Final Research Paper Assignment

• The Assignment: write a 10-15 page research paper, based on primary and secondary sources, that investigates some interesting question of European history in the period we are studying. In writing the paper, you should integrate the work of the post-fall break research assignments.
• Due: On the last day of class at midnight on Moodle
• Length: paper should be at least 3000 words and at most 4500 words (about 10-15 pp.)
• Format: follow the format guidelines of the Sample Research Paper – on our Handouts page
• Bibliography: Include a bibliography of the sources you have used (which doesn’t count toward paper length)
• Your final research paper should integrate (with appropriate adaptations, of course) the secondary source paper and the primary source analysis paper you wrote earlier

Organization

I suggest you organize your paper in the following manner:

• a title that lays out the subject and the central point
• a 2 ¶ introduction
  • the first ¶ should draw in the reader and announce the topic with a concrete example
  • the second ¶ should lay out the question that you are exploring, point to the works you will use in your analysis, and lay out the thesis, a pithy statement of your larger argument
• important background and context – in 1-3 ¶s
• treatment of the historiography through your analysis of the secondary source – in a few ¶s
• analysis of a primary source – in a few ¶s
  • presentation and analysis
  • this is the heart of your paper, where you delver the argument
• a conclusion
  • typically 1 to 2 ¶s
  • you would want to summarize your central point and tell us why it is significant
• And if any of these guideliines turn out to be unworkable for your topic and your approach, feel free to throw them out. (But note, the criteria of evaluation will still apply).

Figures

Some of you may want to include figures in your paper. These are welcome but not necessary. If you do use them, insert them into the text at about 1/4 page size and add a figure caption that connects the image to the paper and indicates the source. For example: A British trench during the Battle of the Somme, in July 1916 (Wikimedia Commons) or Vera Brittain With Her Brother Edward in 1915 (Testament of Youth, Penguin Edition).

Citations and footnotes

You must cite: direct quotations, examples, and the source of your information. A typical history paper will have one to three citations in each paragraph. The citation takes us to the precise page that your quotation or example comes from.

For citation style, please use footnotes in Chicago style (that is the go-to format for historical research). It is not hard to learn: Microsoft Word and Google Doc both have functions to insert footnotes (see insert… footnote…) that will keep your footnotes correctly numbered and formatted.

• Kershaw, 123.
• Federico Neiburg, “Inflation: Economists and Economic Cultures in Brazil and Argentina,” Comparative Studies in Society and History (2006), 604.

Sharing (and Showing) Your Research

From the beginning of this project, you should share the work you are doing in a research folder on OneDrive – named with your last name and a short version of your topic (Shaya – Anarchism Research Paper, for example). Inside this folder you should keep your notes, bibliographies, and your weekly assignments as Word files. Good research begins with notes, which might include annotated pdfs or a document of quotations and examples from sources or your observations. I’d like you to use Word documents with version histories so I can see how you’ve developed them over time. Create a folder called AI Research and save a copy of any AI searches or conversations related to this project. (That is a requirement). Some of you may want to work in Google Drive, in which case you can share your research folder to gshaya@gmail.com.

Plagiarism policy

Any sources that you use must be appropriately quoted, paraphrased, and cited. If you borrow more than four words in a row from a source you must put these in quotation marks and cite the source. Please review the handout, “What is Plagiarism – and How to Avoid It” posted on our Handouts page and let’s discuss any questions you have. Plagiarism counts as a serious violation of academic integrity.

AI policy

You are invited to use AI tools to brainstorm ideas and search for sources. I also allow you (maybe even encourage you) to get feedback from AI after completing the monograph paper and primary source paper (with the provision that you will make revisions in light of this feedback, not use AI-generated text). I require that you track all AI searches and conversations that you do for this paper – and save these within your research folder. What is absolutely not allowed, and is grounds for failing the paper and the course, is using AI generated text or citations in your paper for any reason. Violation of this AI policy counts as a serious violation of academic integrity.

Criteria

• Do you introduce your paper well? Do you have an interesting argument to launch your paper?
• Do you provide important context and background to help us understand the topic?
• Do you present and analyze your secondary source well?
• Do you present and analyze your primary source well?
• Is it well written – in clear prose that sounds like you?
• Do you bring in concrete examples – details and quotations – that explain the primary source and support your analysis?
• Do you cite your sources – and show how you know what you know?
• Do you include a bibliography (no annotations necessary, but correctly formatted) of all of the sources you used?
• Just as important as all of the above is the process of research. How well did you complete the process of research? (Staying on track along the way, sharing files, taking notes, and responding to feedback).