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MS Research Portal: Plan

Plan

What is a Research Project?

 

A Research Project is:  A Research Project is Not:
  • The final product of research, study, critical thinking, reflection, organization, and composition
  • A work that changes as the author explores and interprets the best minds in a field
  • An engagement with sources that allows the author to come to a conclusion based on evidence
  • Of course, stays within assignment constraints
  • An overview of a subject
  • A "book report" or an editorial
  • A summary of what you found
  • Quote after quote after quote after quote
  • A summary of what you already believed

Choosing a Topic

General Guidelines

  • Begin with a research question/thesis question, but know this will very likely change, mutate, and evolve as you research. 
  • Even if topics are constrained, try to start with something you know and are passionate.  If you do not care, the reader will know.
  • Questions should be clear, focused, concise, and complex. 
  • Is able to be argued.  Topics of faith and absolutes make poor research topics. 
  • Is NOT able to be Googled!!! If one can find the answer to his/her question through a quick internet search, the questions is probably not worth asking.
  • Be prepared to collect data for your topic, perhaps through an experiment or surveys.

Questions to Ask Oneself about a Potential Research Topic or Question :

Is My Research Question too Thin/Shallow/Closed?

  • are about basic facts
  • Will provide a one or two-word answer
  • Example: YES or NO questions

Is My Research Question Thick/Deep/Open?

  • can't be answered with YES or NO
  • open-ended
  • have different possible answers
  • explain why or how
  • make connections, predictions, or comparisons
  • Example: Why did...?, What would happen if...?, What caused...?

Brainstorming/Mind Mapping/Questioning

Brainstorming
  • Writing notes and ideas
  • Little worry about organization or grammar
  • Just ideas, keywords, and whatever comes to mind 
Photo Credit: @boetter via Compfight cc
 Mind Mapping
  • Start with the main idea or topic in the center of a workspace
  • Create different branches for each category or idea 
  • Include pictures, color codes, symbols, sketches, anything, etc.. as you go
By Danny Stevens (Own work) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html), CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/) or CC-BY-2.5 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5)], via Wikimedia Commons

Brain Frames

 

Organize Key Words

  • Begin a list of the key words that will help you to unlock information with electronic sources. 
  • These could include synonyms, people, laws, studies, scientific terms, etc...
  • Example:  global warming, green house gasses, carbon footprint, AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH, climate change... 
Remember to keep this list around as more and more keywords will be revealed as you research and organize.