Once Upon a Research Project

One of the biggest problems students have is choosing a "do-able" topic for research. Now that research season is upon us for the new semester classes, it's time to think about the way projects are assigned and taught.

(Uh, oh. Here goes that blasphemous librarian again, changing up the way it's always been done. If change bothers you, this might be a good time to stop reading.)

Traditionally, and I mean back to when my grandmother went to school in the 1920-30s and probably even earlier, a paper was written through the following steps:

1. Choose a topic.
2. Write a thesis statement.
3. Research to find facts to support the thesis statement.
4. Compile the facts into paragraph format, with an introduction and a conclusion.
5. Add the bibliography/works cited page.
6. Turn in the paper after proofreading it for spelling, grammar, and mechanics. (There may be a rough draft/second draft/final draft portion if the teacher requires it.)

HOWEVER, is this the most effective and efficient way to research and write a paper?

What if a student can't find articles to support the thesis? Can they change it? Now they have lost days possibly of time to work on the paper.

What if they get frustrated and feel they are incapable of being successful at research? Will they eagerly embrace the next project, or will they be on a downward spiral of negativity?



There is a different way to approach the start of research, but it requires a new mindset. The specific topic/thesis cannot be expected to be known before research begins. This new process looks like this:

1. Identify a BROAD main topic (too broad for a research paper: i.e.: illegal drugs, sports, music industry)
2. Read TWO database articles on your topic to help identify TWO subtopics of current issues involving that topic.
3. Write those two subtopics in the form of questions. (Is smoking pot dangerous to your health? Should their be salary caps for professional athletes?)
4. Find FIVE items of evidence, take notes, and record the citations for EACH subtopic. This means five note cards for each subtopic, helping to answer the questions.
5. After looking at the notes, create a claim using ONE of the subtopics. A claim is a statement that can be defended using your evidence. If the student discovers the two subtopics can be linked together into a single claim, that is perfectly acceptable.
6. After creating a claim, start researching to find more evidence to defend it.

But why change what's been done, quite literally, for a century or longer?

Well, for starters, it makes more sense to know what's out there with regards to research material BEFORE getting into the heart of the research process. Why waste time starting a topic, only to learn it's un-doable?

That leads to the frustration factor: when a student gets frustrated at the start of the research process, the negative feelings are infused into the process itself. Then, for the next research project, the student automatically is unenthused and gives a half-hearted attempt OR no attempt at all! This is not acceptable!

We want students to understand that research is not some horrible, aggravating process to suffer through. Instead, it can be, and should be, and enjoyable learning experience! (Although whether or not they enjoy creating a works cited page is left to another blog post.)