Gathering details

When writing a research paper, gathering details means gathering notes. Notetaking is a way of prewriting a research paper. I often have students come to me to say they do not know how to begin their paper. My first question is always, "What notes have you taken?" Invariably, the student hasn't begun taking notes. My response then is, "You can't know where to start writing until you know something about your subject. Go take notes." Be careful when taking notes. If writers are not careful during the notetaking stage, they can plagiarize their papers.

Discovering a purpose

When looking through notes to discover a purpose for writing about your subject, sift your notes through the SIRV: sift out those things about your subject which are Significant, Important, Relevant, or of Value. Often you will find several possible purposes for focusing your discussion. If you have plenty of material on one purpose or are writing a short paper, focus on just one. If you can't find much information or are writing a longer paper, you may select two or three related purposes to focus on or you may group similar purposes into categories which can become the focus of your paper.

Select and ordering details (notes) to fit a purpose

Probably the most useful tip for taking notes for a research paper is to use notecards. It is much easier to shuffle notes on notecards when trying to decide on the organization of a paper than marking sections on sheafs of notes written on notebook paper. Limit notes on notecards to specific topics. If the notes on cards fit broad categories, it will be harder to sort and shuffle the cards. I recommend that you list a heading on each card, in pencil, which indicates the topic. As you review and revise, you can change these pencilled headings. However, take your notes in pen--ink is much less likely to smudge and become unreadable.

Revision

When revising, sharpen your details by providing compelling evidence in support of your thesis from your notes (or, if necessary, extend your research to find additional supporting evidence). State your thesis clearly and concisely, focusing on what is significant, important, relevant, or of value.

Editing

A research paper is a formal document, so do not use contractions (c.f., use cannot, not can't). Never use second person pronouns (c.f., you) in a research paper, except where appropriate in quotations. As a rule, avoid first person pronouns (c.f., I) except where appropriate in quotations. Some teachers, including me, will allow you to make references to your own opinions, values, etc., in reference to you subject, but these comments should be limited to the conclusion or, possibly, the introduction, and should be sparing.

Format

Research papers have strict guidelines regarding format. Our paper must have a title page, outline, and works cited page. It must include parenthetical documentaion (tags). There are strict guidelines regarding pagination (page numbering), margins, and other physical features. We will be following the Modern Language Association (MLA) documentation style.