TYPING THE RESEARCH PAPER

PAPER:

The paper should be 8 1/2 x 11 inches in size, a good quality bond of twenty-pound weight.  Such paper may be purchased from the bookstore on a sheet by sheet basis. Onion-skin or easy-erasing paper is not acceptable, nor is folded printer paper.

MARGINS:

One inch should be allowed for the left margin, one inch for the right, the bottom, and the top margins.  Generally, a word processor is set with a one inch margin top, bottom, left, and right. If you wish to submit the paper in a folder or binder, ask the instructor if you should use a one and one half inch left margin to keep the text centered. (Note: some instructors prefer to have no binding: ask.) Figuring on the basis of the minimums specified, there is a six inch line of typed matter. Note: you may wish to ask your instructor if he or she prefers left justified or full justified text.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

The bibliography is placed at the end of the research paper.  It begins on a new page, with the title Works Cited appearing at the top. Make certain your word processor is set at left justified.   Capitalize the initial letters of words from titles except for words such as in, on, from, for, etc. Entries are entered alphabetically by the author’s last name or the article title when there is no author. Entries are double-spaced within the entries and double-spaced between, with any line after the first in any entry indented 5 spaces. Regarding internal spacing, the general rule is that after any punctuation with a comma (,;), you space once; after any punctuation with a period in it (.!?), you space twice. (This does not apply to periods used to abbreviate words, such as the period in "Dr. Jones.) Colons, however, are generally followed by one space. Much modern printing, however, only puts one space after a period, etc., so using one space throughout is acceptable. The MLA Handbook (1999) leaves the choice to students’ instructors.

PAGE NUMBERING:

The title page is not numbered.  The first page of the text, which repeats the title, and all subsequent pages are numbered in the upper right hand corner Use your last name as a header preceding the page numbers, e.g., Reber 13. Since some instructors prefer to have no page number on the first page of text, you should check with your instructor.

VERTICAL SPACING:

The title page is optional, but either the title page or the first page should tell the title, the course, the instructor, the date, and the author.  The first page repeats the title and double spaces before beginning the text.  Additional pages show the pagination at the top of the paper and begin the text just below.

LONG QUOTES:

Long quotes (more than 4 lines) are typed with each line indented ten spaces from the left margin. The lines are double-spaced and have a normal one inch right margin. Such indentation signifies a quote, so quotation marks are not used. Further, with a long indented quote, the period precedes the parenthetical documentation.

ELLIPSIS:

When one or more words are left out of a quoted passage, that ellipsis is shown by three spaced periods.( . . .). When one or more paragraphs of prose or one or more lines of poetry are left out of a quote, an entire line of spaced periods is placed in the text to show that ellipsis, e.g.,

(. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .)

BINDING:

While you may wish to make the research paper extra attractive by placing it in a plastic folder, such folders hinder a careful reading and marking of the essay. For this class, secure your paper with a paperclip. A paperclip will hold the pages securely, but it will also allow an instructor an easy method of reading and commenting on the essay.

A common lament from students as they begin to prepare the final draft of the research paper goes something like this: "Since I am filling up my paper with data from other people, is this really my essay?" The careful integration of your own ideas and outside data is a challenging task. But there are many things that make a paper "your own" if you do them carefully. First, you are setting up the parameters of the topic to be examined. You will define the questions which you will focus on and ask us to consider. You will write the introduction which guides the reader into the issues. You will determine the thesis of the paper.

Then, as you lead us to the data you have gathered, you might think of yourself as something like a talk-show host. You should introduce us to your experts, telling us relevant background about each one in introductory "tags" and explaining the context of the data you have gathered. After you present the bits of data, you must explain their relevance to your thesis, and, if necessary, explain them in lay terms or evaluate their effectiveness. Your presence as the author and orchestrator of the ideas in the paper should be evident to the reader. If you do those things effectively, and add to them a summary which shows what you have concluded from your research, the paper will be your paper, not merely a collage of the ideas of others. Above all, avoid handing in a "cut-and-paste" paper, in which the research material is badly patched together, without your giving the context of the data, the credentials of the source, or the relation of the ideas to each other or to the thesis.

Using Tags Effectively

    When you use data from a source, you should tell the reader necessary information about the source and the context of the data you use. Using introductory tags are a good way to do that. Note how much more effective the data below is when it is preceded by a tag.

Exhibit A: a snippet from a source-supported essay:

    Affirmative action is not only intended for people of color. It is necessary for women as well. For example:

"The case for the affirmative-action promotion of the five women was even stronger. Until the 1970s women were formally barred from being hired for most jobs in the police department, including patrol officer. As a result, few were hired and many were deterred from applying because of the truncated career opportunities." (qtd. in Sotos)

 

Exhibit B: a snippet from a source-supported essay with an introductory tag:

    Affirmative action is not only intended for people of color. It is necessary for women as well. For example, in June of 2002 the 7^th Circuit Court ruled that affirmative action was needed to remedy some injustices in the hiring policies of Chicagošs police department. Circuit Judge Richard Posner explained the courtšs decision as follows:

"The case for the affirmative-action promotion of the five women was even stronger. Until the 1970s women were formally barred from being hired for most jobs in the police department, including patrol officer. As a result, few were hired and many were deterred from applying because of the truncated career opportunities." (qtd. in Sotos)

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Copyright (C) 2002 by Ed Reber. All rights reserved. This document may be distributed as long as it is done entirely with all attributions to organizations and authors. Commercial distribution is strictly prohibited. Portions of this document may be copyrighted by other organizations.