Requirements: The paper should be 3 – 5 pages in length. The font must be 12-point Times New Roman, double-spaced with default Microsoft Word margins (1.25’’ left and right). Please include page numbers and a cover page. You must cite your work using either the Chicago Manual of Style or MLA format, and include a bibliography. File format should be in either
.docx or .doc (Microsoft Word).
For more information of the Chicago Manual of Style, visit:
http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide.html
For more information on MLA, visit: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/
Your paper must contain information from at least three sources of evidence. Two of these sources must be scholarly books, and the remainder may be comprised of newspaper articles, peer-reviewed journals, document collections, presidential papers, etc. If you would like to use information from a website, please check with your Teaching Assistant or the professor to ensure the website is appropriate for an academic project – but remember that the idea of this assignment is to engage in research rather than simply searching the internet for information. Please note that Wikipedia is not an acceptable source to use for this paper and will not count toward the required two sources.
Grading Criteria: Papers will be assessed on the quality of your argument, the use of sources/evidence, spelling and grammar, and formatting (this includes citations). See the final page of this handout for a rubric which details the methods used to grade the paper.
Guidelines: The following guidelines should ensure that you meet the above grading criteria. For a typical research paper – the “who,” the “what,” the “where,” the “when,” and the “why” – these are the most basic elements. When you write your paper, keep these requirements in mind and double-check to make sure each is represented in your final draft.
Who: This question may seem simple if you are covering a king, but what if you are covering a movement (ex. political revolution in the West) or a time period (ex. the 15th century) or an event (ex. the Spanish Inquisition)? Who led the movement? Who was at the event? It is important that you clearly define who is involved with your topic. Do not state that “people” felt a certain way or that “people” wanted change. Be specific, and avoid generalities. “People” is about as general as you can get. Remember, you are trying to make arguments about history, trends, and events. Being able to define ‘who’ is crucial in understanding and analyzing history. This also goes for your citations. If you are commenting on or using the words of a political scientist, historian, social critic, analyst, or another reputable source, make sure you specific who they are and why we should take them seriously.
What: Be sure to describe the event, controversy, or debate that you are covering. While you should not spend a great deal of time on summary, there has to be some description of the problem or situation. This helps provide context, explaining to your audience what happened and why it is something to be studied in depth.
What, Part 2: What are you trying to say? What is your argument? You have researched your topic. Make a bold argument and support it with evidence! This is the most crucial part of the research paper. Examples of poor arguments: “Government helps people”; “I don’t like Henry VIII”; “the Americans are good” Those are not arguments at all because
they simply make overgeneralized statements or are only reciting dates and facts. Appropriate alternatives might be: “The role of the government in America evolved over time and reflected changes and beliefs of the citizenry”; “Western philosophy was significant – but problematic – in Europe”; “Henry VIII made a series of decisions that led to problems for his subjects.”
Where: It may appear to be basic information, but geography can play an important role in discussing your topic. Say you are comparing the American and French revolutions. It would be valuable to note the geographical variations that may affect these entities. Make sure the reader knows where you’re talking about.
When: Again, think about this in terms of providing context. Make sure you situate your topic in terms of its chronology. This is especially important as governments, rulers, and empires – and subsequent political trends, concepts, and ideas – have changed over time. What else was going on? Situate your argument in both time and space.
Why: Literally, why is your topic important? Why should the reader care? Why is it significant enough to research? This is the most basic question historians and political scientists have to ask themselves when they set out to write a book, dissertation or article. In this research paper, you are a scholar. You need to convince your reader that your topic is worth talking about through strong arguments and evidence.
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Exceptional |
Average |
Poor |
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Argument: How well |
Paper makes a clear |
Paper makes an |
Paper makes no |
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constructed is the |
argument which |
argument which may be |
argument, lacks |
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argument? Is it clear |
discusses a point of |
unclear or lacks focus. |
substantive attempts to |
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throughout the paper? |
analysis. Paper is |
However, the argument |
provide a clear thesis. |
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Does it make an |
supported by evidence. |
is generally consistent |
May simply be a |
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analytical point? |
40 pts |
throughout the paper. 30 |
recitation facts about an |
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pts |
event. |
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0 – 20 pts |
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Use of Evidence: Does |
Paper makes clear use |
Paper makes use of |
Paper makes little or no |
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the paper support the |
of evidence, with no |
some evidence, though |
use of evidence. |
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argument with |
less than three sources, |
at least three sources are |
Evidence is not |
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evidence? Are there |
two of which are |
used. May not be |
appropriate for an |
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clearly three sources? |
scholarly books. |
scholarly. |
academic paper. |
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Are the sources |
30 pts |
20 pts |
0 – 15 pts |
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appropriate? |
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Spelling and |
Paper is error-free and |
Paper may have minor |
Paper is written |
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Grammar: Has the |
the writing has been |
grammatical errors. |
carelessly with several |
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paper been proofread? |
well-crafted and |
Writing is generally |
errors. |
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Is it largely error-free? |
thoughtful. |
consistent. |
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10 pts |
5 pts |
0 pts |
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Formatting (citations, |
Paper is properly |
Paper is formatted |
Paper has major |
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spacing, etc.): Is the |
formatted. Citations are |
correctly for the most |
formatting errors, may |
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paper double-spaced? |
found in footnotes or |
part. Citations may be |
not be double-spaced, |
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Are the Chicago-style |
endnotes. The paper is |
parenthetical or may be |
and may not contain any |
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citations (or some |
written in an academic |
incorrectly added, but |
citations. Paper is |
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comparable academic |
tone. Paper is the |
are present. Paper is |
written in a |
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system) used? Is the |
appropriate length. |
written in an academic |
conversational or |
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paper in a suitable font- |
20 pts |
tone. Paper is the |
informal tone. Paper |
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type? Is the paper more |
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appropriate length. |
may be shorter than |
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academic or |
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10 pts |
required. |
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conversational? Is the |
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0 – 10 pts |
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paper at least 5 pages in |
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length? |
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