Research Exercises
Have Students Write throughout the Research Process
- First, have them
write what they know about a topic.
- Then, have them
determine their questions about the topic, to narrow their research.
- Pace them with
deadlines to ensure that they are constantly developing their ideas
and dialoguing with others.
- Help them focus
and develop a question appropriate to the paper length.
- Have them continue
writing as they gather sources, integrating sources into their own thinking.
- Ask them to present
pieces of research throughout the semester.
- Ask students to
write a retrospective outline and turn it in with the draft.
| The student's retrospective outline will help you respond to the draft and remind you of the work during conferencing |
Associational Logic of the Web
- Many students now begin their research on the web. Create exercises in which students are asked to reflect upon the associational logic of web inquiry.
| How do links fit together? Are they logically or randomly connected? What is the difference between a journal that happens to be available electronically, through Rutgers' subscription, and a website? Have students learn the referee and submission process of a journal in your field, and summarize the difference between published scholarship and websites. |
Research Information Summary
- The research information
summary is designed to assess a student's ability to undertake a major
research project.
- Students who cannot
adequately summarize research materials obviously are not prepared to
research and write a traditional research paper.
- This assignment
also lends itself to peer review and response.
Model Database Searching
- Use technology
in the classroom to model your search for sources in the appropriate
database for your discipline.
- Help students understand
how to brainstorm keywords and develop questions while reading sources.
- Ensure that students
understand research as a dialogic process between finding/reading sources
and writing, rather than rigid sequential stages (gathering sources,
taking notes on index cards, then writing).
- Have students develop new questions that arose from their writing, and return to the database.
Review Plagiarism
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