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For the sake of organization, you will include subheadings for each section of your paper. You must have a section for each
of the following topics (though you may have additional sections):
COLLEGE OPTION:
-School History and Traditions
CAREER OPTION:
-History/Background of the Profession
-Education Requirements
-Career Opportunities
-Advancement Opportunities
Your research paper must be 1000 words in length. Your paper must be typed in MLA format, double spaced,
and written in 12-point Times New Roman font. The final draft will be submitted to turnitin.com.
PRESENTATION AND SPEECH: You need to prepare presentation (with visual aid) to share in class and a speech on your
school that will last 3-5 minutes. Your visual aid may be digital (PowerPoint, Prezi, etc.) or it may be a Free Standing (3fold Poster Board). You will only be allowed to use two 3x5 index cards when delivering your speech, so you need to be
well prepared in order to receive full credit.
Your speech should include:
COLLEGE OPTION:
-Important school information such as the
requirements for admission, the population of the
student body, the possibilities for admission, how
many apply each year, how many get in, and the
average test scores needed for admission.
-Information about the campus, campus life, school
history, and any other interesting facts.
-A major, degree, or area of concentration in which
you may be interested in pursuing. Do a detailed
analysis of the courses which will be required for this
major and discuss the professional possibilities which
will be open to you with this degree.
-Potential careers that you may be interested in
pursuing along with relevant information pertaining
to that career path.
CAREER OPTION:
-Information about the history of the profession and
interesting facts about the field.
-The application process for this profession.
-Important school information such as the education
requirements for your profession (like special
certifications or training), the average entry-level
pay, the salary ceiling for the profession, the
possibilities for advancement, and any other relevant
information pertaining to the acquisition of the job.
-Your future goals within that profession (focus on
advancement) and the necessary steps you will need
to take to reach your goal (training, certification,
years on the job, etc.).
Name:
PROCESS POINTS:
Annotated Bibliography
THESIS STATEMENT
012345
/15
Revised
All sources cited correctly
All sources in alphabetical order
MLA format (if not, -10)
/10
First Draft
/5
Peer Review
/10
/5
900-1200
/15
Highlighted/Annotated
DEDUCTIONS:
Deductions for Errors (Grammar/Usage)
DEDUCTIONS:
Plagiarized Material (Rewrite/Max Grade = 50)
Essay Note in MLA Format (-10)
ESSAY GRADE
=
Academic Achievement
/40
Formatted correctly
Citation and Annotation included
PERSONAL INTERVIEW
GATHERING INFORMATION FROM A LIVING, BREATHING SOURCE
One requirement for this research project is that you conduct a personal interview as one of your
sources. A personal interview is listed on your Works Cited/Annotated Bibliography just like any
other source.
1. Locate an intelligent, informed source who can answer questions that you may have about your
future career or major in college.
2. Create a list of questions that your source can LOGICALLY ANSWER.
3. Contact the person to request an interview.
4. Conduct the initial interview (either in person or through email).
5. Develop follow-up questions for clarification on any information that you may need.
6. Synthesize the information gathered from this source onto note cards for use in your paper.
Interview Checklist:
Identify willing participants.
Verify names, job title, or other demographic information.
Prepare questions (you must have at least 15 questions).
Get permission to use quotes and to use real names or pseudonyms.
Make note of the date (and location if in-person) of the interview.
Be sure to ask all the questions you planned, but be prepared to ask follow-up questions as
needed.
MLA FORMAT
CITATION AND BIBLIOGRAPHIES
MLA FORMAT FOR CITATION:
In order to create an annotated bibliography, you need to know how to cite your source using the MLA
format. You can also go to my website to find a link to an MLA information page. In addition, I have
numerous handbooks in my classroom that detail the MLA format. However, I am going to give you a
few examples of common sources here for your reference.
Your Annotated Bibliography will be turned in BEFORE your research paper. You will also include a
Works Cited page at the end of your research paper (the last page). For a Works Cited Page, you only
need to list the citations.
BASIC RULES
Begin your Works Cited page on a separate page at the end of your research paper. It should have
the same one-inch margins and last name, page number header as the rest of your paper.
Label the page Works Cited (do not italicize the words Works Cited or put them in quotation
marks) and center the words Works Cited at the top of the page.
Double space all citations, but do not skip spaces between entries.
Indent the second and subsequent lines of citations five spaces so that you create a hanging indent.
List page numbers of sources efficiently, when needed. If you refer to a journal article that
appeared on pages 225 through 250, list the page numbers on your Works Cited page as 225-50.
Note that MLA style uses a hyphen in a span of pages.
Use the phrase Edited by for editors and Translated by for translators of sources.
Use the phrase Accessed or Accessed on for the date of access for electronic sources.
th
MLA 8 edition requires writers to provide URLs (without the http://), DOIs, or permalinks
for electronic sources. For long URLs, break lines only at slashes.
LISTING AUTHOR NAMES
Entries are listed alphabetically by the author's last name (or, for entire edited collections, editor
names). Author names are written last name first; middle names or middle initials follow the first
name:
Burke, Kenneth
Levy, David M.
Wallace, David Foster
Do not list titles (Dr., Sir, Saint, etc.) or degrees (PhD, MA, DDS, etc.) with names. A book listing an
author named "John Bigbrain, PhD" appears simply as "Bigbrain, John"; do, however, include suffixes
like "Jr." or "II." Putting it all together, a work by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. would be cited as "King,
Martin Luther, Jr.," with the suffix following the first or middle name and a comma.
BOOK:
Author (Last Name, First Name). Title of Book. Publisher, Year.
Example:
Heller, Nancy G. Why a painting is Like a Pizza: A Guide to Understanding and Enjoying Modern Art.
Princeton UP, 2002.
ENTIRE WEBSITE:
Editor, author, or compiler name (if available). Name of Site. Version number, Name of
institution/organization affiliated with the site (sponsor or publisher), date of resource creation (if
available), URL, DOI, or permalink. Date of access (if applicable).
Examples:
The Purdue OWL Family of Sites. The Writing Lab and OWL at Purdue and Purdue U, 2008,
owl.english.purdue.edu/owl. Accessed 23 Apr. 2008.
Felluga, Dino. Guide to Literary and Critical Theory. Purdue U, 28 Nov. 2003,
www.cla.purdue.edu/english/theory/. Accessed 10 May 2006.
A PERSONAL INTERVIEW
Personal interviews refer to those interviews that you conduct yourself. List the interview by the name of
the interviewee. Include the descriptor Personal interview and the date of the interview.
Example:
Purdue, Pete. Personal interview. 1 Dec. 2000.
A YOUTUBE VIDEO
Video and audio sources need to be documented using the same basic guidelines for citing print sources in
MLA style. Include as much descriptive information as necessary to help readers understand the type and
nature of the source you are citing. If the authors name is the same as the uploader, only cite the author
once. If the author is different from the uploaded, cite the authors name before the title.
Examples:
8 Hot Dog Gadgets put to the Test. YouTube, uploaded by Crazy Russian Hacker, 6 June 2016,
www.youtube.com/watch?v=WBlpjSEtELs.
McGonigal, Jane. Gaming and Productivity. YouTube, uploaded by Big Think, 3 July 2012,
www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkdzy9bWW3E.
PARENTHETICAL CITATIONS
BASIC IN-TEXT CITATION RULES
In MLA style, referring to the works of others in your text is done by using what is known
as parenthetical citation. This method involves placing relevant source information in parentheses
after a quote or a paraphrase.
GENERAL GUIDELINES
The source information required in a parenthetical citation depends (1.) upon the source medium
(e.g. Print, Web, DVD) and (2.) upon the sources entry on the Works Cited (bibliography) page.
Any source information that you provide in-text must correspond to the source information on
the Works Cited page. More specifically, whatever signal word or phrase you provide to your
readers in the text, must be the first thing that appears on the left-hand margin of the
corresponding entry in the Works Cited List.
IN-TEXT CITATIONS FOR PRINT SOURCES WITH KNOWN AUTHOR
MLA format follows the author-page method of in-text citation. This means that the author's last name and the
page number(s) from which the quotation or paraphrase is taken must appear in the text, and a complete
reference should appear on your Works Cited page. The author's name may appear either in the sentence itself or
in parentheses following the quotation or paraphrase, but the page number(s) should always appear in the
parentheses, not in the text of your sentence.
Example:
Wordsworth stated that Romantic poetry was marked by a "spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings" (263).
Romantic poetry is characterized by the "spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings" (Wordsworth 263).
Wordsworth extensively explored the role of emotion in the creative process (263).
Both citations in the examples above, (263) and (Wordsworth 263), tell readers that the information in the
sentence can be located on page 263 of a work by an author named Wordsworth. If readers want more
information about this source, they can turn to the Works Cited page, where, under the name of Wordsworth,
they would find the following information:
Wordsworth, William. Lyrical Ballads. London: Oxford U.P., 1967. Print.
Example:
Human beings have been described by Kenneth Burke as "symbol-using animals" (3).
Human beings have been described as "symbol-using animals" (Burke 3).
These examples must correspond to an entry that begins with Burke, which will be the first thing that appears on
the left-hand margin of an entry in the Works Cited:
Burke, Kenneth. Language as Symbolic Action: Essays on Life, Literature, and Method. Berkeley: U of
California P, 1966. Print.
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In this example, since the reader does not know the author of the article, an abbreviated title of the article
appears in the parenthetical citation which corresponds to the full name of the article which appears first at the
left-hand margin of its respective entry in the Works Cited. Thus, the writer includes the title in quotation marks
as the signal phrase in the parenthetical citation in order to lead the reader directly to the source on the Works
Cited page. The Works Cited entry appears as follows:
"The Impact of Global Warming in North America." Global Warming: Early Signs. 1999. Web.
23 Mar. 2009.
For a source with more than three authors, use the work's bibliographic information as a guide for your citation.
Provide the first author's last name followed by et al.
Examples:
Jones et al. counter Smith, Yang, and Moore's argument by noting that the current spike in gun violence in America
compels law makers to adjust gun laws (4).
Legal experts counter Smith, Yang, and Moore's argument by noting that the current spike in gun violence in
America compels law makers to adjust gun laws (Jones et al. 4).
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SOURCE:
The Purdue OWL Family of Sites. The Writing Lab and OWL at Purdue and Purdue U, 2012. Web. 7 Mar. 2013.
<http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/>
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ANNOTATION
Once you have your sources printed and your citations completed, you need to begin annotating the source. As
you annotate your sources, focus on the information that you want to use in your research paper.
-READ the source. This seems obvious, but it is an important first step that
many students skip.
-Highlight text that you want to DIRECTLY QUOTE. Do not highlight
everything. Focus only on what you actually want to include word-for-word in
your paper.
-Paraphrase in the margins. You cant quote everything in the source. Most of
the information you will need to paraphrase in your own words. Take the time to
paraphrase in the margins of your sourcethis will save you time later and help
you avoid plagiarism.
HELPFUL HINTS:
1. AVOID REDUNDANCY. Have your note cards in front of you while you research.
When you find a good source or helpful information, write it down on the cards
RIGHT AWAY! This will help direct your research.
2. PRINT OUT YOUR SOURCES. Locating direct quotations can be easy if you
highlight as you are reading through the information. You cannot do that if you
are reading directly from the screen. This is especially helpful if you do not have
internet access at home.
3. PUT EFFORT IN YOUR ANNOTATIONS. Writing your research paper will be a
snap if you put a little effort into the annotation of each source. Once you have
all of your sources printed out and your textual evidence selected, your research
paper (and your outline) is practically written for you!
4. CONDUCT A MEANINGFUL INTERVIEW. Come up with good questions that will
help you in your research. It is best to do interviews over email (if possible).
Politely ask the person you interview BEFORE you start asking questions.
5. ASK FOR HELP. When you hit a wall and you are not sure where to go, ask for
help! There is a whole school full of teachers who went to college. If you arent
sure what you need to look for, ask someone!
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ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY
It Is Not as Scary as it Sounds
Creating an annotated bibliography calls for the application of a variety of intellectual skills:
concise exposition, succinct analysis, and informed library research.
First, locate and record citations to books, periodicals, documents, and webpages that may
contain useful information and ideas on your topic. Briefly examine and review the actual items.
Then choose those works that provide a variety of perspectives on your topic.
Cite the book, article, or document using the MLA style. (See the MLA citation guide)
Write a concise annotation that summarizes the central theme and scope of the book, article, or
webpage. Include one or more sentences that (a) evaluate the authority or background of the
author, (b) comment on the intended audience, (c) compare or contrast this work with another
you have cited, or (d) explain how this work illuminates your bibliography topic.
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Tuna 1
Charlie Tuna
Mrs. Oualline
English III
13 March 2009
Annotated Bibliography
Lamont, Anne. Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life. New York:
Anchor Books, 1995. Print. Lamont's book offers honest advice on the nature of
a writing life, complete with its insecurities and failures. Taking a humorous
approach to the realities of being a writer, the chapters in Lamonts book are wry
and anecdotal and offer advice on everything from plot development to jealousy,
from perfectionism to struggling with one's own internal critic. In the process,
Lamont includes writing exercises designed to be both productive and fun.
A FINAL NOTE
You should note that the information I have given you in this handout is only a sample to help
you understand MLA and how to use this format for your research paper. The examples for
citation only include some of the possible styles (there are many, many more). For more
information, you should do a little research on your own. You are very fortunate to live in an
age where information is only as far away as the click of a mouse. The most effective
knowledge is that which is acquired on your own. While I am happy to guide you and point you
in the right direction, you must take ownership of your own learning.
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OUTLINE
YOUR PLAN OF ATTACK FOR THE RESEARCH BEAST
I am not requiring a complex outline for this research project. However, you need to
have a plan.
The first thing you should do is organize your Note Cards by section.
You can set aside the citation cards. You no longer need these because you have
already completed your Annotated Bibliography.
Once you have you have your cards grouped by section, you need to put them
together in the order that you plan to use the information in your research paper.
After you have each section organized, you are ready to begin your outline.
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FONT: For my class, you are required to write in 12-point, Times New Roman font.
SPACING: You will need to set your document to double spacing. You also need to Remove Space After
Paragraph in the line spacing options.
HEADER: You will need to set your header to include your last name and the page number justified to the right
of the page. Click Insert and select Page Number. You want to use Style 3 and then type your name.
MLA Heading: You should already have this ingrained into you being. If not, you can look at the example that
has been on my board all year long.
TITLE: Every essay or paper you write should have a title. This is your chance to influence your audience (that
would be me) before she begins to read (or grade) your paper. Titles should be creative and not boring or generic.
BEGIN TYPING: You do not need to enter any extra spaces. You should only hit Return once every time you
start a new paragraph. Each paragraph should be indented.
PARENTHETICAL CITATION: Each time you use a source (whether directly quoted or paraphrased), you
must make a parenthetical citation to note that the ideas expressed come from an outside source (that is, outside of
your head). You do this by putting the authors name and page number in parenthases at the end of the citation.
Example: (Lamont, 6) Failure to provide proper citation is PLAGIARISM.
Green 1
V. Beth Green
Dr. Yang
English 412
04 August 2003
The Influence of a Powerful Queen in Shakespeares Comedies
Queen Elizabeth I of England is one of the most fascinating characters in British history.
The Golden Age of her reign coincides with the English Renaissance and the careers of great
English playwrights William Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe, and Ben Johnson. Shakespeares
use of the powerful woman in his comedies is reflective of his powerful Queen. In Much Ado About
Nothing and The Taming of the Shrew, the presence of the strong woman and the ways with which
she is dealt by the men around her is influenced by the life of Queen Elizabeth, the relationship she
held with her court, and the political and social issues which encompassed her reign.
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Tuna 1
Charlie Tuna
Insert page # and last
name in header
Mrs. Oualline
English III
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FORMATTING QUOTATIONS
SHORT QUOTATIONS
To indicate short quotations (fewer than four typed lines of prose or three lines of verse) in your text, enclose the
quotation within double quotation marks. Provide the author and specific page citation (in the case of verse,
provide line numbers) in the text, and include a complete reference on the Works Cited page. Punctuation marks
such as periods, commas, and semicolons should appear after the parenthetical citation. Question marks and
exclamation points should appear within the quotation marks if they are a part of the quoted passage but after
the parenthetical citation if they are a part of your text.
For example, when quoting short passages of prose, use the following examples:
According to some, dreams express "profound aspects of personality," though others disagree (Foulkes 184).
According to Foulkes's study, dreams may express "profound aspects of personality" (184).
Is it possible that dreams may express "profound aspects of personality" (Foulkes 184)?
LONG QUOTATIONS
For quotations that extend to more than four lines of verse or three lines of prose, place quotations in a freestanding block of text and omit quotation marks. Start the quotation on a new line, with the entire quote
indented one inch from the left margin; maintain double-spacing. Only indent the first line of the quotation by
an additional quarter inch if you are citing multiple paragraphs. Your parenthetical citation should
come after the closing punctuation mark. When quoting verse, maintain original line breaks. (You should
maintain double-spacing throughout your essay.)
For example, when citing more than four lines of prose, use the following examples:
Nelly Dean treats Heathcliff poorly and dehumanizes him throughout her narration:
They entirely refused to have it in bed with them, or even in their room, and I had no more sense, so, I put
it on the landing of the stairs, hoping it would be gone on the morrow. By chance, or else attracted by
hearing his voice, it crept to Mr. Earnshaw's door, and there he found it on quitting his chamber. Inquiries
were made as to how it got there; I was obliged to confess, and in recompense for my cowardice and
inhumanity was sent out of the house. (Bronte 78)
When citing two or more paragraphs, use block quotation format, even if the passage from the paragraphs is less
than four lines. Indent the first line of each quoted paragraph an extra quarter inch.
In "American Origins of the Writing-across-the-Curriculum Movement," David Russell argues:
Writing has been an issue in American secondary and higher education since papers and
examinations came into wide use in the 1870s, eventually driving out formal recitation and oral
examination. . . .
From its birth in the late nineteenth century, progressive education has wrestled with the conflict
within industrail society between pressure to increase specialization of knowledge and of professional
work (upholding disciplinary standards) and pressure to integrate more fully an ever-widerning number of
citizes into intellectually meaningful activity within mass society (promoting social equity). . . . (3)
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If you omit a word or words from a quotation, you should indicate the deleted word or words by using ellipsis
marks, which are three periods ( . . . ) preceded and followed by a space. For example:
In an essay on urban legends, Jan Harold Brunvand notes that "some individuals make a point of learning every
recent rumor or tale . . . and in a short time a lively exchange of details occurs" (78).
***Please note that brackets are not needed around ellipses unless adding brackets would clarify your use of
ellipses.
FINAL NOTE
You MUST include both direct quotation and paraphrasing from your sources and all
information that comes from your sources must be properly cited (with parenthetical
citation).
HOWEVER, remember the 70/30 RULE for Research Papers. Only 30% of your
research paper may be directly quoted from outside sources. The other 70% should be
written IN YOUR OWN WORDS. The purpose of a research paper is not to merely
regurgitate information from your sources. You are to SYNTHESIZE the information and
ANALYZE what you have learned. This is a complex process that requires you to use
your own knowledge. There is no short cut, no substitute for quality research. Poor
efforts receive poor grades.
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LETTERS
I am presenting you with the block format for drafting a business letter. This is not the only
format for letters, but it is the most formal and the one I am requiring you to use for this
assignment. See a sample below.
Sample Letter
201 Main Street
Franklin, TX 77856
Your Address
Todays Date
Salutation
My name is Jane Whitman and I am a junior at Franklin High School. I am currently working on
a research project over potential colleges and universities for my English class. I would
appreciate any information you are willing to send about St. Vincent College that will help me
with my research. Information about the history of the college, financial aid, scholarships,
course requirements, and entrance requirements would all be helpful. Also, I plan to major in
Astrophysics, so any information about the course work for that major would be appreciated.
Thank you for your time and I look forward to hearing from you soon.
Sincerely,
Respectful Closing
Your Signature
Jane Whitman
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ENVELOPES
As part of this assignment, you must bring a stamped and addressed envelope. The
envelope should be letter size. On your envelope, you need to include BOTH your name
and address and the name and address of the person to whom you are writing.
Your address goes in the top left corner. The address for the person to whom you are
writing should be centered in the middle of the envelope. The stamp goes in the top right
corner. Make sure your handwriting is legible. (You can choose to type the addresses if you
want a more professional look.)
Sample Envelope
Jane Whitman
201 Main Street
Franklin, TX 77856
STAMP
Remember that we are actually going to mail these to the college. You want to put your
best foot forward, so you need to make sure that you are using formal language and proper
grammar and punctuation.
As I have said many times, this Research assignment is more for me than it is for you. The
more you effort you put in, the better off you are going to be when you are making your
post-high school plans.
I WILL EDIT YOUR ESSAYS BEFORE THEY ARE MAILED. IF THERE ARE
ANY ERRORS, I WILL ASK YOU TO MAKE CORRECTIONS!
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NAME:
Centered
12 point, Times New Roman Font
No extra space before or after
Subheadings
Parenthetical Citation
Title
Works Cited
a lot
very
good
great
big
okay
starting sentences with the words Well or
So or Now
To properly format direct quotation, You must make sure to put any
information that is directly quoted in quotation marks and follow
that direct quotation with parenthetical citation so I will know which
source the information comes from (Oualline).
When you paraphrase, you are putting information into your own
words and, therefore, not using ANY direct quotation. You must
still use parenthetical citation to note that the information comes
from another source (Ouallinator Times).
You should not use direct quotation that is longer than three
lines, but if you do, the quotation should be set off from the
rest of your paper in block format and you still have to use
parenthetical citation to note which source the information
comes from (OuallineRocks.org).
Your parenthetical citation should always be the shortest possible
way to give credit to the source. For your interview, this will be the
last name of the person you interviewed. For websites, it will be a
shortened version of the page title (English III).
Honor Statement:
By signing this page, I verify that I have written this RESEARCH PAPER myself. I have not plagiarized
other sources or another student in any of these assignments. I also verify that I understand how I will
be graded (the rubric) and have made every effort to improve my essays through revision.
25
PROCESS POINTS:
Annotated Bibliography
THESIS STATEMENT
012345
/15
Revised
All sources cited correctly
All sources in alphabetical order
MLA format (if not, -10)
/10
First Draft
/5
Peer Review
/10
/5
900-1200
/15
Highlighted/Annotated
DEDUCTIONS:
Deductions for Errors (Grammar/Usage)
DEDUCTIONS:
Plagiarized Material (Rewrite/Max Grade = 50)
Essay Note in MLA Format (-10)
ESSAY GRADE
=
Academic Achievement
26
/40
Formatted correctly
Citation and Annotation included