Introduction-Use the introduction to set the stage for your argument. 3. Thesis Include a focused, arguable, and defendable thesis that relates your position on the topic you have chosen. 4. Claims/Reasons/Causes/Solutions Support all parts of your thesis with argumentative reasons /causes/solutions; these should be explicit in your topic sentences. 5. Support-Synthesize information from your sources to provide clear and relevant support for your claims. Fully integrate your sources into your paragraphs. 6. Counterarguments Consider what objections might be raised about your thesis and address them fully. 7. Correct MLA Documentation Document anything that isn't your own opinion or common knowledge. 8. (If needed) Appendices-Include interview questions and answers, survey and results, observation notes, etc. (if you used them)