PrePALS Writing

Research is academic and/or professional evidence that is acquired from credible sources (books, journals, articles, the internet, experts, professionals, magazines, etc.) that is used to support a claim or point.  

Research writing is writing that utilizes credible research to support a claim or point.

Example of a Research Process

A good research process should go through these steps:

1. Decide on the topic.
2. Narrow the topic in order to narrow search parameters.
3. Create a question that your research will address.
4. Generate sub-questions from your main question.
5. Determine what kind of sources are best for your argument.
6. Create a bibliography as you gather and reference sources.

Attribution:

Academic Writing I | Lisa Ford, Tompkins Cortland Community College

License: Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike .

Attributions:

"The Research Process" Youtube, uploaded by ECU Joyner (Library) 5 June 14, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6zEK3HdZDE

Permissions: YouTube Terms of Service

Use the matching activity below to test your understanding of each step in the research process.

Instructions:
Match each step in the research process (Column A) with its correct description (Column B). Write the correct letter in the blank.

Column A – Research Process Steps

1. ___ Decide on the topic
2. ___ Narrow the topic
3. ___ Create a research question
4. ___ Generate sub-questions
5. ___ Determine source types
6. ___ Create a bibliography

Column B – Descriptions

 A. Turn your main research question into smaller, focused questions to guide your exploration.
B. Pick a general subject area you want to explore in more depth.
C. Select what kinds of materials (e.g., scholarly articles, books, websites) best support your research.
D. Focus on a smaller, specific part of your topic to make your research manageable.
E. Form a clear, focused question your research will aim to answer.
F. Keep a record of the sources you use in a specific citation format (e.g., APA or MLA).

1. Choose a general research topic:
(E.g., Climate change, cyberbullying, artificial intelligence, physical therapy)

Topic:________________________________________________________________

2. Narrow your topic to focus your research:

• What specific aspect of the topic interests you?
   
• Why is this focus important?
   

Narrowed Topic:_______________________________________________________

3. Write a research question your paper will explore:

• Make sure it's clear, focused, and open-ended.
   

Main Research Question:________________________________________________

4. Develop 3 sub-questions to guide your research:
(These help you explore different angles of your main question and could potentially be used as the three sub-topics for your writing.)

• Sub-question 1:
   
• Sub-question 2:
   
• Sub-question 3:
   

5. Identify the types of sources you need:
Check all that apply and consider why you chose them.

☐ Scholarly articles
☐ Books
☐ Government reports
☐ News articles
☐ Expert interviews
☐ Websites (reputable)

6. Begin creating a Works Cited/References page:
List at least 3 credible sources you plan to use. Use correct citation format (APA/MLA as assigned).

Source 1:

Source 2:

Source 3:

 Reflection Questions:

• What challenges did you face in narrowing your topic or forming your research question?
   
• How will your source types strengthen your argument?