Mary E. Brown, Ph.D., Professor
Information Science

Southern Connecticut State University
501 Crescent Street, New Haven, CT 06515

Department of Information and Library Science
Fax: 1.203.392-5780 / Phone: 1.203.392-5781
Toll Free: 1-888-500-SCSU, then press 4

Unit IX:
Finalizing the Research Paper

ASSIGNMENT

COMPLETE FINAL EDITING OF THE FINAL COURSE PAPER:

Each student should use the criteria suggested in Unit VII under Lecture Notes in completing the final reading and editing of their papers. A summary of these criteria are:

1. EFFECTIVE PRESENTATION
   Are tables, figures, and statistics presented effectively?
2. IMPLIED READER
   Does the paper seem to have a specific audience and is the entire paper written to that audience?
3. TITLE
   Does the title summarize the main idea of the paper simply and with style?
4. ABSTRACT
   Is the abstract a brief, comprehensive summary of the contents of the paper? Hint: The abstract should contain the following:
   • the problem under investigation, in one sentence if possible
   • the subjects, specifying pertinent characteristics, such as number, type, age, sex
   • the experimental method, including the data-gathering procedure
   • the findings, including statistical significance levels
   • conclusions and the implications or applications
5. INTRODUCTION
   Does the introduction present the specific problem under study and describes the research strategy?
6. METHOD
   Does the method section describe in detail how the study was conducted?
7. RESULTS
   Does the Results section summarize the data collected and the statistical treatment of them?
8. DISCUSSION
   Does the discussion evaluate and interpret the results and their implications, especially with respect to your original hypothesis or goal?
9. REFERENCES
   Do the reference citations document statements made about the literature? Do all citations in the text appear in the reference list? [See the instructor's website for a brief guide to APA style for citations and references.]
10. APPENDIX
    Is appropriate use made of the appendix?

Following are a few additional suggestions for increasing readability/understanding:

• Opening gives clear statement of thesis and hints at its importance
• Introduction draws reader into the work
• No excess words; write with nouns and verbs
• Use strong verbs and precise words
• No passive voice and no jargon or jawbreakers
• No long, confusing or short monotonous sentences
• Each paragraph has a main point of focus
• All unrelated ideas have been edited out
• Points of reflection, rest, assimilation are marked by a paragraph
• Ending summarizes the discussion using a new example
• No punctuation or spelling errors

WORK TO BE SUBMITTED

1. Post your final paper, including informative abstract, to appropriate thread, for grading.
2. Post the final journal entry to the appropriate thread.

Journal Entry

Write a narrative describing, your current feelings toward this mode of instruction, and highlight problems or successes you have had over the course of the semester. An overall critique of the course and suggestions on how it can be improved for future classes would be appreciated. Be sure to mark the entry with the title "REFLECTIONS FROM THE END - date". Post in appropriate thread.