Research Project

World History – Andrews

Spring 2018 Research Project

Introduction

Your Research Project this semester will give you an opportunity to explore a historical topic of your own choosing in which you have a special interest. You’ll write a traditional research paper on this topic and I will read it.

            Other than me, who else should care about the topic you write about? Elementary school teachers? Scientists? Young girls? Young boys? Presidents of large companies? The President of the US? Why should they care? Why is it important? What could they do with that knowledge? How could you communicate it to them – a letter? a newspaper article? a poem? a YouTube video? a brochure? a painting? a lesson plan? Keep these questions in mind as you select your topic, do your research and write your paper.

Your Research Topic or Question – due February 6

What interests you about the period of history we’re covering this semester? What would you like to be more knowledgeable about? Define your topic so it is not overly broad. Here are some examples. You can use one of these sample topics if you’d like to:

Too Broad à à Better

Slavery. à à The impact of African slavery on the early success of the USA.

Women’s rights. à à Women’s rights in pre-revolutionary North America.

Women in science. à à A study of a specific female scientist working in the 1800s.

Environmentalism. à à The early environmental movement in the USA, or India, or Brazil, etc.

Colonialism. à à Spanish silver mining in colonial Bolivia.

The fur trade. à à Russian fur trading along the western coastal regions of North America.

Colonialism in Africa. à à “Shithole Economics.” The Scramble for Africa and the European role in creating so-called “shithole” economies in post-colonial Africa.

Your Annotated Bibliography – due February 6

Hopefully, you’ll use the resources in NDNU’s library as you fine tune your Research Topic so you know there’s enough information available. Keep track of those sources of information as you find them.

            The next step of this project is to prepare an Annotated Bibliography on your selected topic… this will ensure that you have sufficient breadth and depth of information readily available to you before proceeding to write your paper. You’ll find instructions about writing an Annotated Bibliography posted on the class website.

Your Traditional Research Paper – 5 pages – due March 20

We will do an in-class workshop on the research paper on February 6. For now, just focus on defining your Topic and completing your Annotated Bibliography.

Creative Presentation of your Research – to be done after midterm break

(this will be your “analytical essay” for spring 2018)

Stay tuned!