Research Record
Purpose
This assignment has two purposes: to check in on your research skills, and to help you plan your
critical essay. You will be evaluated on your ability to come up with a practical, arguable topic;
think up logical supporting points; locate credible, relevant sources; and think critically about
how those sources relate to your planned essay.
Instructions
Choose a topic from the Critical Essay Topics List posted to moodle. Come up with a specific, focused research question or draft thesis statement based on that topic. Think about what subtopics or supporting points would help you make a credible argument. Using your research skills, find three articles or reports containing information that will help you write your Critical Essay.
These sources must be:
Either scholarly OR authoritative (see below)
Written within the past 5-10 years
Highly relevant to your topic
Using the NorQuest library database is highly recommended. You may use Google scholar or
another search engine if you prefer, but do so at your own risk. It is up to you to ensure that
sources are peer-reviewed scholarly sources and/or authoritative reports.
Complete the “Research Record Template” using these sources.
Clarification of Questions
Research Question or Draft Thesis Statement
Using one of the topics posted on Moodle as a starting point, develop the focus and scope of
the question through the process of finding research. The question should be specific and
precise, prompt you to take an original position in your essay, and clearly relate to the sources
you have selected. If you already know what argument you plan to make, you can submit a draft
thesis statement instead of a research question.
Your answer should be one complete sentence. A research question will be more open-ended
(e.x. “What is the best strategy for reducing Canada’s carbon emissions?”) while a draft thesis
statement will clearly state your position (e.x. “To reduce Canada’s carbon emissions, the
federal government should encourage the rapid adoption of solar energy generation through
industry regulation, grant funding, and support for individual homeowners to add solar panels.”)
Supporting Points
Come up with three supporting points or sub-topics that would be useful to research in order to
support your argument. Ideally, these will end up being body paragraphs in your Critical Essay
assignment. They should be substantial and complex enough to justify doing research into
them.
Credible Sources
From your research, identify three sources that will help you to answer your research question.
Sources cannot be assigned readings in this course, and should have been published within the
past 5-10 years. Your sources must be credible and meet the STAR quality criteria. Credible
sources can include information from Indigenous Elders and Knowledge Keepers, peer-reviewed
articles and other scholarly texts, data from government websites, and other authoritative
sources. Provide an APA-style reference citation for each source—reference citations must be
correctly formatted for the type of source selected.
Sources & Supporting Points Table
Think critically about how your sources connect to your planned supporting points. Go through
each source and look for quotations that speak directly to your supporting points. Not every
source will have something to say about all three points, but each source should contain
information about at least one point.
Fill in the table with quotations about relevant points. If a source does not have content about a
particular point, leave that square blank. Quotations must have quotation marks and a correct
in-text citation. They do not need to be integrated into a sentence. Keep your quotes short:
ideally under one sentence and definitely under 2 sentences long.
Research Reflection
Write about your personal experience doing this research. Use “I” statements and be clear,
specific, and honest. Do not write a general statement about how research works.
Related: (Solution) ENGL 2550 Critical Essay
Solution – Research Record
Student Template for Research Report
Please type your answers directly into this document, then save a .docx or .pdf copy of this file to submit to moodle.
Your Name:
Your Student Number:
Research Question or Draft Thesis Statement (should be one complete sentence):
Supporting Points (Point form or complete sentences)
Sources (Provide a full APA reference entry for each source)
STAR Criteria
For each source above, indicate whether they meet each STAR criteria
| Source | Source Type | Timeliness (Year of Publication) | Accuracy | Relevance |
| Source #1 | Choose an item. | Choose an item. | Choose an item. | Choose an item. |
| Source #2 | Choose an item. | Choose an item. | Choose an item. | Choose an item. |
| Source #3 | Choose an item. | Choose an item. | Choose an item. | Choose an item. |
If any do not meet the criteria, please explain why you have chosen to use them anyway:
Source & Supporting Points Table
In the table below, provide a quotation (maximum 2 sentences long) from each source that is relevant to your planned supporting points or sub-topics. If a source does not address that point, leave that field blank.
All quotations must be in quotation marks and must be followed by a correct in-text citation.
| Supporting Point #1 | Supporting Point #2 | Supporting Point #3 | |
| Source #1 | |||
| Source #2 | |||
| Source #3 |
Research Reflection
Give a brief (3-5 sentence) description of your research process. What sites or search engines did you use? What keywords did you use? Did you hit any obstacles? What strategies worked?
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