The document provides guidance on how to effectively expand upon expert information cited in a research paper through follow-up analysis. It outlines five methods for following a direct quote or paraphrased content: teaching the reader, updating the reader on the current status, questioning the reader, comparing/contrasting to another source, and making an inference. Examples are provided for each method using fictitious quotes to demonstrate how to smoothly transition between sources and further analyze the information.
2. THE BASIS OF IT ALL…
While you write a research paper, it can be hard to expand upon expert
information that you have provided.
You have created an in-text citation for the expert opinion (BTW, you must
cite ALL expert opinion), but you don’t really know what to write now…
Some writers just go from one direct quote to another. Or maybe they go
from a direct quote to paraphrased information from a different expert.
This is not okay.
When you are doing that, you are essentially just “reporting out” or “curating”
information on your topic by selecting what you see as the “best of the best”
and leaving it out there for the reader to analyze.
A good research paper analyzes the information in relation to the thesis
statement that has been created. The next slides will show you five possible
ways to transition from one piece of expert information to another.
3. FIVE WAYS TO FOLLOW-UP
ON QUOTATIONS OR
PARAPHRASED CONTENT
4. IMPORTANT MESSAGE
I have used direct quotations throughout this slideshow, however you
should follow up ANY piece of expert information whether it is a
direct quote, indirect quote, paraphrased, etc.
You may like it because it will help you lengthen your paper.
5. FOLLOW-UP #1: TEACH THE
READER
You can follow a direct quote or paraphrased information from an
expert by:
Teaching the reader.
For example if you have provided information about something, you
can now tell your reader what the implications of the information are
that they may not have already considered, themselves.
6. MLA EXAMPLE: TEACH THE
READER
Example Quote
“Georgia's first major law on police body cameras, which goes into
effect July 1, is already in the cross fire. Senate Bill 94
allows police officers to take their body cameras into private
dwellings. Previously, police had to request the permission of the
people inside to use the cameras, said the lawmaker behind the
measure, Republican Sen. Jesse Stone of Waynesboro” (Boone and
Schneider A1).
7. MLA EXAMPLE: TEACH THE
READER
The text may now read…
“Georgia's first major law on police body cameras, which goes into
effect July 1, is already in the cross fire. Senate Bill 94
allows police officers to take their body cameras into private
dwellings. Previously, police had to request the permission of the
people inside to use the cameras, said the lawmaker behind the
measure, Republican Sen. Jesse Stone of Waynesboro” (Boone and
Schneider A1). While this law protects the police officer in an
abundance of ways, the act of taking a body camera into a person’s
home may invade the privacy of others that are living in or visiting
the home, including children. It would be vital that any videos that
would become publicly viewable disguise the identity of any
additional people that appear in the video.
8. FOLLOW-UP #2: UPDATE THE
READER
You can follow a direct quote or paraphrased information from an
expert by:
Updating the reader on the current status.
For example if you have used information that has a copyright date
that is a little old (these days it may even be a matter of days, but it
really depends upon the topic you are researching and how active it
currently is in the world), the status of the situation may have
changed. You may want to research the current standing of what you
have just quoted and explain to your reader how the information has
changed or evolved.
You will see, in the example, that some quotes just beg for this to be
done (you may have noticed the previous example about body
cameras does). Even so, many writers do not think to update the
reader. Please recognize that the copyright date of the article in the
example on the next slide is 2010.
9. MLA EXAMPLE: UPDATE THE
READER
Example Quote:
“On Aug. 5, Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) introduced S.3728: The
Innovative Design Protection and Piracy Prevention Act. He's got 10
co-sponsors -- including three Republicans -- and a big idea: to
extend copyright protections to the fashion industry, where none
currently exist. That's right: none. I -- well, not I, but someone who
can sew -- can copy Vera Wang's (extremely expensive) dress and sell
it to you right now (for much less), and Wang can't do a thing about
it” (Kleine G1).
10. MLA EXAMPLE: UPDATE THE
READER
The text may now read…
“On Aug. 5, Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) introduced S.3728: The
Innovative Design Protection and Piracy Prevention Act. He's got 10
co-sponsors -- including three Republicans -- and a big idea: to
extend copyright protections to the fashion industry, where none
currently exist. That's right: none. I -- well, not I, but someone who
can sew -- can copy Vera Wang's (extremely expensive) dress and sell
it to you right now (for much less), and Wang can't do a thing about
it” (Kleine G1). Since this article was published in 2010, a look at
whether S.3728 passed is essential. Unfortunately, the answer is no,
it has not passed. There remains little to no copyright protections to
fashion designers. A person can still copy, sew and sell a high-end
designer’s fashions, legally.
11. FOLLOW-UP #3: QUESTION THE
READER
You can follow a direct quote or paraphrased information from an
expert by:
Questioning the reader.
Maybe you understand the connection and relevance to your research,
but your reader may have trouble connecting those dots. If you pose
a question, you may get them to think in ways that you need them to
begin thinking.
It is even okay if the purpose of the article is fulfilling a different
purpose than you would like to fulfill. In my example, it does not
matter that the purpose for the original article does focus upon family
bonds and hunting. The quoted information successfully supports
the thesis statement designed for the research paper.
Warning: use of questions must be limited to VERY few per paper. Do
NOT overuse rhetorical questions.
12. FOLLOW-UP #3: QUESTION THE
READER
Example Quote:
“Almost 60 percent of hunters had a mentor who influenced their
interest in hunting, and nearly three-quarters were taught to hunt by
their father. In fact, kids interested in hunting said they would much
rather go hunting with their father than with friends. And only 2.9
percent of boys hunted if their fathers did not” (Yaich).
13. MLA EXAMPLE: QUESTION THE
READER
The text may now read…
“Almost 60 percent of hunters had a mentor who influenced their
interest in hunting, and nearly three-quarters were taught to hunt by
their father. In fact, kids interested in hunting said they would much
rather go hunting with their father than with friends. And only 2.9
percent of boys hunted if their fathers did not” (Yaich). How can
hunting help to intensify a family bond and why is a family bond so
important? A family bond is important because…
Note: you would go on to explain why a family bond is important and
explain how hunting can create a stronger family bond.
14. FOLLOW-UP #4:
COMPARE/CONTRAST
You can follow a direct quote or paraphrased information from an
expert by:
Comparing/contrasting the information.
This is a great technique for when you have previously presented
information and the new information offers a different perspective. I
often suggest compare/contrast to follow any statistics. With
statistics, you can compare/contrast to previous years, compare
geographic regions, or compare physical size.
15. MLA EXAMPLE:
COMPARE/CONTRAST
Example Quote:
“Wealthy tourists are being invited to travel to Botswana to hunt big
game on private ranches that have been exempted from the ban. But
Bushmen from Botswana’s Central Kalahari Game Reserve, who have
hunted with spears, bows and arrows for millennia, are
being arrested, beaten and jailed for subsistence hunting” (Clotuche).
16. MLA EXAMPLE:
COMPARE/CONTRAST
The text may now read…
“Wealthy tourists are being invited to travel to Botswana to hunt big
game on private ranches that have been exempted from the ban. But
Bushmen from Botswana’s Central Kalahari Game Reserve, who have
hunted with spears, bows and arrows for millennia, are
being arrested, beaten and jailed for subsistence hunting” (Clotuche).
While Bushmen are restricted from hunting big game to provide food
for their families, we must compare Botswana’s reliance upon tourism
and how this impacts their economy to better understand what seems
like an incredibly horrible act upon innocent people.
17. FOLLOW-UP #5: MAKE AN
INFERENCE
You can follow a direct quote or paraphrased information from an
expert by:
Making an inference.
What can you assume from the information provided?
18. MLA EXAMPLE: INFERENCE
Example Quote:
“Increasing graduation requirements, all by itself, is unlikely to make
students better prepared for college or careers in the fields of
science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, concludes a new
report” (Gewertz).
19. MLA EXAMPLE: INFERENCE
The text may now read…
“Increasing graduation requirements, all by itself, is unlikely to make
students better prepared for college or careers in the fields of
science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, concludes a new
report” (Gewertz). From this statement, we can assume that students
entering STEAM related majors and careers are being undereducated
across the nation and that schools must consider providing a number
of additional STEAM opportunities for their students.
20. SUMMING IT UP
Teach the reader…to assist the reader in thinking further, gain a
clearer understanding, to point out implications.
Update the reader…to give the reader the “state of the topic” – where
it stands now.
Question the reader…to lead the reader into a thought process that
you’d like them to enter.
Compare/contrast when you want the reader to compare the
information to another piece of information that they may be more
familiar with.
Make an inference following expert information when an educated
assumption can be made that you would like the reader to make.
21. GOOD LUCK LOCATING THE
BEST METHODS TO CONNECT
YOUR THESIS STATEMENT TO
EXPERT INFORMATION!
Take your time and do it
right!
22. WORKS CITED
Boone, Christian, and Craig Schneider. "The Promise and Pitfalls of Cops and Cameras." Atlanta
Journal-Constitution [Atlanta, GA] 23 May 2015, A1: n. pag. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 21
Sept. 2015.
Clotuche, Philippe. "Botswana’s Hunting Ban: Bushmen Starve, Trophy Hunters Carry On."
Survival. Survival International, 31 Mar. 2014. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.
Gewertz, Catherine. "Graduation Requirements." Education Week 34.1 (2014): 5. Advanced
Placement Source. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.
Kleine, Ezra. "In Copycats vs. Copyright, the Knock-Off Wins." Washington Post [Washington, DC]
22 Aug. 2010, G1: n. pag. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.
Yaich, Scott. "Passing on the Tradition." Ultimate Waterfowling 360. Ducks Unlimited, July 2010.
Web. 21 Sept. 2015.
Note: Slideshare loses the proper formatting (indentations) for the MLA citations during the
conversion.
