Unit 5: Research Report (200 pts)
Worth: 200 points
Document Type: Microsoft Word (*.doc or *.docx) or Rich Text Format (*.rtf)
File Name: Last Name First Name – Unit x – day month year.doc
Example: Higgins Jeffrey – Unit 5 – 7 December 2016.doc
Readings: See Chapters 23-25 in Business Communication, 5th Edition
Task: Write a short research report
Audience: A supervisor, or someone else who has the ability to affect the problem or subject
you address in your report
Length: ~1800-2000 words (approximately 6-8 pages, plus a works cited page)
Write a research paper on a current topic of interest in your discipline or profession.
Your topic does not have to be cleared with me, although for most of you I will see the topic in
your proposal. You are not required to use the same topic as the proposal, but I encourage you
to do so. You will save yourself time and and build a better project this way by letting your
research and thinking work on a particular problem at length. If you decide on a more specific,
or slightly different version of the project after your proposal, you’re welcome to shift the focus of
the report without clearing it with me.
You will be expected to gather information from outside sources (books, articles, personal or
phone interviews, government documents, etc.). The documentation format to follow is APA (or
MLA, if you are a history or English major).
Format
If your major is anything other than English or history, you are to use the format specified by
APA. English and history majors are to use the format specified by MLA. See the lecture notes
entitled “Research Notes: Incorporation” and “Research Notes: Documentation” for these
two formats.
Formula
For the text itself, you will be using one of the four formulas I have given in the lecture notes
called “Research Notes: Organizing.” The four formulas you may choose from are P-S,
1-2-3, C-C, or Sequential. I assume that most of you will be using the P-S formula as the fullest
and therefore most helpful. But you are not required to use P-S. Any of the four will be fine. Evaluation
Grading will be complicated to reflect the complexity of a research report. Generally here is what
I will be looking at.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9. the correct format of the paper (using APA or MLA)
the accuracy and completeness of the References list or list of Works Cited at the end
the location and content of the parenthetical citations in the text itself
the accuracy, usefulness, and smoothness of insertion of quotes, paraphrases, and
summaries
effective use of one of the four organizational formulas
a clear and effective statement of the thesis in paragraph one of the paper
effective body paragraphs that are unified, coherent, and complete. I will choose at least
one at random at look at it very carefully
research that is recent, scholarly, and relevant to your topic, and sufficient in scope to
make your case
correct grammar and mechanics
