HISTORICAL RESEARCH PAPER

HISTORICAL RESEARCH PAPER

WRIT-110: An Historical Perspective

Format:  12-point Times New Roman, double-spaced.  The top left should contain your full name, course (WRIT-110), and semester (FALL 2018).  You should have a working title. Leave at least six lines from your title to the beginning of your paper.

Assignment description: You’ll produce a minimum 8-page research paper on anaspect of Marietta or Marietta College history. Your paper must be a critical analysis of your chosen topic. Start with something you are interested in. Ideally you will choose something that you are into but the rest of us might not yet know about. Your job is to help create a deeper understanding of your topic.

Your research should be supported with a minimum of 3 scholarly sources and 2 popular or primary sources. A scholarly source can be something you found in a book about your subject, or something that was written for a scholarly journal. A primary source would be material from the time period, or an interview with a knowledgeable person.

For example:

If you chose to do Rufus Putnam, your primary source could be letters he wrote pertaining to the founding of Marietta. Your secondary source could be any number of books written about him, and/or the founding of Marietta.

If your chose to do the Lafayette Hotel, your primary source could be an interview with the current general manager and documents from a specific time period, detailing such things as the construction of the hotel or any additions. Your secondary source could be a brochure or book about the hotel.

If you chose to do Marietta College baseball, your primary source could be newspaper clippings and/or an interview with the current head coach. Your secondary source material may be a book written about the program.

Chose a subject that you will be excited about, maybe something that you are familiar with yet would like to know more about.  For example, you might write a paper titled, “Marietta’s Significance in the Underground Railroad,” or “The Founding of Marietta: From a Tavern to Reality.”

There are several steps in the research production process, all of which must be completed for full credit. The component parts are the Proposal, Bibliography, Rough Draft,Peer Review, and Final Draft. While these writing assignments together represent a large portion of your grade, each step is an opportunity to chart your progress throughout the process of your paper (hopefully, also helping you produce a better grade and get through the mire of procrastination!).

1) Proposal/Abstract Thesis statementis due Tues 10/30: For this initial part of the assignment, you will produce a thoughtful thesis statement on a topic of your choice. Remember that you will probably modify your thesis.  Your proposal will be a page long and should detail what you hope to accomplish in your paper, outline the major themes, and identify how you plan to approach it.  In popular terms, this is the “blurb” that describes your paper for your reader/audience.  This stage of the project provides you instructor feedback and assistance before you start drafting.   Be sure to have a clear identifiable thesis.Your topic will and should change as your progress through your research journey. You will receive feedback on the appropriateness of your topic, whether the scale of the project is workable, and other practical matters. Total points: 25

2) A bibliography is due Tues Nov. 13: Abibliography lists the sources you are working with in your research.  Please follow correct MLA formatting as appropriate (YOU DO NOT NEED A COVER PAGE – save the paper). Total points: 25

3) Rough Draft due Thursday, Nov. 29 (Bring 3 copies, one for the instructor, 2 for peer review) Good writing is a process. An integral part of a good writing process is drafting and revision. Getting and giving feedback on writing in progress helps develop your individual writing project as well as your overall writing skill. The better developed your rough draft, the more useful the peer review will be. Your instructor will take and evaluate one. The other two are to exchange with classmates who will help identify the strengths of your draft and point out areas needing more development. You can use this feedback to guide the revisions leading to your final paper.  Total points: 50

4) Peer Review in mentor session (Thursday, Nov. 29). Bring in a rough draft of your paper. You will give and receive feedback on each other’s papers. Total points: 10

5) Final Draft is due Thursday, Dec. 6. Bring your final polished and well-edited paper to the final class period. Total points: 100

6) Presentation: At the final exam, you will be required to give a 5-8-minute presentation of your findings. This should be an extemporaneous presentation based on your familiarity with the subject matter. In other words, you are not READING VERBATIM from your final draft. That will cost you significantly in your points. You may provide a PowerPoint presentation, or slide presentation at this time, too.Total points: 40

Grading:You will be graded on adherence to MLA formatting (*without a cover page*), mechanics (such as spelling, punctuation, correct quotations, grammar), clear and concise writing, legitimacy of sources, use of research, depth of analysis, and ability to make your topic important under the theme of the class, “An Historical Perspective.”

TOTAL POINTS FOR ALL ASPECTS OF THE RESEARCH PAPER: 250