Mary Russell and Maggie Paloucek Introduction to Research Paper Objectives: CC.W.7.8.

Gather relevant information from multiple print and digital sources, using search terms effectively; assess the credibility and accuracy of each source; and quote or paraphrase the data and conclusions of others while avoiding plagiarism and following a standard format for citation. Procedure: 1. Maggie: Introduce the class to a basic overview of the research paper. a. How to pick a topic - pick something you will be interested in and dont know much about. Although it may be tempting to pick a large country that you know something about, you will find that popular countries will have lots of information that you have to sort through to limit it to a 6 paragraph paper. b. Choose a region, and then a country (try to pick something you dont know much about) c. When researching, try to focus on things that are unique to that country to make it interesting. All countries focus on education and culture, but what is unique about that countrys culture? 2. One of the biggest components in this paper is the research aspect. Where do you guys often research information? Nowadays, there is a big opportunity to find lots of information online; however there is a big issue of credibility in researching through Google or Yahoo. Why do you want a reliable source? What does a reliable source? 3. Jigsaw Activity: Place students in 5 groups, and give each group one of the following sources (12 pages). Have the students examine the source and discuss in their expert groups whether they think this is a credible source using the Evaluating Worksheet. After 10 minutes, tell students to go to their teaching group, where they will present their sources. As a group, they will rank their sources to determine which are the most credible [10 minutes]. 4. Mary: As a class, have the groups share how they ranked the websites and discuss their decisions in ranking. Give each group a whiteboard and let them write their ranking on the board. Have each group explain why they ranked the articles in the fashion they did. Discuss any discrepancies as a class. Is one source really better than another? What about CIA vs Polish News vs Wikipedia. Many sources may be credible but might serve a different purpose. . Sources: i. Wikipedia (Wikipedia is a great starting point for gathering basic information about a topic. Wikipedia is monitored for inaccurate information and is now considered quite reliable. Its still not considered an academic source. Consider looking at the footnotes for additional sources) ii. http://www.funtrivia.com/en/Geography/Poland-4058.html (This information may or may not be acurate. Not an academic source. Consider cross-checking facts) iii. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/pl.html (This is a great website for basic quick facts about different countries.) iv. http://www.lonelyplanet.com/travelblogs/538/147992/Hidden+Warsaw%3A +stories+behind+the+courtyard+shrines?destId=360265 (This is a blog someones online record of their travels in Poland. Blogs contain one persons subjective opinion and are not objective academic sources) v. http://www.thenews.pl/ (News websites can be a great source of information. Consider looking at news in English from the country in question and one from

America. Information might be presented differently. Some national news sites may be bias or contain propaganda) a. Evaluating Worksheet . What is your overall impression of this site? i. What organization does this site belong to? ii. What is the websites domain suffix? (.com, .gov, .edu, .net, etc.) Does this tell you anything about the site? iii. Is the article biased? This means does the article try to influence the reader in thinking one way or another. iv. What is the authority of the author or organization? Is the author/organization an expert in this particular field of study? 5. Mary: Give the students some tips and tricks when researching. Show them the following research sites: a. Wikipedia i. Show them the references at the bottom of the page for external links. All of the sources at the bottom are real and many are credible. This will be great if you have a particular focus and want to find an article that goes more in-depth about a particular issue. b. CIA World Fact Book . Quick statistical information. Very broad facts. c. Encyclopedia Britannica http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/466681/Poland . This website has a great web links section and will give you a few reliable sources about something more specific. For example, if you are more interested in tourism to your country, you might check out the National Geographic website. d. Purdue OWL Website . http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/ i. Great tips for citations and information about reliable sources. e. Talk about website extensions (.com, .gov, .edu) . .gov domain suffixes are published by the government. Most of this information will be reliable and based in fact. i. .com anyone can register a website under this domain name. Many sources are credible, but many are not. ii. .net is less commonly used, but is similar to .com iii. .edu signifies an educational website. Many websites are from colleges or universities and can be trusted. Some information might be personal opinions from students are professors so be careful when evaluating. Assessment: CC.W.7.8: Students will determine the credibility of different sources through group discussion. By giving them several examples of sources that are found online, students can gain an understanding of how to assess different sources for accuracy and credibility. This skill is necessary for their overall creation of their research paper, as many of them will often rely on the Internet to find resources.