Writing a research paper gives you an opportunity to explore a topic of special interest, research that topic, and organize your research findings in writing for an academic audience.
Through your preparation work, you have established an argumentative thesis statement and have planned a clear organization of your main points. Your research is complete, and the details are integrated into your writing plan. You have pulled it all together in a draft and have revised the paper’s organization, ideas, and words.
In this task, you will write the final draft of your argumentative research paper. You may use the sources and thesis from Task 1, but it is not required. Aim for a polished, error-free submission. The writing tone for your research paper should be formal and appropriate for academic writing. The information in the paper should be based on credible source material. If needed, the “Topic Ideas” web link below can be used for selecting your paper topic.
The paper must follow APA documentation guidelines and must include an APA-formatted reference list, not your annotated bibliography from Task 1. Any sources that you cite in the paper must be included in the reference list, and any source in the reference list must also be cited within your paper. Please see “Appendix B: APA Format” from the learning resource, found in the web links section below, for additional directions on creating an APA-formatted reference list.
Note: An abstract is not required for this task, but including a title page is recommended.
Your submission must be your original work. No more than a combined total of 30% of the submission and no more than a 10% match to any one individual source can be directly quoted or closely paraphrased from sources, even if cited correctly. An originality report is provided when you submit your task that can be used as a guide.
You must use the rubric to direct the creation of your submission because it provides detailed criteria that will be used to evaluate your work. Each requirement below may be evaluated by more than one rubric aspect. The rubric aspect titles may contain hyperlinks to relevant portions of the course.
Note: When using sources to support ideas and elements in an assessment, the submission MUST include APA formatted in-text citations with a corresponding reference list for any direct quotes or paraphrasing. It is not necessary to list sources that were consulted if they have not been quoted or paraphrased in the text of the assessment.
A. Write an original and cohesive argumentative research paper (suggested length of 8–10 pages).
1. Provide an effective introduction.
2. Provide an appropriate thesis statement that previews two to four main points.
3. Develop each of the previewed main points in effective paragraphs with support from a variety of sources.
4. Provide an effective conclusion.
B. Incorporate seven academically credible sources in your paper.
Note: More than seven sources may be used but are not required.
C. Acknowledge sources, using APA-formatted in-text citations and references, for content that is quoted, paraphrased, or summarized.
Note: Refer to Appendix B, linked below, for assistance with referencing guidelines.
D. Demonstrate professional communication in the content and presentation of your submission.
