Description
Guidelines for Writing the Term Paper
Purpose:
The main purpose of the FMLY 2012 term paper is to enhance the student’s knowledge of the course material. The term paper is the end-product of an involved process of reading, research, source evaluation, organization, and composition. It is, perhaps, helpful to think of the term paper as a living thing, which grows and changes as the student explores, interprets, and evaluates sources related to a specific topic. Primary and secondary sources are at the heart of any paper Without the support of and interaction with these sources, the paper would morph into a different genre of writing (e.g., an encyclopedic article).
Format of the Term Paper:
Cover Page – It should include:
The paper’s title, for example Civil War and Forced Displacement in Columbia, 1950-2012
Your Name
Course Number and Title
Name of the Instructor (i.e., Dr. Audrey Swift)
Date
Spacing: Double
Writing Style: APA 6th Edition (Hint: Use lots of headings)
Length: 8-10 pages, excluding the References section
Writing the Paper:
The Research Question: Your research question should be oriented towards answering an important question, not necessarily one that policymakers would find crucial, but one that is important to scholars or more importantly interesting and important to you. It will be helpful if you frame the question as a “why” or ” how” question about an important political process or issue. Some examples are: What explains the ethnic conflict in Nigeria? Why hasn’t Indonesia been able to recover from the tsunami? These are problem-driven papers, focused on a problem in need of exploration.
Paragraph 1 – The Introduction: State your research question in the first sentence or at least the first paragraph of your paper. This way of introducing a paper appears jarring to some students, nonetheless, stating the question early in the paper is one of the best ways to keep the paper on point throughout. Paragraph 1 should articulate the main points of the argument. Finally, end the paragraph with a detailed map of the paper, outlining how you will build the argument and support it throughout. This type of introduction will help make the argument as well as organized as possible.
The Structure of the Paper: Next, present a brief factual and/or theoretical background to the topic. This background should be short and its contents should be directly relevant to your central question. 1-2 pages should be plenty. Layout what current explanations there are, and why yours is the best. It is important to acknowledge and deal with counterarguments. In fact, this is a central part of critical thinking. Rather than blindly pushing their respective points of view, critical thinkers, and papers written by them take account of ambiguity, uncertainty, and negative evidence.
The Body or Content of the paper should progress in a dual process that 1) marshals evidence to support your argument and 2) presents the entire structure of your argument, (whereas in the introduction you only summarized it briefly). In the body of the paper, you will present a number of sub-points that 1) relate directly to your main argument and 2) are supported by your evidence.
The Conclusion of the paper should summarize your main points and state the overall importance of what you have said in your paper. Conclude your paper by restating what you have found, acknowledge that there is more to be explored on the topic, and briefly describe the issues that remain.
Citations and References
Please consult the OWL at Purdue website located at the link below for help with APA 6th edition formatting and referencing:
https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/general_format.html