Communications Class - Research Paper

 

 

 

MLA Formatting Guide
Please visit The Purdue Online Writing Lab For more information http://owl.english.purdue.edu/

Summary: MLA (Modern Language Association) style is most commonly used to write papers and cite sources within the liberal arts and humanities. This resource, updated to reflect the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (7th ed.) and the MLA Style Manual and Guide to Scholarly Publishing (3rd ed.), offers examples for the general format of MLA research papers, in-text citations, endnotes/footnotes, and the Works Cited page. Contributors:Tony Russell, Allen Brizee, Elizabeth Angeli, Russell Keck

Last Edited: 2018-11-24 - 18

General Format

MLA style specifies guidelines for formatting manuscripts and using the English language in writing. MLA style also provides writers with a system for referencing their sources through parenthetical citation in their essays and Works Cited pages.

Writers who properly use MLA also build their credibility by demonstrating accountability to their source material. Most importantly, the use of MLA style can protect writers from accusations of plagiarism, which is the purposeful or accidental uncredited use of source material by other writers.

General Guidelines

• Word process your paper and print it out on standard, white 8.5 x 11-inch paper.
• Double-space the text of your paper
• Paper should be written in Times New Roman font.
• The font size should be 12 pt.
• Leave only one space after periods or other punctuation marks.
• Set the margins of your document to 1 inch on all sides.
• Indent the first line of paragraphs one half-inch from the left margin. MLA recommends that you use the Tab key as opposed to pushing the Space Bar five times.
• Your heading should be typed – DO NOT USE HEADER OR FOOTER FOR THIS.
• Create a header that numbers all pages consecutively in the upper right-hand corner, one-half inch from the top and flush with the right margin. Omit the page number from the first page.
• Use italics throughout your essay for the titles of longer works ONLY.

 

 

Formatting the First Page of Your Paper

• Do not make a title page for your paper.
• For your heading (Do not use a “header” for this) type in the upper left-hand corner of the first page, list your name, your instructor's name, the course, and the date. Again, be sure to use double-spaced text.

Example:

John Smith

Mr. Bailey

Communications

5 February 2019

• For your title, hit “enter” ONCE after you finish the date on your paper. Center the title. Do NOT underline, italicize, or place your title in quotation marks. Write the title in Title Case (standard capitalization), NOT in all capital letters.
• Use quotation marks and/or italics when referring to other works in your title, just as you would in your text: Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas as Morality Play; Human Weariness in "After Apple Picking"
• Hit “enter” ONCE after your title and begin the first line of your introductory paragraph.
• Creating your page numbers:

~ Do this once you have typed at least TWO pages of your paper! Your page number

   will NOT show up on the first page of your paper.

~ Click the “Insert” Tab
~ Click the “Page Number” Icon
~ Chose the “Bottom of Page” and “Center” options
~ Then uncheck the box labeled “Show Number on First Page” (This will start your

   numbers on the second page and keep you from have the page number on your

   first page.)
~ Then click “Okay”.
~ It should look like the example that is at the bottom of this page.

 

 

MLA Guide for PARENTHETICAL CITATIONS

This information can be found at http://www.studyguide.org/MLA_format_parenthetical_citations.htm

General Rules for Parenthetical Citations:

USING AUTHOR NAME
The author of a source is always mentioned either in your text or in the parenthetical citation--unless no author is provided.

Author's name mentioned in text

Use the author's name in a single sentence to introduce the material. Then, cite the page number(s) in parentheses.

Example:

Pope was clear to point out that, although many of his ideas were idealistic, Rousseau held ambivalent feelings toward women (138).

Author's name not mentioned in text

When you do not include the author's name in the text, place the author's last name in the parenthetical citation before the page number(s). There is no punctuation between the author's name and the page number(s).

Example:

During World War I, British and American women could, for the first time, earn first-class pay for first-class work (Gilbert 236- 7).

More than one work by the same author(s)

If you use more than one work from a single author, when you refer to either of the sources, give the author's last name, an abbreviated title of the work, and the relevant page number(s). A comma separates the author's last name and the title; however, there is no punctuation between the title and the page number(s).

Example:

When calculating the number of homeless animals in the United States, the author comically stated that "Maybe man would not overrun the planet, but his pet poodles and Siamese cats might" (Westin, Pethood 6). She then further stated that there are fifty million homeless animals in the country (Westin, "Planning" 10).

Note: If you mention the author's last name in the sentence, you do not need to include the author's last name in parentheses.

Two authors with the same last name

If you use sources by authors with the same last name, always include the author's first and last name in the sentence or in the parenthetical citation.

Example:

Children will learn to write if they are given the freedom to choose their own subjects, Allison Faye argues, citing the city school council study of the early 1970s (42-51); however, Robert Faye believes that children will learn how to write regardless of their school subjects (102-115).

Two or three authors in a single source

If a source is written by two or three authors, place all of the authors' last names in the single sentence or in the parenthetical citation.

Example:

Richards, Jones, and Moore maintain that college students who actively participate in extracurricular activities achieve greater academic excellence because they learn how to manage their time more effectively (185).

or

The authors maintain that college students who actively participate in extracurricular activities achieve greater academic excellence because they learn how to manage their time more effectively (Richards, Jones, and Moore 185).

Four or more authors in a single source

If a source is written by four or more authors, use the first author's last name followed by "et al." (Latin for "and others") either in the single sentence or in the parenthetical citation. You can also name all of the authors in the single sentence or in the parenthetical citation.

Example:

Chazon et al. argued that ethnic groups are culturally based social organizations in which members have multiple identities (105-6).

or

The authors argued that ethnic groups are culturally based social organizations in which members have multiple identities (Chazon, Riley, Jacobs, and Rutherford 105-6).

 

 

SPECIAL CASES:

No author identified in a source

If you use a source that does not supply an author's name, substitute, by using the title or an abbreviated title, for the author's name in the sentence or in the parenthetical citation. In the citation, do not forget to include the page number(s) unless the source is one page or less in length. Be sure to italicize the title if the source is a book, and if the source is an article, place quotation marks around the title.

Example:

Goddess religions are thought to have originated somewhere between 25,000 and 7,000 BCE (When God Was a Woman).

Indirect quotations

If you are citing an author who was quoted by another author, include both names. First, give the name of the author whose words you are citing, followed by "qtd. in." Then, give the name of the author of the source you used. If you include the author whose words you are quoting in your text, you do not need to include the author's name again in your citation.

Example:

In last month's issue of Rolling Stone, Lenny Cravitz admitted that Jimmy Hendrix was an "extraordinary man" (qtd. in Riverwell 220).

Note: Whenever you can, try to take material from the original source and not from a secondhand one. Your credibility as a writer could suffer if you depend too heavily on secondhand sources.

Citing more than one work in single parenthetical reference

If you need to acknowledge two or more works in a single reference, cite each source as you normally would, but use semicolons to separate the reference.

Example:

Several critics have noted that Butler is unique in being a female African American writer who has excelled in the science fiction genre (Crossley xii; Salvaggio).

The Bible

If you are citing the Bible for any reason, you will need to acknowledge the title of the Bible, the book, and the verse. Keep in mind that some people do not believe the Bible to be a credible source. Be careful when using this – don’t make it your only source of validation for the point you are making.

Example:

Unfortunately, the president could not recall the truism that "Wisdom is a fountain to one who has it, but folly is the punishment of fools" (New Oxford Annotated Bible, Prov. 20:22).

 

 

ELECTRONIC CITATIONS:

In-Text (Parenthetical) Citations

Because Internet sources typically have no page or paragraph numbers, and Web sites in particular are often anonymous, people are often confused about how to refer to these sources within their papers. The answer is to cite the author's name whenever possible and use the source's title otherwise (or a shortened version of the title). If no page or paragraph number is provided in the document (NOT on your printer), leave that portion of the citation blank. Keep in mind that the primary purpose of an in-text citation is simply to point readers to the correct entry on the Works Cited Page.

Example:

Despite the many challenges she has faced on the Internet, the author still enjoys the "magic" of the MOO (Dibbell). If the electronic document does not have an author, use the title.

Example:

Each of the teletubbies has his/her own language acquisition level, and, because of this, a child can identify and progress to the next language level when the child feels comfortable ("The Inside Story").

Note: Do not cite page numbers from printouts because pagination may vary in different printouts.

REMINDERS

• Make parenthetical citations brief and accurate.
• To avoid long parenthetical citations, place reference information, such as the author's name, in your sentence.
• Place a citation as close to the relevant material as possible without disrupting the sentence.
• Use one citation at the end of a long section of material that comes from one source and the same page(s)--do not cite at the end of each sentence in this case.
• Parenthetical citations always go outside of a quotation and always before a punctuation mark, such as a period.

EXCEPTIONS:

1. If a quotation of over three lines, double indent the quotation, use no quotation marks, and place the parenthetical citation after the punctuation mark. Do not include a period after the parenthetical citation.

2. If a quotation ends with a question mark (?) or an exclamation point (!), include the given punctuation followed by a closing quotation, then insert your parenthetical citation, and insert a period after your parenthetical citation.

• Place the parenthetical citations in your essay as your write. Do not wait until the essay is finished.

 

 

Name___________________________________             Topic___________________________________

 

Researching Your Topic

 

 

Answer each of the questions below about your topic. In the blank space, create your own question about your topic and answer it.

 

WHO is the main figure in your topic?

 

______________________________________________________________________________

 

WHAT is this person known for during his/her time of influence/power?

 

______________________________________________________________________________

 

WHAT are three main ways this person impacted society?

 

______________________________________________________________________________

 

______________________________________________________________________________

 

______________________________________________________________________________

 

WHEN did this person live/reign?

 

______________________________________________________________________________

 

WHERE did the major events surrounding this person’s life/reign occur?

 

______________________________________________________________________________

 

WHY is this person still known/remembered today?

 

______________________________________________________________________________

 

HOW did this person come to power or gain a position of influence?

 

______________________________________________________________________________

 

______________________________________________________________________________

 

______________________________________________________________________________

 

 

Name: ______________________________________

 

Thesis Statement Generator

 

 

State the person you are writing about	...influenced society....	....by....	Give 3 reasons of how this person influenced society.

 

 

 

 

Name: _____________________________________

Assistance for Writing Your Research Paper
Answer the following questions in the blank provided. You will use the answers to create a rough draft of your paper.

 

I. INTRODUCTION - Identify paper topic and thesis:
a. Give a startling fact about your person.
b. Use an appropriate quotation (or paraphrased piece of info about the person.
c. Give some background information on your person.
d. Write your thesis statement here.
II. BODY PARAGRAPH 1 – Main idea of Body Paragraph #1:
a. List the first reason/item from your thesis statement.
b. Expand on the above statement.
c. Put a quote summary or paraphrased statement here that supports your first item. Don’t forget about your parenthetical citation!
d. Expand on how this above quote/paraphrased statement works towards supporting your topic.
e. Expand more on how this above quote/paraphrased statement works towards supporting your topic. You may want to include more research here if needed.
f. Now relate all of the information back towards your thesis statement. This is your concluding sentence.
III. BODY PARAGRAPH 2 – Main idea of Body Paragraph #2:
a. List the second reason/item from your thesis statement.
b. Expand on the above statement.
c. Put a quote summary or paraphrased statement here that supports your second item. Don’t forget about your parenthetical citation!
d. Expand on how this above quote/paraphrased statement works towards supporting your topic.
e. Expand more on how this above quote/paraphrased statement works towards supporting your topic. You may want to include more research here if needed.
f. Now relate all of the information back towards your thesis statement. This is your concluding sentence.

 

 

IV. BODY PARAGRAPH 3 – Main idea of Body Paragraph #3
a. List the third reason/item from your thesis statement.
b. Expand on the above statement.
c. Put a quote summary or paraphrased statement here that supports your third item. Don’t forget about your parenthetical citation!
d. Expand on how this above quote/paraphrased statement works towards supporting your topic.
e. Expand more on how this above quote/paraphrased statement works towards supporting your topic. You may want to include more research here if needed.
f. Now relate all of the information back towards your thesis statement. This is your concluding sentence.
V. CONCLUSION - Summarize paper and restate your proven thesis
a. What is the main idea of body paragraph 1?
b. What is the main idea of body paragraph 2?
c. What is the main idea of body paragraph 3?
d. Restate your thesis.
e. Explain how to your thesis has now been proven and how you have answered your topic question based on your research.

 

 

 

Writing Good Paragraphs

Introductory Paragraph

• Grab the reader’s attention Introduce your topic
• State your argument
• State your thesis statement

Body Paragraphs

• Transition your reader into your first piece of evidence/reason from your thesis statement for paragraph #1. Do the same thing for each remaining paragraph while moving (in order) through your thesis statement
• Provide support for your thesis statement – use quotes & factual pieces of information
• Show your research and how it supports each reason
• Give a conclusion that relates all evidence back to your topic

Closing Paragraph

• Restate the main ideas from each one of your body paragraphs
• Restate your thesis statement
• Show that you have proven your point/thesis

 

Writing Good Sentences

Common Mistakes I See in Your Writing That You Need to Avoid

• Incomplete Sentences/Fragments
  * Make sure your sentence has a subject!
• Incorrect Usage of Commas or Semi-Colons
  * Watch how you use your commas in a series.
  * Make sure you place a comma before a conjunction if you are combining two complete sentences.

* You can combine two complete sentences with a semi-colon.

• Spelling Errors
  *If you do not know how to spell it, LOOK IT UP!
• Ending a Sentence with a Preposition
  * You cannot end a sentence in a preposition.
• Capitalization Errors
  * The first letter in a sentence should always be capitalized. Proper nouns should also be capitalized.
• Run-on Sentences
  * Separate the sentence with a period or follow your comma rules.
• Errors in Punctuation
  * PLEASE PUNCTUATE THE END OF YOUR SENTENCES CORRECTLY!

 

Transition Words

In addition to the use of pronouns and the repetition of key words, the choice of an appropriate connective often provides a useful clue to the relationship of ideas. These transitional words and expressions can be conveniently grouped according to the kind of relations they express.

Transitions which can be used to SHOW LOCATION:

 

                above                   among                  beneath               in front of            on top of

                across                   around                 beside                  inside                    outside

                against                  away from           between             into                        over

                along                     back of                 beyond                near                      throughout

                alongside              behind                  by                         off                        to the right (or left) of

                amid                      below                   down                    onto                     under

                here                      opposite to         adjacent to           next to                 on the opposite side

                               

Transitions which can be used to SHOW TIME:

 

about                    now                       in the past           consequently       after a few days

after                      first                        until                      soon                      then

at                           second                 meanwhile          later                       next

before                  third                      today                    afterward              as soon as

during                   prior to                tomorrow           immediately         when

suddenly             yesterday             finally                    next week             in the meantime

thereafter           presently             at length              at once                   eventually

 

Transitions which can be used to COMPARE TWO THINGS:

 

                in the same way                               likewise                                               as

                after                                                    like                                                      similarly

                in like manner                                  for instance                                        for example

                in addition                                        furthermore                                       too

 

Transitions which can be used to CONTRAST THINGS:

 

                but                                        even though                                     in contrast                           on the contrary

                still                                        even so                                               instead                                however

                or                                           in spite of                                          otherwise                           counter to

                as if                                       nevertheless                                     as opposed                         although

                even if                                  at the same time                              on the other hand             yet

                conversely                           not withstanding                              rather than                         unlike

 

Transitions which can be used to EMPHASIZE A POINT:

 

                again                                    in any event                                       as has been noted               that is

                to repeat                             indeed                                                 in other words                     for this reason

                to be sure                            in fact                                                  truly                                       to illustrate

 

 

                 

Transitions which can be used to CONCLUDE OR SUMMARIZE:

 

                finally                                    thus                                                     to sum up                            in short

                in conclusion                      accordingly                                          consequently                      on the whole

                in summary                        in brief                                                  all in all                                due to

                therefore                            as a result                                             by and large                       in the end

 

Transitions which can be used to ADD INFORMATION:

 

again                                     and                                                        next                                      furthermore

also                                        besides                                                likewise                                moreover

finally                                    equally important                              additionally                          for example

as well as                              in addition                                           together with                      along with          

further                                  even more important                        for instance                          too

first                                        second                                                 another                                 along with          

 

 

Transitions which can be used to CLARIFY:

 

                that is                                  put another way                               to clarify                            for example

                for this purpose                for instance                                        stated differently             in other words                 

 

 

Of course, the connectives listed above and others like them can help the reader only when they are properly used. Transitional devices are like road signs – one that points in the wrong direction is worse than no sign at all.

 

 

MLA Guide for Creating Your Works Cited Page

 

Things to Know:

• The Works Cited page includes ALL of the sources you have cited in your paper.
• The Works Cited page is the very last page of your paper.
• It follows the same MLA formatting as the rest of your paper (i.e. page numbers, font, double spaced, margins, etc.).
• The title to your Works Cited Page should be 1” from the top of the page and should be centered. It should say “Works Cited.” Please see the example below.
• You will press enter ONCE after typing “Works Cited” and begin your sources.
• All sources are listed in alphabetical order (typically by the authors last name or the title if that is not made available to you) – not in the order that they appear in your paper.
• You will indent ONLY THE LINES AFTER THE FIRST LINE of each source entry on your page. Please see the example below.
• To indent the second or third lines of an entry, follow the instructions below.

1. With your cursor, highlight the text that carries over past the first line.
2. Make sure that you can see the page ruler by clicking on the top right-hand corner of your screen. It’s a little white box right above the bar that scrolls up and down the right side of your document.
3. Once the “ruler” is showing, you will see two blue triangles sitting on top of each other (connected by their points) on the left side of the ruler.
4. Click on ONLY THE BOTTOM TRIANGLE and drag it over to the tick mark that is half-way to the number 1 on the ruler. This should indent only the lines that you have highlighted. If you do this after the very first entry that runs longer than one line, it will automatically do that for all future entries that you type (that run longer than one line).

• Make sure each entry on your Works Cited page follows the specific guidelines given to you for each source. Use your “MLA Style (Format) for Citing Sources” handout for assistance on how to write each source on your Works Cited page.

 

 

______________________________________________________________________________

Works Cited

"Business Coalition for Climate Action Doubles." Environmental Defense. Environmental Defense Organization, 8 May 2007. Web. 24 May 2007.

Clinton, Bill. Interview. New York Times on the Web. New York Times, May 2007.Web. 25 May 2007.

Dean, Cornelia. "Executive on a Mission: Saving the Planet." New York Times on the Web. n.p., 22 May 2007. Web. 25 May 2007.

 

 

MLA Style (Format) for Citing Sources

Book by a Single Author

Last Name, First Name. Title of Book. Place of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication. Medium of Publication.

Gleick, James. Chaos: Making a New Science. New York: Penguin, 1987. Print.

Book by Two Authors

Last Name, First Name, and First Name Last Name. Title of Book. Place of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication. Medium of Publication.

Gillespie, Paula, and Neal Lerner. The Allen Bacon Guide to Peer Tutoring. Boston: Allyn, 2000. Print.

Book by More than Three Authors

Last Name, First Name, et al. Title of Book. Place of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication. Medium of Publication.

Block, Holly, et al. Art Cuba: The New Generation. New York: Abrams, 2001. Print.

Book with an Editor (no author)

Last Name, First Name, ed. Title of Book. Place of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication. Medium of Publication.

Hallam, Linda, ed. Garden Style: Decorating Ideas for Indoor and Out. Des Moines, Iowa: Meredith Corp., 1999. Print.

Article in a Magazine

Last Name, First Name. "Title of Article." Title of Periodical Day Month Year: Pages. Medium of Publication.

Poniewozik, James. "TV Makes a Too-Close Call." Time 20 Nov. 2000: 70-71. Print.

Article in a Newspaper

Last Name, First Name. “Title of Article.” Title of Newspaper Day Month Year: Pages. Medium of Publication.

Pogue, David. “When Laptops go Light.” New York Times 26 Mar. 2009: B1+. Print.

Article in an Encyclopedia

Last Name, First Name. “Title of Article.” Title of Encyclopedia. Year ed. Medium of Publication.

Ainsley, David G. “Penguin.” The World Book Encyclopedia. 2007 ed. Print.

 

Article in an Anthology, Reference, or Collection

Last Name, First Name. "Title of Work." Title of Anthology, Reference, or Collection. Ed. Editor's Name(s). Place of Publication: Publisher, Year. Medium of Publication.

Horton, Hayward Derrick. “The Effects of Occupational Discrimination.” Reference Library of Black America, Vol. III. Ed. L. Mpho Mabunda. Detroit. MI: Gale Research Inc., 1997. Print.

An entire Web Site

Editor, Author, or Compiler Name (if available). Name of Web Site. Name of Institution/Organization affiliated with the Site (Sponsor or Publisher), Date of Resource Creation/Revision (Day Month Year). Medium of Publication. Date of Access (Day Month Year).

Poland, Dave. “The Hot Button.” Roughcut. Turner Network Television, 26 Oct. 1998. Web. 28 Oct. 1998.

The Purdue OWL Family of Sites. The Writing Lab and OWL at Purdue and Purdue U, 2008. Web. 23 April 2008.

An Article on a Web Page (in a Web Magazine)

Editor, Author, or Compiler Name. “Title of Article.” Name of Web Site. Name of Institution/Organization affiliated with the Site (Sponsor or Publisher), Date of Resource Creation/Revision (Day Month Year). Medium of Publication. Date of Access (Day Month Year).

Bernstein, Mark. "10 Tips on Writing the Living Web." A List Apart: For People Who Make Websites. A List Apart Mag., 16 Aug. 2002. Web. 4 May 2009.

A Page on a Web Site

Editor, Author, or Compiler Name. “Title of Page.” Name of Web Site. Name of Institution/Organization affiliated with the Site (Sponsor or Publisher), Date of Resource Creation/ Revision (Day Month Year). Medium of Publication. Date of Access (Day Month Year).

"How to Make Vegetarian Chili.” eHow.com. eHow, n.d. Web. 24 Feb. 2009.
Note: Remember to use n.p. if no publisher name is available and n.d. if no publishing date is given.

 

 

Things That Should NEVER Be Seen in Your Research Paper

 

Your Opinion!

 

A formal research paper is about the RESEARCH! It is NEVER about your opinion; therefore, you should never include statements like, “I think” or “I feel” or “I believe.”

 

Personal Pronouns

 

Again, the research paper is about the RESEARCH. It is not about you or what you think. It is also not a “letter” to your reader. The only time you can ever have a personal pronoun in your paper is if you are using it in a direct quotation. Therefore, words like “I, me, you, us, we” should never appear in sentences that you create.

 

Addressing the Reader of Your Paper

 

This paper is not a letter to your reader. You should never have statements like “I am writing to tell you about....” or “In this paper you are going to read about....” or “How would you feel if....”

 

Contractions

 

In a formal paper, you do not use contractions (i.e. can’t, won’t, don’t, shouldn’t, haven’t, etc.).

Something that has nothing to do with your topic.  Do not include random quotes, facts, thoughts, etc. that have nothing to do with the topic and the thesis of your paper. Make sure that you are always striving to support your thesis statement with everything that your write.

 

Errors in Grammar

 

Obviously, perfection is often impossible to obtain; however, that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t strive for it when writing. Please do the best you can to keep your paper free from spelling errors, incomplete or run-on sentences, errors in capitalization or punctuation, and so on. Pay attention to what you are writing and PROOFREAD!!!

 

Plagiarism

 

Plagiarizing is where you take something that someone else wrote or said and you write it in your paper as if you were the person that originally thought or said that statement. Always give credit where credit is due! It is perfectly ok to paraphrase research that you find that is something someone else said – in fact that is what you SHOULD do. However, when you do that, make sure that you give credit to the person or source from which you got your information. A plagiarized paper = a ZERO!

 

Creative Fonts or Formatting

 

MLA has a very strict format. Do not change to creative fonts or different size fonts in your paper.

 

Everything is written in 12pt, Times New Roman font. The only time that something should be italicized is because it is the title of a work and italicizing is the necessary punctuation for that title. Nothing should ever be typed in bold font. Your entire paper should be double-spaced throughout the entire work.

 

 

Rough Draft – Peer Edit Sheet

Name of Author: _________________________________________________________

 

Name of Evaluator: _______________________________________________________

 

Format – Times New Roman Font, 12pt, Double-spaced, 1” Margins?

Heading Correct? (student’s name, teacher’s name, name of class, date written month-day-year

[ex: February 2, 2018).

Page number at top right on all pages (except the first page)?

Does the introduction give you an idea of what the paper is about without going to into great detail?

Thesis Statement – Can you identify it? Is it in the correct location? Does it follow the guidelines of the paper topic?

1st Body Paragraph – does this identify and explain the writer’s 1st reason to support their belief? Are there citations in this paragraph? Is the period on the outside of the parenthesis?

2nd Body Paragraph – does this identify and explain the writer’s 2nd reason to support their belief? Are there citations in this paragraph? Is the period on the outside of the parenthesis?

 

3rd Body Paragraph – does this identify and explain the writer’s 3rd reason to support their belief? Are there citations in this paragraph? Is the period on the outside of the parenthesis?

Conclusion – Can you identify the re-worded thesis? Is it in the correct place?

Mechanics & Grammar – check for spelling, grammar, punctuation, run-ons, and so on.

 

Were contractions used?

Were personal pronouns used?

Was this paper easy to understand?

Works Cited Page – are there at least 3 sources?

Is the author’s last name & page # at the top?

Are their indentions placed correctly?

What was especially good about this paper?

What suggestions do you have that would make this paper better?

 

 

 

 

Name _____________________________ Period _____________ Grade: _________________ / 150pts.

 

Writing Assignment: The Research Paper

Evaluation Scale:     Column 1 = Not at all      Column 2 = To some extent      Column 3 = Successfully

 

Introduction/ Thesis Statement

 

• The introduction has an interesting beginning/ attention grabber.                    3     6     10

 

• The introduction clearly states the thesis statement.                                         5    10    15

 

Support and Elaboration

 

• The writer clearly and thoroughly elaborates on the controlling                      5    10    15    

idea and other general statements with facts, examples, quotations,

and other kinds of evidence.

 

Organization

 

• The research paper is clearly and logically organized.                                     5    10    15

 

Conclusion

 

• The writer ends the paper by clearly refocusing on the controlling idea.         3     6    10    

 

• The paper ends in a satisfying, “feels finished” way.                                       3     6    10

 

Sources

 

• The writer presents accurate information from at least three                            5    10    15

sources and acknowledges all sources used in the paper.

 

Style/ Format

 

• The research paper clearly follows MLA style for documenting sources.        5    10    15

 

• Paper is double-spaced with appropriate margins, heading, pagination,           5    10    15

and title; font is 12-Times New Roman in black ink.

 

Language

 

• The writer refrains from using personal pronouns and contractions                 5    10    15

in this formal paper.

 

Spelling, Grammar, Usage, and Mechanics

 

• The research paper is relatively free of any errors in spelling, grammar,         5    10    15

usage, and mechanics.

 

 

Total Points                                                                                  ______________________ / 150