The source is acceptable if it meets any of the following criteria: a. It also occurs in a print publication. Sources that occur in print publications (such as magazines, journals, newspapers, etc.) have had to go through an editorial process. This ensures that the information is considered accurate and that the writer is recognized as an expert within their field. b. It is found using an academic database. These are special databases provided by libraries & educational institutions, NOT search engines like Yahoo, Google, etc. See the lesson on academic databases within this learning unit for more details on this. c. It appears in a well-known online journal, newspaper, or magazine. Examples of these might be well-known news sites such as CNN.com, or Newsweek Magazine Online. The vast majority of sources that you find via a Google search will NOT meet any of the above criteria. In that case, you need to apply a much stricter set of rules to determine whether it is worthy of use in your paper. These rules are on the following page: Otherwise the source must meet these requirements: 1. Must have a named author, be written by a well-known, legitimate organization, or appear on a government website. a. If it is not part of a known online journal, some indication must be given that the author has legitimate credentials to be considered an expert. For example, the author may include a short biography at the beginning or end of the article in which their expertise (such as degrees, occupation, etc.) are made evident. b. An example of a "well-known, legitimate organization" could be the American Red Cross if you were searching for an article on disaster relief. 2. Must not be written by a college undergrad or earlier student. Even when a college (or earlier) student writes an exceptional article on a topic, they are not yet considered experts in the field. Therefore, they should not be used as research sources. 3. It's a good sign if it's from a college or university website, as these are often the publishers of most online journals. However, this is not a required element. Should I use Wikipedia in my research? When engaging in your research process, an encyclopedia is not a source you'd want to use in college-level research. This includes Wikipedia. While it's good to learn some background information from this source, if you want to use any of that information, you need to find other creditable sources that you can cite for that information. The reason for this is simple: articles on Wikipedia are not necessarily written by those who are experts in their field (thus, it can be manipulated and/or inaccuracies persist). For more on how to engage in the research process, make sure to read the lessons within our current learning unit. I highly encourage all of you to use the library academic databases as the primary source for your research. These databases include millions of articles from quality academic journals/magazines that are not otherwise ...

1. The source is acceptable if it meets any of the following
criteria:
a. It also occurs in a print publication. Sources that occur in
print publications (such as magazines, journals, newspapers,
etc.) have had to go through an editorial process. This ensures
that the information is considered accurate and that the writer is
recognized as an expert within their field.
b. It is found using an academic database. These are special
databases provided by libraries & educational institutions, NOT
search engines like Yahoo, Google, etc. See the lesson on
academic databases within this learning unit for more details on
this.
c. It appears in a well-known online journal, newspaper, or
magazine. Examples of these might be well-known news sites
such as CNN.com, or Newsweek Magazine Online.
The vast majority of sources that you find via a Google search
will NOT meet any of the above criteria. In that case, you need
to apply a much stricter set of rules to determine whether it is
worthy of use in your paper. These rules are on the following
page:
Otherwise the source must meet these requirements:
1. Must have a named author, be written by a well-known,
legitimate organization, or appear on a government website.
a. If it is not part of a known online journal, some indication
must be given that the author has legitimate credentials to be
considered an expert. For example, the author may include a
short biography at the beginning or end of the article in which
their expertise (such as degrees, occupation, etc.) are made
evident.
b. An example of a "well-known, legitimate organization" could
be the American Red Cross if you were searching for an article

2. on disaster relief.
2. Must not be written by a college undergrad or earlier student.
Even when a college (or earlier) student writes an exceptional
article on a topic, they are not yet considered experts in the
field. Therefore, they should not be used as research sources.
3. It's a good sign if it's from a college or university website, as
these are often the publishers of most online journals. However,
this is not a required element.
Should I use Wikipedia in my research?
When engaging in your research process, an encyclopedia is not
a source you'd want to use in college-level research. This
includes Wikipedia. While it's good to learn some background
information from this source, if you want to use any of that
information, you need to find other creditable sources that you
can cite for that information.
The reason for this is simple: articles on Wikipedia are not
necessarily written by those who are experts in their field (thus,
it can be manipulated and/or inaccuracies persist).
For more on how to engage in the research process, make sure
to read the lessons within our current learning unit. I highly
encourage all of you to use the library academic databases as
the primary source for your research. These databases include
millions of articles from quality academic journals/magazines
that are not otherwise available on the general internet. They
are, by far, the best place to do college-level research. Those
who tend to earn A's in college regularly use these databases for
their research, so you should make it a regular habit whenever
engaging in research.
What other kinds of websites should I avoid?
There are dozens of websites that sell or offer "free" essays on
topics commonly written by college students. You should
NEVER use these sources in your research process. There are
numerous reasons for this rule:
· The purpose of these websites is to assist students in
plagiarism. Thus, any product on their site is a form of

3. academic dishonesty.
· Most of the essays on these sites are actually plagiarized
themselves, usually copied & pasted from other internet
sources.
· Even the "premium" essays on these sites are usually
plagiarized from sources and are easily detected by plagiarism
tools such as TurnItIn.
· The essays on these sites will NEVER meet the requirements
that have already been discussed within this lesson. They
NEVER meet the requirement of being written by an author who
is considered an expert in their field. Instead, the authors are
usually nameless or even when a name is provided, no
indication of expertise is given.
Additional Resources
· Purdue OWL's lesson on Evaluating Sources
· Purdue OWL's lesson on Searching the Web
PROPOSAL OUTLINE
IntroductionHook readers with a provoking opening statement
that is relevant to the topic at hand
Briefly contextualize the problemPossibly use the Ted Talk to
introduce the problemEnd with a thesis statement in “A should
do B because of C” format”
THESIS EXAMPLESBroward County public school officials
should institute women’s leadership courses in high schools
because they would help close the achievement gap in male-
dominated fields.
Congress should legalize gay marriage nationwide because it
would alleviate the discrimination that our country claims to
reject.
Explain the problemConvince us that this is actually a problem
Explain the significance of the problem (who does it affect and

4. how badly)Use your TED Talk as one source of support
Explain what’s currently being done to solve the problem (if
anything)Convince us that these actions are not enough.
Explain what should be done and why (i.e. your solution)Walk
us through the steps (if there are steps) of your solutions.
Prove that it’s the best solution possible.
Prove that it is feasible.
Prove that it will actually solve/improve the problem.
Consider and refute potential counter-argumentsWhat critique
might people offer of your solution?
How do you respond? Why is your solution still “worth it”?
Conclude by restating your proposal and enticing readers to
act.What might happen if no action is taken?
Research Essay: Ideas worth Exploring & Problems worth
Solving
Length: 5-6 pages in MLA Style
_____________________________________________________
_________
Over the second half of the term, we have had an opportunity to
view and discuss several TED talks that explore social problems
and questions of identity. For your research paper, you will
need to choose one of the following TED talks that present an
idea that you feel reveals a problem that is worth exploring at
greater length:
· Adichie’s “The Danger of a Single Story”
· Jamila Lyiscott’s “3 Ways to Speak English”
· Brian Stevenson’s “We Need to Talk about an Injustice”
· Sheryl Sandberg’s “Why We have Too Few Women Leaders”
· Cameron Russell’s “Looks aren’t everything. Believe me, I’m
a Model”
· L.Z. Granderson’s “The Myth of the Gay Agenda”
· Clint Smith’s “The Danger of Silence”
· Ken Robinson’s “How Schools Kill Creativity”

5. · Barry Schwartz’s “The Paradox of Choice”
After selecting your talk, you will then need to identify a
problem that is related to the talk and pose a feasible solution
that will either solve OR improve the problem.
Your goal is not to argue the same thing as the speaker but
rather to build upon the topic by offering a more specific claim.
For example, I would not want to argue that women should “sit
at the table” in order to improve their chances of working their
way up the corporate ladder, as that is Sandberg’s argument;
however, I might want to propose that women’s leadership
courses be instituted in public high schools as a way of
preparing women to enter male-dominated fields.
Your proposal should clearly identify a problem and pose a
viable solution. The TED talk should serve as one source for
your essay. It is unnecessary to provide an extended close
analysis of the talk for this essay.
Requirements
· 5-6 pages in length
· At least 4 credible sources (1 should be the TED talk)
· An arguable and clearly-defined thesis articulated in “A
should do B because of C” format
· MLA documentation with a “works cited” page
· Direct quotations from your sources along with your own
explanation of these quotations
· Adherence to grammatical conventions
· Clear, Concise, and Convincing writing overall