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Research Assignments Table

Barry Mauer

Research Assignments Table

Scaffolded Steps
Assignment Notes
Types of Research Projects Exercise: Choose the type(s) of research project(s) that most appeals to you: interpretive, critical, historical, or creative. [Enter notes here]
Conducting Preliminary Research Exercise: Discuss your previous research experiences and get clarification about the assignments for this course. [Enter notes here]
Identify a Journal or Platform for your Research: Select a research journal or platform towards which you will aim your research project. Explain your choice. [Enter notes here]
Personal Notes on Literary Readings Exercise: Capture basic facts and your initial thoughts about three literary works you have chosen. [Enter notes here]
Personal Notes on Works of Literary Theory or Criticism Exercise: Capture basic facts and your initial thoughts about two literary theory or criticism works you have chosen. [Enter notes here]
Identifying a Problem Exercise: Discuss your plan for researching problems your audience considers to be ‘significant’ and ‘relevant.’ Problem identification can be provisional (subject to change) at first. [Enter notes here]
Evaluating Relevance/Purpose Exercise: Choose one work of literary criticism or theory and discuss its rhetorical purpose, noting the ways that literary critics and theorists try to persuade their audiences. [Enter notes here]
Considering Audience Exercise: Research what problems your audience rates as ‘significant’ and/or ‘relevant’. [Enter notes here]
Searching as Strategic Exploration Exercise: Present a coherent plan for beginning your research project and identify parts of the plan that need to be more clearly defined. [Enter notes here]
Scholarship as Conversation Exercise: Discuss your ideas and feelings about the need to be ‘original’ in your writing; has the fear of being ‘influenced’ by other writers held you back from reading them and studying your work? [Enter notes here]
Theories Exercise: Select the theory or theories you will use for your research project and explain why you made this selection over other choices.

  • Start with a brief overview of your chosen theory and its major concepts.
  • Discuss what specific concepts from the theory/theories you are most interested in exploring in relation to your chosen literary work.
 [Enter notes here]
Methodologies Exercise: Select the methodologies you will use for your research project and explain why you made this selection.

  • Start with a brief overview of your chosen methodologies you are most interested in exploring in relation to your chosen literary work.
  • Discuss what specific concepts from the methodologies you are most interested in exploring in relation to your chosen literary work.
 [Enter notes here]
Research Methods Exercise: Select the research methods and skills you will use for your research project and explain why you made these method and skills selection over others.

  • Start with a brief overview of your chosen methods and skills and relate them to your chosen literary work.
 [Enter notes here]
Interpreting Literary Works Exercise: Practice your reading skills on ‘Tell Me a Story’ by Paul Auster and ‘Departures’ by Storm Jameson using explication, analysis, or comparison/contrast.

  • Do an interpretation of one or both stories, using either an explicatory or symptomatic approach.
 [Enter notes here]
Critiquing Literary Work Exercises: Make a critique of the provided literary anecdote by Walter Benjamin. What do you need to know about Benjamin’s writing to adequately critique it? What critical standards will you use? [Enter notes here]
Library Resources Exercise:

  • Using library databases, find three scholarly sources for your research project.
  • Choose a citation management system.
  • Store your citations.
 [Enter notes here]
Google Scholar Exercise: Using Google Scholar, find three scholarly sources for your research project.

  • Store your citations in your chosen citation management system.
 [Enter notes here]
Evaluating Scholarly Resources Exercise: Discuss why we need gatekeepers in our disciplines, what efforts we should make to ensure source credibility, the differences between warranted and unwarranted bias, and the significance of disinformation, misinformation, and dismediation. [Enter notes here]
Evaluating Your Research Question Exercise: Posit your research question and make sure it meets all the criteria for a good research question listed in the textbook. [Enter notes here]
Annotated Bibliography Exercise:

  • First, find six sources that look promising (you can use the ones you gathered working through chapters 6 and 7).
  • List all six.
  • Choose the most relevant three sources.
  • Annotate these three sources.
 [Enter notes here]
Writing the Literature Review Exercise:

  • Determine what type of literature review you will use for your research projects and explain why you made this selection over others.
  • Discuss specific challenges you face in completing an annotated bibliography or a literature review.
 [Enter notes here]
Thesis Statement Exercise: Posit your thesis statement and make sure it meets all the criteria for a good thesis statement listed in the textbook. [Enter notes here]
Title Exercise: Compose a title for your research project. [Enter notes here]
Writing an Abstract Exercise: Write an abstract of 150-500 words following the guidelines in the Writing an Abstract page. [Enter notes here]
Avoiding Plagiarism Exercise: Check whether each quote uses citations accurately. [Enter notes here]
Foundational Materials Assignment: Assemble the following parts of the final research project

  • Proposed title
  • Research Question
  • Thesis statement
  • Abstract
  • Literature Review
Final Research Project: [Enter notes here]
Additional Resources Exercise: Review and reflect on what you’ve learned in this class.

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