A DELICATE BALANCE

ELA 4000, Fall 2005

 

Research Article Analysis

 

            You must prepare three one to two page synopses of an outside article based on research related to your intended Final Research Paper.  You must find an article from a peer-reviewed journal that relates to the topic you have chosen.  Each synopsis must contain the following components:

  1.  A full and accurate citation utilizing an accepted format (e.g., MLA, APA, etc.). Put this at the start of the synopsis.

  2. A statement of what research question the article would help to answer?  Put this after the citation at the top.

  3.   A brief summary of the information contained in the article on the issue being considered (model this after the précis papers).

  4. If you were to conduct additional research, what area would you investigate further?

 

You will be graded on these assignments utilizing the following criteria: 

 

SCHOLARLY            (From Cornell http://www.library.cornell.edu/okuref/research/skill20.html#scholarly)

Scholarly journals generally have a sober, serious look. They often contain many graphs and charts but few glossy pages or exciting pictures. Scholarly journals always cite their sources in the form of footnotes or bibliographies. 

Articles are written by a scholar in the field or by someone who has done research in the field. 

The language of scholarly journals is that of the discipline covered. It assumes some scholarly background on the part of the reader.  

The main purpose of a scholarly journal is to report on original research or experimentation in order to make such information available to the rest of the scholarly world. 

Many scholarly journals, though by no means all, are published by a specific professional organization.

Timeline

First Synopsis: Due on September 15 (Thursday)

Second Synopsis: Due on October 17 (Monday)

Third Synopsis: Due on October 24 (Monday)