Final Research Paper
DUE: FRIDAY, DECEMBER 2 BY 1:00PM PT (TAKE THIS DEADLINE SERIOUSLY)
Please refer to the following:
1) Please refer to your paper prompt HERE, and read it very carefully. Scroll to the bottom of the prompt of the paper prompt for important questions to ask yourself when you are writing a formal research paper. This rubric details the types of things that I look for while grading your paper.
2) If you need help writing a research paper, then there are resources available to you on campus: Writing & Multiliteracy Center (WMC). Contact them here: https://www.csuci.edu/wmc/
3) For help with formatting MLA, Chicago etc. citations, visit Purdue Owl: https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/purdue_owl.html
4) Your thesis statement is your contract with your reader, and it tells them the precise scope of your paper. Avoid being vague or general. Below you will see the basic components of a formal research paper.
5) Your research materials should consist of books and scholarly journal articles written by the experts in the field. You may not use blogs, Wikipedia, encyclopedias, dictionaries, Grove or Oxford Art Online, textbooks (including Gardner’s Art Through the Ages, etc.) and unauthorized websites. Newspaper articles are written for the general public, and therefore they are not good sources of information for formal research papers.
6) The Broome Library is a wonderful resource for doing your academic research for all of your classes at CSUCI. If you have trouble finding any of your research materials, then reach out to the librarians for help locating them at Broome Library. Here are a few very valuable resources for you:
Broome Homepage: https://library.csuci.edu
Databases A-Z: https://libguides.csuci.edu/az.php
Research Guides: https://library.csuci.edu/research/dbases-subject.htm
Journals & Newspapers: https://csu-ci.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/jsearch?vid=01CALS_UCI:JSBL&lang=en
Paper Format:
1. 4 pages of text minimum (this does NOT include the cover page, bibliography or images)
2. Double-spaced
3. Cover page
4. Footnotes or endnotes
5. Bibliography
6. Images (at the end of the paper, NOT embedded in the text)
7. Use at least 5 different research sources (including peer-reviewed journal articles, books, exhibition catalogues, monographs, etc.). You may not use blogs, Wikipedia, encyclopedias, dictionaries, newspapers, Oxford Art Online, textbooks (including Gardner’s Art Through the Ages) and unauthorized websites.
QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELF WHEN WRITING & EDITING YOUR PAPER:
2) Did I properly format my citations using MLA or Chicago?
3) Do I have a properly formatted formal bibliography?
4) Did I adhere to the proper paper length?
5) Do I have a clear, and specific thesis statement?
6) Does my thesis statement specifically relate to the final draft of my paper?
7) Did I run spell check (repeatedly)?
8) Did I carefully edit to make sure that I used proper grammar, and were my tenses consistent?
9) Did I formulate clear arguments and substantiate all of my claims with clear and concrete examples?
10) Did I avoid sweeping generalizations and vague assertions?
11) Did I use casual colloquial language in my formal research paper? If so, find more precise ways to describe the point being made.
12) Did I use scholarly research sources such as peer-reviewed journal articles, scholarly articles and books rather than sources such as blogs, Wikipedia, encyclopedias etc (that are not acceptable sources for a formal research paper).
13) Did I properly cite quotes and summaries of other people's intellectual property (footnotes and in-text citations)?
14) Did I avoid excessive biographical information about the artist? Instead I should only include biographical information that is directly relevant to their artistic practice.
15) Would anyone reading my paper understand what I am trying to convey, or do I need to more clearly define the scope of my research and ultimately the point of my paper?
16) Did I place the pictures at the end of my paper? If I embedded them in the text, I need to remove them and place them at the end of my paper.
17) Did I remember to remove the pictures from the electronic draft of my paper that I uploaded to the plagiarism scan?
18) Did I remember to put my name, perm number and section time on my paper?
19) Did I remember to frequently save, backup and email drafts of my paper to myself (just in case my computer crashes)?
20) When I had questions, or needed help, did I reach out to my professor or Writing & Multiliteracy Center (WMC)? Contact them here: https://www.csuci.edu/wmc/
GENERAL TIPS ON WRITING YOUR PAPER:
1) The selection of a good thesis and supporting examples is an important part of producing a good paper. Be selective. The paper is about how to look closely at works of art and how your evaluation of objects and images is expanded by the specific context in which they are presented.
2) Write primarily with nouns and verbs. Avoid unnecessary (especially vague and imprecise) adjectives and adverbs.
3) Revise and rewrite. Proofread your work. Do not rely solely on "spell check."
4) Use the dictionary to refer to words you do not fully understand.
5) Do not overstate, or excessively use qualifiers (such as very, rather, little, etc.).
6) Use orthodox diction and accurate spelling. ("Its" is possessive; "It's" is a contraction for "it is," "Its' " doesn't exist. "Their" is possessive, "They're" is a contraction of "they are," There is declarative).
7) Be clear. Make references clearly. (Do not use the word "this" as the subject of a sentence).
8) Do not let your opinions get in the way of your writing.
9) Avoid using Wikipedia, blogs, newspaper articles and other materials that are not scholarly. These ARE NOT research materials for a formal research paper.
10) Get to the point quickly. Concentrate on quality of writing not quantity of words.
11) For help with formatting MLA and Chicago citations, visit Purdue Owl: https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/purdue_owl.html
