Thesis

TCOM 5304

Seminar Paper

Proposal Due November 2, 2020 (5% of final grade)

Draft Due November 23, 2020 (5% of final grade)

Final Paper Due December 14, 2020 (40% of final grade)

The seminar paper is a thesis-driven research paper of at least 15 pages that should either be 1) an in-depth literature review of a subfield of technical communication or 2) a theoretical piece that rethinks, recasts, or proposes an idea related to the field.

You’ll start with a brief one-page proposal for a topic, deliver at least one preliminary draft, and then turn in the final paper on the final exam date. You’ll also give a brief informal talk about your paper in our last formal class.

Seminar Paper Proposal (November 2)

A one-page proposal for your paper topic is due on November 2. You are not bound to what you propose, but a proposal is required for you to proceed further.

Draft (November 23)

A draft of the seminar paper of at least 8 pages is due on November 23. I do not expect it to be polished, but it should be substantial enough that I can offer constructive criticism.

Format

Format is double-spaced, 12-point font, with 15 peer-reviewed sources in a major citation format such as MLA or APA. Diagrams and other such graphics can be inserted into the text if done tastefully or put in an appendix.

Thesis

The paper MUST HAVE A THESIS – a main argument that the paper exists to demonstrate in some fashion. Your thesis should be stated early in the paper – the first page or two, ideally - and be framed within the relevant scholarship of the subfield you are writing about.

· “In this paper, I intend to show that…”

· “Many scholars think X. I think Y.”

· “Past research has shown X, but…”

Make sure that your thesis is not just a form of wishful thinking. I want to see thoroughness. If you are going to explore a subfield, you must have read the relevant literature on the subject AND you need a coherent narrative of past thought in the subfield. It is your job to tell a convincing story in the literature review, or to make the case for a certain way of thinking in a theoretical paper.

The worst thing you can do in this paper is to disappear. Your voice, your opinion, should be forefront. What other scholars think is principally there so you can bounce off those thoughts into new directions.

Grading

If your paper has a clear, well-argued thesis that is supported by evidence, cites relevant research well, and follows one of the two above structures (literature review or theoretical piece) closely, it will receive an A. If you mishandle one or more of those areas, it will fall into the B range, or lower if your thesis is unclear and you have not engaged the relevant research.