To prepare for your Final Research Project (due in Week 5), complete the following written assignment and then submit it to your instructor for feedback. Start your work by examining the instructions and requirements found in the Week 5 Final Research Paper assignment guidelines. This assignment has the following components:
First: Write a draft of your introduction, including your preliminary analytic thesis statement. The introduction must
- Be a full paragraph in length.
- Define your topic with precision, based on the parameters found in the Week 5 Final Research Paper assignment guidelines.
- Explain the historical context most directly relevant to your topic.
- Compose a preliminary thesis statement for the Final Paper.
If you need assistance in developing your thesis, please visit the Writing a Thesis Statement (Links to an external site.) page provided by the Ashford Writing Center.
Next: Create an annotated bibliography that includes five scholarly secondary sources (not including the assigned text for the course) and one primary source.
- Students are encouraged to research scholarly articles using the Ashford University Library (e.g. JSTOR) and scholarly books (e.g.. Ebrary), in accordance with university policy on acceptable source use.
- Many links to relevant primary sources can be found in the following resource:
Fink, Stephanie. “Atlantic World History: Sources to Support the Study of Atlantic World History (Links to an external site.).” Accessed February 15, 2016. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1cVb0RvD0A9azvCgK9xkeISg0l_v5xby4aNjaoTVa2ys/edit#heading=h.ml9asl4g9utg. - Each source should be immediately followed by its annotation.
- An annotated bibliography is comprised of:
- A list of your selected sources cited in APA or Chicago Manual of Style.
- A one-to-two paragraph summary of each source
- Secondary Sources:
- Identify the author’s thesis or the central focus.
- List two or three main points the author makes to back up the thesis or central focus.
- Identify a distinguishing feature of this study, such as
- type of sources examined,
- theoretical approach,
- methodology, and
- author’s position regarding a key historiographic debate associated with the topic.
- Explain how this source can supply evidence for your final project.
- Primary Source:
- Identify the type of source.
- List information on the author(s) of the source.
- List information about when and where the source was created.
- Identify purpose for which piece was originally written.
- Identify the audience toward whom the piece was originally directed.
- Explain the historical significance of the source with regard to the topic of your final project.
- Secondary Sources:
Prior to completing this portion of the assignment, please view the Quoting, Paraphrasing & Summarizing (Links to an external site.) page, located in the Ashford Writing Center.
For an example of an annotated bibliography entry formatted according to APA standards, see the Ashford Writing Center: http://writingcenter.ashford.edu/annotated-bibliography (Links to an external site.)
Lastly: Create an outline or synopsis of at least three main points that will support your thesis statement, indicating how you will structure your final project. To do so, please follow the guidelines at the Ashford Writing Center for creating an outline: http://writingcenter.ashford.edu/outlining (Links to an external site.)
- For each main point, write at least one TOPIC SENTENCE—a topic sentence is like a mini thesis statement. (For help developing strong topic sentences, visit the Ashford Writing Center material on writing good paragraphs: Step 2: Develop a Topic Sentence (Links to an external site.).)
- For each main point, identify and list at least one specific example drawn from the sources listed in your annotated bibliography, indicating which sources you will use.
The Final Paper Proposal
- Must include a separate title page with the following:
- Title of paper
- Student’s name
- Course name and number
- Instructor’s name
- Date submitted
- Must use at least five scholarly secondary sources, in addition to the course text, and one primary source.
- The Scholarly, Peer Reviewed, and Other Credible Sources (Links to an external site.) table offers additional guidance on appropriate source types. If you have questions about whether a specific source is appropriate for this assignment, please contact your instructor. Your instructor has the final say about the appropriateness of a specific source for a particular assignment.
- Must document all sources in APA style, as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center, or according the Chicago Manual of Style.
- Must include a separate reference page, formatted according to APA style, as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center, or the Chicago Manual of Style.
For guidelines regarding the Chicago Manual of Style, see the following resources:
- Purdue Online Writing Lab: Chicago Manual of Style 16th Edition (Links to an external site.)
- The Chicago Manual of Style Online (Links to an external site.).
- The Writer’s Handbook: Chicago/Turabian Documentation (Links to an external site.)
- Chicago Manual of Style: Documentary Note or Humanities Style (Links to an external site.)
Carefully review the Grading Rubric (Links to an external site.) for the criteria that will be used to evaluate your assignment.