Research

Steps of the Research Process

(1) What is the problem? Select a general topic that interests you in some way and formulate a title.

The first step for any research paper is to formulate a question you want to answer. Being clear on the question makes it easier to formulate a research stragegy for finding the best information about this question.

Here are some examples of research questions:

• Is obesity in children a form of child abuse?
• What are the best inteventions for preventing youth violence in Asian urban communities?
• How can social workers best meet the needs of children of illegal immigrants?
• Are there proven ways to increase trust when urban communities become polorized?

When starting your research you may or may not have a clear question but by starting with an idea and formulating this idea into a question you will be able to review the literature already written on this topic which will likely help you to refine and narrow your questions or give you ideas for new research questions you may not have though about previously.

(2) What is the background?

Start your research with general background resources. This will help you to become familiar with the research history in the area related to your problem/question. Reading general background also helps researchers become familiar with terminology and jargon used in specific research areas. Knowing the words experts use will help you find to craft a better search when you begin searching for information in books and scholarly journals.

Examples of general resources to consider include:

• Subject Encyclopedias
• Textbooks
• Handbooks
• Newspapers

(3) Find the past and current research in the field.

Find information in the library and the Internet: videos, archives, special collections, journal titles, books and many other electronic resources. 

(4) Find the past & current research - articles.

The next step in the research process is to find scholarly journal articles appropriate to your topic. 

(5) Collect, evaluate critically and write. Quote and paraphrase.

(6) Classify information and write references in APA style
http://guides.lib.umich.edu/c.php?g=283022&p=1888206

APA style Manual:
http://flash1r.apa.org/apastyle/basics/index.htm 

Research Tips

1. Select a general topic that interests you in some way.
2. List key words to help you look up information about the topic.
3. Go to an encyclopedia, or other reference source, to get an overview of the topic.
4. Make source cards for whatever sources you will use for information.
5. Using the general overview, begin to focus the topic into something you can cover well.
6. Write a statement of purpose about the focused topic.
7. Brainstorm questions about the focused topic.
8. Group questions under similar headings.
9. Add any new questions you can think of under those headings.
10. Repeat step 2, listing more key words from your newly focused topic and questions.
11. Make a list of possible sources that can answer your questions. Identify the best sources to use.
12. Find the sources in the library, on the computer, etc. Make a source card for each one you use.
13. Begin making notecards. Use your brain stormed questions to guide your note taking.
14. Change your statement of purpose into a draft thesis statement.
15. Make an outline of your headings. 
16. Refocus your thesis statement if necessary.
17. Write the body of your paper from your notes.
18. Cite any necessary information with parenthetical citations.
19. Write your introduction and conclusion.
20. Write your Works Cited (it is similar to a bibliography).
21. Create a title page.
22. Evaluate your work.

The above information was retrieved from:
http://www.crlsresearchguide.org 
http://www.library.illinois.edu/learn/research/researchprocess.html

Sample research (sample only!)

Research Topics

http://www.myspeechclass.com/good-and-interesting-research-paper-topics.html

http://hbculifestyle.com/research-paper-topics-50-ideas/

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/research-topics-for-college-students.html

http://www.ereadingworksheets.com/writing/research-paper-topics/

In research, what is the difference between title and topic?

Research paper title is one of the major components of your research paper. It should be formulated so that the reader would get the idea of what he/she will be reading about. Sometimes students mix up 2 different notions – research paper topic and research paper title. Let us analyze the difference between them. 

Research paper topic is what you will be investigating. Research paper topic is either given by your professor or chosen by yourself. Usually students spend a huge amount of time on selecting the topic they are interested in. Research paper topic is the wider notion. It presents the area of investigation. 

Research paper title is the formulation of the area of your investigation. The purpose of research paper title is to attract the reader’s attention. That is one of the reasons why research paper title should be laconically formulated. Have you ever wondered why you get a real desire to read the article in any magazine? Do you not think that it is a psychological trick of attracting your attention? Well, you can do just the same with your research paper title. Formulate it so that the reader will be involved into reading your research paper. 

The list given below presents the examples of good research paper titles: 

• Juvenile delinquency as the result of television
• Death penalty – is it beneficial or unfavorable?
• The TV impact on the modern society
• The controversial character of Napoleon Bonaparte
• The controversial character of Ch. Darvin’s theory
• More examples...

One more thing you should remember about your research paper title is that it should be formatted correctly. In order to format your research paper title you may apply to research paper examples or ask your professor about correct formatting of your research paper title.

Source:
https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090725072540AAxMZIA

Note Taking Suggestions

Here are some suggestions for developing your own note taking system:

1. Begin a filing system using one or more loose-leaf sheets, cards, or a computer file for each book or article read.
2. Record full bibliographic information at the top of each page, card, or computer file. You can number each one if you wish.
3. Record a page number for each note taken.
4. Differentiate quotations, paraphrases, and own comments. (Remember you will need to acknowledge the ideas of others using appropriate referencing conventions.)
5. Use abbreviations, symbols, etc. to compress notes as much as possible. (But make sure you are familiar enough with these shortcuts to understand your own notes in six months' time.)

A good note taking system will include other features such as:

1. Wide margins on both sides of notes (for additional comments and cross-referencing)
2. Topic label for sorting notes later (e.g. using keywords of essay topic).
3. Labels for main points and sub-points to show logical structure (e.g. numbering/letters/underlining).

Read more...



A Guide to the Exam Process

Research question

• This can be set by each college/team leader and will aid the need to produce different exam questions. 
• Students will need to take notes on the question they have been given or the question they have developed with their teacher. 
• Students should be given no more than 2 weeks prior to the exam date to accumulate as much information about their answer to the question.

Reading and notes for exam

• Students should take structured notes on readings
• Notes should not contain summaries of readings or chunks of essay style paragraphs
• Students may copy down their sources and any direct citations they find useful 
• Students should also prepare their end references.

Exam set up

• Students are given 150 minutes to write their paper
• Word count is from 500-600 words excluding references
• Students use their notes with references and citations.

Note taking front page

Please submit your notes with the following cover page:

Notes for Final Assessment

Topic: Problems of memory, learning and academic success

Student name:

Student ID:

Student signature: ………………………………..

Instructor: 

Date: