Researching and Selecting a topic
The research topic should be one that requires cumulative knowledge across grade levels and content areas. It should be a natural outgrowth of interest and combine skills of all, or most, content areas. For example, a student who researches the changes in the ozone layer is using cumulative knowledge from English, math, science, and history.
The research topic should be one that is broad enough to allow the student access to enough information, yet narrow enough to make the research scope reasonable. For example, a student choosing the topic First Aid would find it impossible to include EVERYTHING about first aid (home remedies, history of emergency services, the treatment of burns, how to stop bleeding, evolution of first aid courses, etc.) On the other hand, a student choosing the research topic The Application of Band-Aids to Skin Abrasions probably would not find enough information.
The research topic should be one in which the student is interested, but not one about which the student is already an expert. If a student has been a diabetic for ten years, worked closely with the Juvenile Diabetes Association, and has been a volunteer in the children’s diabetic ward in a local hospital, he or she probably already knows a great deal about the subject of juvenile diabetes. Unless that student pursues a new angle to diabetes, that topic might not yield much new learning.
The research topic should be one that is academically and creatively challenging to the student. The student should take care not to choose a topic that is limited to relatively simple ideas or one that has little application or extension possibilities. Making such a choice would relegate the essay, the product, and the presentation to the mundane and uninteresting. The topic should require an academic and creative s-t-r-e-t-c-h for the student.
The research topic should be one that can be developed into a product and presentation with ease. The student should begin thinking about how they might present their research both physically and verbally as they are developing their topic.
There are many search engines available for researching your topic:
NCWiseOwl: Find magazine,newspaper, and journal articles as well as copyright guidelines and copyright-friendly resources.
http://www.ncwiseowl.org
Select >High School Zone>InfoTrac Student
Password: wiseowl
SIRS®Researcher & Government Reporter: SIRS Researcher®
Covering the Leading Issues most studied &debated by students
SIRS® Government Reporter
Historic & Government Documents, Directories,and Almanacs
http://www.proquestk12.com
User ID: ardreykell
Password: knights
Select: GO TO: My Products Page
MLA Citations: http://www.easybib.com
CharlotteMecklenburg Library: http://www.plcmc.org
When choosing resources, be sure you are using valid, useful, and accurate sources:
For information on where to find a primary source: PURDUE OWL - PRIMARY SOURCE
For information on evaluating resources: PURDUE OWL - EVALUATING SOURCES
The research topic should be one that is broad enough to allow the student access to enough information, yet narrow enough to make the research scope reasonable. For example, a student choosing the topic First Aid would find it impossible to include EVERYTHING about first aid (home remedies, history of emergency services, the treatment of burns, how to stop bleeding, evolution of first aid courses, etc.) On the other hand, a student choosing the research topic The Application of Band-Aids to Skin Abrasions probably would not find enough information.
The research topic should be one in which the student is interested, but not one about which the student is already an expert. If a student has been a diabetic for ten years, worked closely with the Juvenile Diabetes Association, and has been a volunteer in the children’s diabetic ward in a local hospital, he or she probably already knows a great deal about the subject of juvenile diabetes. Unless that student pursues a new angle to diabetes, that topic might not yield much new learning.
The research topic should be one that is academically and creatively challenging to the student. The student should take care not to choose a topic that is limited to relatively simple ideas or one that has little application or extension possibilities. Making such a choice would relegate the essay, the product, and the presentation to the mundane and uninteresting. The topic should require an academic and creative s-t-r-e-t-c-h for the student.
The research topic should be one that can be developed into a product and presentation with ease. The student should begin thinking about how they might present their research both physically and verbally as they are developing their topic.
There are many search engines available for researching your topic:
NCWiseOwl: Find magazine,newspaper, and journal articles as well as copyright guidelines and copyright-friendly resources.
http://www.ncwiseowl.org
Select >High School Zone>InfoTrac Student
Password: wiseowl
SIRS®Researcher & Government Reporter: SIRS Researcher®
Covering the Leading Issues most studied &debated by students
SIRS® Government Reporter
Historic & Government Documents, Directories,and Almanacs
http://www.proquestk12.com
User ID: ardreykell
Password: knights
Select: GO TO: My Products Page
MLA Citations: http://www.easybib.com
CharlotteMecklenburg Library: http://www.plcmc.org
When choosing resources, be sure you are using valid, useful, and accurate sources:
For information on where to find a primary source: PURDUE OWL - PRIMARY SOURCE
For information on evaluating resources: PURDUE OWL - EVALUATING SOURCES