Research Paper Instructions:
A. General Steps to Writing Your Research Paper:
1. Decide on a topic.
Pick your topic by selecting:
-a subject that interests you
-a subject that you know something about and want to learn more on
-by looking at the index of your text and/or looking through the pages of your book
-Make sure it is something from US History from 1492 to 1865
Example: You decide to write on the life of General Robert E. Lee from the American Civil War.
2. Find sources on your topic.
Go to the library and begin researching your topic by:
3. Establish a theme/thesis for your paper.
Your research should help you develop a theme. For example, after reviewing sources on your topic you notice that there seems to be different schools of thought. Some books take a very favorable view of Lee and his generalship like:
Gordon C. Rhea, The Battle for Spotsylvania Court House and the Road to Yellow Tavern, May 7-12, 1864 (Baton Rouge:
Louisiana State University Press, 1997).
Albert Castel, The Historian and the General: Thomas L. Connelly Versus Robert E. Lee, Civil War History, 16 (1970), pp.
50-63.
Gary W. Gallagher, Lee: The Soldier (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1996).
But others take a very negative view of Lees generalship like:
J.F.C. Fuller, Grant and Lee: A Study in Personality and Generalship (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1957).
Thomas L. Connelly, Robert E. Lee and the Western Confederacy: A Criticism of Lees Strategic Ability, Civil War History,
15 (1969), pp. 116-132.
You decide to name your paper, A Critical Examination of the Generalship of Robert E. Lee. Then evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the arguments by these scholars and come up with your own
conclusions.
4. Begin Taking Notes.
Take careful notes using index cards. Be sure to avoid plagiarism by putting the information in your own words, putting quotations marks around direct quotes, and giving credit to all the sources you cite.
5. Write an Outline of Your Paper.
This helps you to stay on target and maintain a well-balanced paper.
6. Write a Rough publish.
7. Write Your Paper Making Sure You Include the following
1. A strong introduction which establishes your theme or thesis.
2. Identification of the historical figure or topic by giving appropriate background and biographical information.
3. Utilization of proper spelling and grammar. Use the past tense unless your subject is still alive.
4. A strong conclusion that sums up the major points. Be sure to discuss your critical evaluations of the sources weighing their strengths and weaknesses. Make sure you also include your own observations, opinions, findings, and critical analysis.
5. The paper must be 5-7 typed pages, double-spaced with one inch margins. (Papers can be longer than 10 pages but not shorter than 7). Handwritten papers will not be accepted. Long quotes, footnotes (or endnotes) should be single spaced.
6. Number your pages. Page numbers may appear either at the top or bottom of each page.
7. Make an extra copy for yourself.
8. Late papers will not be accepted. No exceptions. No excuses. No sad stories accepted.
9. The font size for your paper should be 12 point. (Example: This document is typed in 12 point).
10. Print style should be Times New Roman or Courier New.
11. Use the Chicago Manual of Style which include proper footnoting or endnoting. That means click Reference and then Insert Endnote or Insert Footnote and then follow the example given on Moodle Do NOT use the MLA or APA style.
12. You MUST footnote the end of each and every paragraph unless the information in that paragraph is 100% original to you and you aloneotherwise, it is plagiarism.
13. The paper must include a bibliography at the very end listing a minimum of five scholarly book sources and one Internet source, and then you may use reference works, textbooks, encyclopedias, additional Internet sources, etc. Do not use Wikipedia. It is not a reliable source.