research paper
Ada Yu
RPBackgroundEvidenceTypesPPT.pptx
Research Paper: Background Paragraph & Source Types
ENGL 101
Instructor: Jean Jeon
Agenda
Thesis statement (review)
Background paragraph
Types of Sources
Task 5 (Due: Monday, June 21st)
Thesis Statement (PTOCR)
Perspective (视角)
Topic
Opinion
Concept (趋势)
Roadmap: 4 Paragraph keywords (Causes or effects of the issue)
Thesis example
From sociological and educational perspectives,
online schooling for college students in Canada
requires an extra support and care for students from schools
because the COVID-19 pandemic forced college students to adapt the changes in the course delivery and they tend to struggle in completing the coursework
through the following effects: higher school dropouts, inefficiency in computer and internet use, loss of educational opportunity, …
Why writing a background Paragraph?
Help your readers informed on the issue/topic so they can understand your research!
Find at least 3 different sources
Choose to write: ONE longer paragraph (8 sentences) or TWO shorter paragraphs (4 sentences each) to summarize the issue.
Make sure to paraphrase all information in your own words.
No “quotations” can be used. Citation needed.
Background Paragraph Overview
Definitions
Historical events
Factual Information
A transition sentence
1) Definitions
The definition of the topic or important terms
No “direct quotations”. Paraphrase with a citation (last name, year).
Examples:
Digital inequality can be defined as having different computer availability and the internet access the between lower and higher-income households.
Social Anxiety is defined as ……
Eating disorders can be explained as ….
2) Historical events
What are the historical event that might have influenced the issue?
Only think about what would matter for your paper to establish the general ideas on your topic.
How did we end up with our current issue? a story of the last two decades of “issue”
Examples:
Any past gender inequality cases in North America?
What are the incidents behind the wage gap in the US?
Any case for female workers being paid less than other male employees in their workplace?
3) Factual information
What happened as a result of historical event?
Statistical data to explain the CONCEPT(current issue)
Provide a comprehensive information of the issue rather than one-sided information
Examples:
The number of cases of income gap?
The rate of bullying cases online?
4) Transition Sentence
After providing all information,
write a Transition sentence using a synonym of the thesis keyword.
Example:
Therefore/ Thus/Hence, [repeat your CONCEPT/OPINION in a fresh way.]
Background paragraph [Student Sample ]
Human trafficking is the world’s third-largest black market trade consisting of compelling trafficked persons to engage in acts, against their wills, such as prostitution, slavery and other means of exploiting, to maximize the benefits for traffickers (Department of Justice, 2020).
Dating back to 1619, the story of the American slave trade originally happened when the first slaves were brought to America from Africa against their will (Restavek Freedom, 2019).
According to the International Labor Organization (ILO), the human trade which is established by human trafficking generates more than $150 billion in illegal profits, of which victims in sexual exploitation earn at least $99 billion for their pimps and middlemen…the lack of attention and African government’s attitude of indifference on human trafficking has aggravated human trafficking in Africa(Thipanyane, 2015).
Therefore, the growing phenomenon of human trafficking demands stricter laws to establish more political intervention to decrease the rate of illegal activities in Africa.
Different source types
General vs Specific sources
Statistics (Most general sources)
Expert’s opinion/ interpretation (general)
Case studies (specific)
Illustrative Examples (Most specific sources)
Statistics
Definition:
“a practice of collecting and analyzing numerical data to study human behavior/social trend.”
Example:
Nearly 93% of people in households with school-age children reported their children engaged in some form of “distance learning” from home but lower-income households were less likely to rely on online resources.
Expert’s opinion
“Trying to distance people from one another or people can decrease the number of large gatherings that they’re participating in” said Dr. Vera Etches, the City of Ottawa’s top health officer.
"Social isolation or social distancing, that is tremendously challenging for young people in university," said Nancy Heath, a McGill university professor of educational and counselling psychology.
Illustrative Examples
Illustrative Examples use a person who goes through and experiences the issue as a representative.
Illustrative Examples do not necessarily have to come from sources with high credibility.
They can be found in newspapers/magazines, Facebook, YouTube or Twitter.
This must be researched with a citation.
Illustrative Examples
Concept: “college students struggling to continue taking online classes during the pandemic”
Examples:
"My lifeline was really my class and getting to meet these people, so having all of that in my computer in my small apartment is a big adjustment," said Arsenault (McKenzie-Sutter, 2021)
“Virtual socialization with the group is like a long-distance relationship with 14 people. None of us have the mental capacity to sit and stare at each other in front of a computer anymore.” (McKenzie-Sutter, 2021)
Current information for research
For social science issues, use sources published within the last 15 years (2005-2021) (exceptions: historical events/classical works in the field.)
Research the current up-to-date sources in your research paper by limiting the search option!
Types of Evidence
Blogs: personal stories, illustrative examples, Current Events,
Magazines: Illustrative examples, Factual/historical information.
Newspapers: Factual/current Events, Statistics, Expert Opinion/Interpretation
Academic Article: Statistics, Expert Interpretation/theory, Case study
Government/NGO Website: Statistics, Expert Opinion/Interpretation, Historical/Factual Evidence
Book: Statistics, Expert Theory/Opinion/Interpretation, Examples, Factual Evidence
Credibility Ratings
Level 1: Popular source for self-help or entertainment
Level 2: Personal story, testimonial, or narrative (blogs, magazines)
Level 3: NEWS article, magazine article, article from a professional organization; may include research but reported in journalistic or less formal style
Level 4: Scholarly source but written for average reader; includes references and scholarly research such as studies, statistics, and reports.
Level 5: Scholarly source written for advanced academic work; includes references and scholarly research; written in very formal style, with long sentences and difficult vocabulary. This level is written for experts in the field.
Due dates
Task 5 Due: Monday June 21st @11:59pm
Upload your introduction & background paragraphs into RP introduction & background Dropbox on Moodle(Due: Tuesday, June 22nd @11:59pm)
Meet with your LP mates for the LP Activity 4 – If OneNote is difficult to use, your group can choose to work on the Moodle forum.
Continue to meet with your Learning Coach weekly.
The Ladder of Abstraction
General/Abstract
Specific/Concrete
