Old Testatement Research paper

Research Paper Writing

Writing Style:

1. Clarity of writing style is important. Check your grammar and your spelling.

2. Your sentences should be straightforward and complete. A college student should be able to avoid “run-on” sentences, etc.

3. Your paragraphs should deal with one theme or topic. When you introduce a new thought, start a new paragraph. Every paragraph should contribute to your outline, which (supposedly) supports your thesis as represented in your title.

4. Avoid the use of first or second person pronouns in this research paper.

Quotation Style:

1. If you summarize or paraphrase a source, you must footnote that source.

2. A source should be quoted if—and only if—in your opinion (a) the reader needs to “hear” the way that the source said it, or (b) a paraphrase or summary is not adequate for your purposes.

3. Short, direct prose quotations should be incorporated into the text of the paper and enclosed in double quotation marks: “One small step for man; one giant leap for mankind.”

4. A prose quotation that runs to four or more lines of text in a paper should be set off from the text, single-spaced and indented in its entirety four spaces from the left marginal line with no quotation marks at beginning or end.

Footnote Style:

1. Use footnotes to cite a source but also for detailed discussion that is important for clarification or argument but which will clutter the flow of your text. Use it also for references to peripheral issues that need mentioning and the notation of a source(s) where the reader can further pursue that issue.

2. The first time you reference a source, use the following footnote style:

Author’s first name and last, Title of the Book (City where the book was published, State where the book was published: Name of publishing company, year of publication), page number of source.

3. If you use the reference a second time and the references and page numbers are consecutive, use the following footnote style:

4 Ibid.

4. If you use the reference a second time and the references (but not the page numbers) are consecutive, use the following footnote style:

3 Ibid., page number.

5. If you use the reference a second time but the references are not consecutive, use the following footnote style:

2 Last name(s) of author(s), page number.

Bibliography:

1. Each paper must have a bibliography. For the appropriate form of the bibliography consult the latest edition of Kate L. Turabian: A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations.

2. You will be able to find some acceptable resources in electronic format. But remember, you are after the best tools, not simply the most convenient. You need to be much more cautious about Internet resources. This is a rapidly changing environment and it has not traditionally represented the best in scholarship. While the internet is certainly convenient, you do not always know whether you are getting reliable information. I recommend that you stick with works by respected authors.

Plagiarism: Research papers involve the assimilation of prior scholarship and entail the responsibility to give proper acknowledgement whenever one is indebted to another for either words or ideas. Quoting or paraphrasing someone without indicating this is plagiarism. It is unethical and violates DBU policy. Any research paper that plagiarizes will receive a failing grade. Basically, if you did not know the material before beginning the paper, you had to gather that information from an outside source. Therefore, you must give credit to that source.

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