Manual for Student Research
Completed
for the Grossmont and Sweetwater Union High School Districts, California
Ann M. Johns, 2003
Part I: Introduction and Overview
Part II: Questions, and Answers, about Student Research
1. What is research?
2. How can I convince my students of the necessity for research in their
everyday and academic lives?
3. How can I relate student research to the standards and assessments
required by the district and the state?
4. How should I plan my research project(s)? When will I begin, and
how will I continue, my collaboration with librarians and colleagues,
for example?
5. What research skills and topics should be the focus of my research
project?
6. Under what parameters should I work?
• Length and format of the final paper
• Number and types of sources
• In- and out-of-class time devoted to various stages in the project,
e.g., searching for sources, conducting interviews
7. How will I assess the students’ research process and final product?
What types of formative assessment (e.g., self- and peer-evaluation)
will be included in the process? What will the rubric for the final
product contain?
8. What is a viable research question? How can I assist my students
in developing a researchable question?
9. How will I support my students in through the various stages (components)
of the project?
10. How can I approach research with my ELL students?
Part III: Tailored Research Activities (TRAs). This section includes
advice for teachers with students at each academic level, recommended
WEBsites for instructional ideas, and those activities that are designed
specifically for projects in the district or that do not appear frequently
in the published research manuals. The section is organized topically,
generally in terms of the research writing process. Grade level and
other recommendations are made for each activity:
1.Beginning the research process (Including comments about each academic
level):
a. Selecting and exploring topics: drawing from prior knowledge
[TRA1: Exploring My Topic Knowledge and Attitudes—11th and
12th grades]
b. Developing a purpose statement and research questions (Specific suggestions
for each academic level).
[TRA2 : Evaluating Purpose Statements and Research Questions—11th
or 12th grade]
2.Locating and selecting sources
a. Finding, or supplying, appropriate sources
b. Analyzing primary sources
[TRA3: Analyzing Primary Sources—10th and 11th grades]
c. Exploiting the Internet (Sites for teachers)
3.Vocabulary development activities for research
a. Selecting words to pre-teach
[TRA4:A Vocabulary Log for Student Reading and Research-ELL or low proficient
students, grades 9-12]
b. Finding core vocabulary in a text
[TRA5: Pre- and Post-Reading for Essential Vocabulary—ELL or low
proficient students, grades 9-12]
c. Identifying, defining, and selecting words to introduce in citations
[TRA6: Identifying, Defining, and Selecting Words for Citation: “Opinion
Words”—11th and 12th grades]
4. Reading to summarize (Begins in 9th grade)
a. Reading to summarize (problem/solution template)
[TRA7: Preparing a Problem-Causes-Solution-Evaluation Summary—9th
grade]
b. Reading to summarize (argumentation template)
[TRA8: Preparing a Summary of the Author’s Argument—Grades
9-12]
5.Reading for Bias and/or Perspectives
c. Understanding the vocabulary of bias
[TRA9: Identifying the Author’s Perspectives or Biases]
d. Evaluating Information on the Internet
[TRA10: Information Literacy: Evaluating Electronic Sources for Bias
and Context—11th and 12th grades, especially for History/Social
Science classes.]
[TRA11: Evaluating (and Identifying Perspectives of) Media Websites—11th
and 12th grades, especially History/Social Science]
6.Recording information—and beginning to write.
e. Organizing information from sources
[TRA12:: Recording and Organizing Information around Central
Themes or Arguments, grades 9-12]
[TRA13: Recording and Organizing Information for Headed Papers, grades
9-12]
7.Integrating source information into texts: paraphrase, quotation—and
avoiding plagiarism
[TRA14: Identifying Author and Citation, 9th grade]
[TRA15: Should I quote, paraphrase, or summarize? 11th
and 12th grades]
8.Using an MLA style sheet
9.Drafting full research texts using model formats (e.g., IMRD, headed
papers, summary, and annotation)
10.Evaluating research processes and products
By the students
i. Self-evaluation
ii. Peer-evaluation
By the teachers
iii. Grading the process
iv. Grading the product
11.Reflecting upon the research experience
Part IV:
Student Examples for Each Academic Level
Each example includes the following:
1. The District Research Standards for this level
2. Suggested topics for History/Social Sciences and English/Language
Arts
3. A Sample Overview of the Project at this Level
4. A Breakdown of Lesson Components
5. Assessment rubrics
Part V: Suggestions for Additional Reading