For your last paper in this class, you will write a research proposal of about 2,500 words on the same topic as PAPER 3.

A research proposal summarizes and critiques the published research on a topic (e.g., in a literature review) and then proposes new primary research that needs to be done in order to increase our knowledge on the topic in question.

PAPER 4 both is and is not a research paper.  Building on PAPER 3, you will do even more library research in PAPER 4 in order to gather, summarize, and critique the literature on your topic, but you will not actually do the research that you propose in the body of your paper.  You will simply propose doing it -- i.e., make an argument for doing it.

Your literature review from PAPER 3 will serve as the basis of PAPER 4.  You should, however, revise and/or expand what you wrote for PAPER 3 before including it in PAPER 4.  Your literature review from PAPER 3 will need to be customized to fit the rhetorical situation in PAPER 4.  Your review of the literature on your topic in PAPER 4 is the primary evidence that you are offering to argue that more research -- specifically the research that you are proposing -- is needed.  Everything you say in your literature review in PAPER 4 must therefore anticipate and support your argument for the primary research that you are proposing to do.

Your research proposal should be as detailed and specific as possible.  If you are writing on a science, education, or social science topic, you should propose a very specific experiment or study (with a concrete research question, methodology, and goal).  If you are writing on an artistic, historical, or literary topic, you should be very detailed about exactly what new information you propose to seek or to generate (e.g., what archival research you propose to do to clarify a particular passage in a literary work).

Your paper will be graded based on the same grading criteria for papers as PAPER 3.

I recommend that all students take advantage of the free tutoring services available through the Tutoring & Academic Enhancement Center.  Click here to go to the Center's homepage for more information.  For online assistance, go to the OWL (Online Writing Lab) at http://owl.department.tcnj.edu/.

Speech 2

Present the argument that you will be making in PAPER 4 to your classmates and your professor in a speech of 5-8 minutes.  This speech must be a “supported presentation,” that is, you must use something more than voice and gesture in the course of your speech.  You may use PowerPoint to create and show slides; you may use the blackboard; you may give everyone a handout that you’ve made.  Any option is acceptable, as long as you use some resource in your presentation other than your voice and your hands.  Be creative, but don't sacrifice substance.

Keep in mind that your speech will be graded based on my usual grading criteria for speeches.

Click here to go to the course syllabus.