Research Paper
463 offers optional W credit for a final research paper. 563 requires a final research paper.
CHIN 463: Optional Research Paper
If you want to gain W credit, develop your academic writing skills, and/or explore a topic that’s of interest to you and related to the content of the course, you have the option of writing a research paper.
The research paper will take the form of an aggregate review of three works of English-language scholarship (journal articles or book chapters) on a course-related topic of your choice. The aggregate review is in many ways similar to a literature review Links to an external site., but instead of trying to survey all of the important scholarship on a topic, it is limited to three selected articles or book chapters. It discusses the selected readings together, and considers their relationship to one another; it is not simply a collection of three separate reviews or reports.
If you choose to write the optional research paper (ORP), you are required to complete a series of preliminary assignments. If you turn in a final paper without having completed the preliminary assignments by the required dates, you will not receive W credit for the paper. A schedule of the preliminary assignments is below.
I will grade the research paper on a 100-point scale. Your grade on the research paper will not affect your final grade for the course. A passing grade on the ORP (above 60 points) gains you W credit.
The final paper should be a minimum of 2500 words in length (not counting notes and bibliography); this is about 10 pages, double-spaced, in a 12-point font.
If you are interested in writing the ORP, let me know and begin discussing possible topics with me as soon as possible.
Outline and Schedule of Research Paper Assignments
- Choose Your Topic. Due 11:59 pm Sunday 1/21.
- Three Sources. Due 11:59 pm Sunday 1/28.
- Summary Review of a Source. Due 11:59 pm Sunday 2/11.
- Formatting Exercise. Due 11:59 pm Sunday 2/25.
- (Optional) First Draft. Due 11:59 pm Sunday 2/25.
- Final Draft. Due 11:59 pm Friday 3/8.
CHIN 563: Required Research Paper
A final research paper is required for students enrolled in CHIN 563. The research paper counts towards the final course grade. A preliminary course grade will be calculated on the basis described on the Canvas Home page (Participation 20%, Postings 20%, Quizzes 20%, Exams 2x20%). The final research paper will be graded on a 100-point scale. The final course grade will then be based on the preliminary course grade (weighted 80%) and the paper (weighted 20%).
For the final paper, students in CHIN 563 can either follow the assignment for the 463 paper described above or write a research paper of their own design. In either case, students must talk with the instructor about their paper topic, during regular office hours or by appointment, in advance of turning in the first assignment on Sunday 1/22.