Now that we have done some preliminary research and reflection to narrow our topic and identify possible issues to address, we will compose a formal Research Project Proposal that will communicate our purposes and methods.
The Research Project Proposal must address each of the following aspects of your vision for the final project:
- a general explanation of the topic that you’ve chosen along with some of the more relevant issues related to the topic… (remember that issues are questions)
- a statement that explains your background with the topic, previous research/writing you’ve done on the topic, and why you are interested in pursuing the topic further
- an answer to the question “Who cares?” You must explain why the issue matters
- a methodological breakdown, including what kinds of research you will be employing, where and how you’ll get it, who else will be assisting you, and what sources are ideal for your project
- a statement covering the potential problems you may face and how you plan to deal with them
Five points will be deducted for each of these items that are not addressed in the submission.
NOTE: This proposal should communicate the issues you are interested in exploring, not the argument that you want to make. It’s fine to already have an opinion at the beginning of a research project (it’s normal, actually), but you want to reserve drawing a conclusion until you’ve conducted enough research to draw a conclusion based on evidence that you have collected, rather than preconceptions that you might have.
Please make sure that the Proposals are in MLA format and are in paragraph (essay) form. You do not need to write an entire paragraph for each of the points above, but be sure to thoughtfully address them all. This assignment should be between 1 – 2 full pages in length.