Creating Research Paper Thesis

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It can be either a term paper, a master’s thesis or a doctoral dissertation.

This Chapter outlines the logical steps to writing a good research paper.

To find books in the Library use the OPAC (Online Public Access Catalog). Printout, photocopy, and take notes of relevant information.

Check out public and university libraries, businesses, government agencies, as well as contact knowledgeable people in your community. As you gather your resources, jot down full bibliographical information (author, title, place of publication, publisher, date of publication, page numbers, URLs, creation or modification dates on Web pages, and your date of access) on your work sheet, printout, or enter the information on your laptop or desktop computer for later retrieval.

Network Solutions provides a link where you can find out what some of the other extensions stand for.

Be wary of the millions of personal home pages on the Net.A thesis statement is a main idea, a central point of your research paper.The arguments you provide in your paper should be based on this cenral idea, that is why it is so important.For general or background information, check out useful URLs, general information online, almanacs or encyclopedias online such as Britannica.Use search engines and other search tools as a starting point.Most research papers normally require a thesis statement.If you are not sure, ask your teacher whether your paper requires it.If you are uncertain as to what is expected of you in completing the assignment or project, re-read your assignment sheet carefully or ASK your teacher. Avoid subjects that are too technical, learned, or specialized.Avoid topics that have only a very narrow range of source materials.The quality of these personal homepages vary greatly.Learning how to evaluate websites critically and to search effectively on the Internet can help you eliminate irrelevant sites and waste less of your time.