2nd Lecture , 3 October 2017
1.3 Types of Research Paper
College research papers vary according to their length and presentation of content:
According to the length, undergraduate students papers probably written within five to ten pages. In our Department, a graduation paper, for instance, is preferably written in no more than twenty pages. This is equally true for post graduate students (PhD, and M.A.) candidates term papers during the courses (works that summarize, criticize and draw conclusions from existing literature on a topic of interest so as to illustrate mastery of the work of a term or semester). When they write their theses and dissertations, these candidates write several hundred pages. In Iraq, an M.A. thesis should not excel two hundred pages. A PhD dissertation should be written in no more than four hundred pages.
According to the presentation of content, two main types of research papers are used at university: the report and the persuasive(or thesis ) papers.
A report is an organized presentation of information about a subject, without an argumentative stance on the part of the writer. The writer collects, evaluates, organizes, and objectively restates the information found during research. Some judgment or evaluation is involved during research and in selecting information to be presented, but the presentation overall is intended to be objective rather than persuasive. Reports can present generally accepted facts, information about a process, and opinions about a subject. They present information as objectively as possible so that readers can make judgments or decisions for themselves. A report s writer is not going to argue or try to persuade the reader.
A persuasive paper, on the other hand, presents an idea (or thesis ) that needs support. As with a report, the writer collects, evaluates, organizes, and restates information, however, the overall presentation is intended not just to report on that information but to persuade readers to see the information in a particular way. Although persuasive papers also use both generally accepted facts and the opinions of others about a subject, they use them to support some arguments. This type of papers requires the writer to synthesize supporting evidence into some sort of conclusion. It makes the research worker more actively involved with the information found during research.
Since your papers are fresh and original, you won t be able to merely summarize what someone else has written. You ll have to synthesize information from many different sources to create something that is your own. So, a research paper is not
• just a collection of facts on a topic
• a summary of information from one or more sources
• merely reporting what others have said
For example, "chronology of Hardy s life and writing" is not suitable as a subject for a research paper because it does not argue a point. A suitable argumentative paper about the same author may be "Thomas Hardy is the greatest English novelist of his era" because it argues a point(see Rozakis, 2007:4-5).
A persuasive paper shows your instructor that you can gather, evaluate and synthesize information; in short, that you can think. Most college instructors, therefore, emphasize this kind of papers in their courses, that is what this course emphasize. So, persuasive papers are not limited to M.A. and PhD theses. They are the preferable kinds in all academic papers (term papers, graduation papers, etc.). It is suggested that all effective research papers meet the following ten criteria:
1. Successful papers stay tightly focused on their thesis, the point they are arguing.
2. The paper shows that the writer has a strong understanding of the topic and the source material used.
3. It shows that the writer has read widely on the topic, including the works of recognized authorities in the field.
4. The paper includes an acknowledgement of the position but shows why the point being argued is more valid.
5. Proof for the paper s thesis is organized in a clear and logical way.
6. Each point is supported by solid, persuasive facts and by examples.
7. The work is original, not plagiarized. Every outside source is carefully documented.
8. All supporting material used in preparation of the paper can be verified.
9. The paper follows specific format, including the use of correct documentation and a Works Cited Page.
10. The Paper uses standard written English. (see Rozakis (ibid)).
المادة المعروضة اعلاه هي مدخل الى المحاضرة المرفوعة بواسطة استاذ(ة) المادة . وقد تبدو لك غير متكاملة . حيث يضع استاذ المادة في بعض الاحيان فقط الجزء الاول من المحاضرة من اجل الاطلاع على ما ستقوم بتحميله لاحقا . في نظام التعليم الالكتروني نوفر هذه الخدمة لكي نبقيك على اطلاع حول محتوى الملف الذي ستقوم بتحميله .
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