You should read all the instructions below and bring any questions you have to class on the first day that we meet.
1. Topic selection. Find something from our readings about the Progressive Era that will give you a deeper insight into questions we have been asking about this period in American history. If you can't find something in the assigned readings use the reference books listed in the Progressive Era Libguide to find a topic. You can also use Wikipedia. Your assignment for the first class meeting is to choose a topic, do some preliminary research in reference sources and identify some relevant primary documents in periodicals. You will use library databases to find the primary documents.
2. Note taking. One key to conducting a successful research project is having an efficient, organized system of note-taking. I will show you the foolproof historians' standard notecard-based system, and I strongly recommend that you use it for this project. You are welcome to use one of the high tech systems available that allow you to organize notes and also keep a record of the bibliographical information for your sources: the library supports the online Noodlebib program for organizing notes and automatically producing a bibliography. An even better open-source program that allows you to do the same is Zotero. The important thing is that your system gives you flexibility, like the note-card system, and allows you to organize notes by subject headings and keep track of where all information comes from. Again, I recommend using note cards as a way to introduce yourself to the basic principles of note-taking for a research paper.
3. Proposal. On the day of our second meeting turn in a one-page proposal for your topic. This should include a paragraph describing your topic and your research question. It should also include a bibliography of works you read or identified as important to look at, including both primary and secondary sources.
4. Combine primary and secondary sources, like you did in the Lincoln paper. Use at least two reference sources, one overview and one monograph from upstairs, and several primary sources (as many as you need to support your argument) at least one of which is an article from a periodical. Please go to my web page on research and read the articles on "Evaluating Sources" and "Primary v. Secondary Sources."
5. Follow directions. A significant part of your grade will be based on how well you follow directions, including the "rough draft checklist."
6. Documentation: You must use footnotes and write a bibliography following the Chicago/Turabian style. I will give you a photocopied document with instructions on proper formatting style for citations. Every libguide also has a citations tab.
7. Your essay should both tell a story and make an argument. Please read the articles on writing an argument and writing a narrative on this website. For a humorous example of a narrative that makes an argument, see the South Park Brief History of America.
8. Conference. During week 8, I will meet with each of you to go over your bibliography and introduction--including thesis, and topic sentences. When not your conference day, continue working on your project.
9. Final Draft checklist.
The paper should be 5-7 pages--1250 words to 1750 words--in length, not including footnotes and bibliography. Longer papers will be expected to meet a higher standard of thoroughness.
Every paper should include the following:
a title that is informative and lets the reader know the topic and the angle
Times New Roman, 12-point font
double spacing
numbered pages
ample margins on all sides
heading: your name and format, and a word count.
indented and single spaced quotations of more than 3 lines. Do not use quote marks on these "block quotes"
documentation of all sources of information using proper (Chicago/Turabian style) footnotes:
see the citation guide on the Library web page.
use shortened forms after first use of a source
combine footnotes where appropriate. You may list more than one source in a footnote. Separate sources using a semicolon.
a bibliography, which begins on a separate page. Include a heading and separate into primary and secondary sources.
spell checking and proofreading.
10. Grading. Assessment will be based on the quality of the final project and how convincing an argument it makes, and also on process, including meeting deadlines, especially for the conference and the final draft. The 48-hour automatic extension is not in effect for this assignment.
An important note on deadlines. In a sense, this project is a test of your ability to manage your time during a long-term project; it will prove to be an invaluable skill when you are in college and in the workforce. From the beginning, you've known when the paper is due. It's been up to you to plan ahead and make sure you are finished by the deadline. That means taking account of other things going on in your life at the same time, including tests and assignments in other classes. Many of you have extra-curricular activities that take up a lot of your time. You will need to factor that into your planning as well. One student doesn't get to have different parameters for the project because they are doing more extra-curriculars than another. Part of my job is to be fair to all my students and that means giving everyone the same time to complete assignments. Sometimes unforeseen circumstances may make it difficult to meet a deadline. Good planning assumes something like that will come up and leaves room for it in the schedule (to quote John Lennon: Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans), but I do know that in rare instances an unforeseeable event will justify an extension. In such cases I may ask for confirmation from your advisor or another adult who is able to speak to your situation--like in the workplace when they require a doctor's note.