Forming a Research Question
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Criteria:
Your research question ...
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It requires explanation and will contribute to a broader field of research. |
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It is important to identify how other scholars are discussing your area of inquiry. |
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It will hold your interest; you do not hold a pre-determined answer. |
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It is re-searchable. Others have already been contributing to this conversation. |
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It is not too narrow, nor too broad; it does not leave you with too much or too little information. |
Together: You will have to do some preliminary research to really discover if these statements are TRUE for your proposed research question.
Consider the previous criteria when crafting a research question. You may also want to ask yourself the following questions to think about what elements you may want to explore in your research question.
PLACE or SETTING | POPULATION | TYPE of WRITING / GENRE | TOPIC |
college | professional journalists | technical writing | drafting |
Hispanic serving institution (HSI) | first-generation students | academic writing | composing |
timed writing | scientists | social communications (e.g. texts, Tweets) | revising / revision |
workplace | unskilled high school student | business reports | editing |
elementary school | basic writer | personal writing | writing process |
personal environment | graduate student | scientific article | writer's block |
writing environment | Latino college students | news | self reflection |
humanities course | experienced adult writers | creative writing | self-efficacy |
first-year college composition course | veteran | lab reports | confidence |
ESL writer | grant proposal | motivation | |
bilingual or multilingual | reading habits / writing habits |
Instructions:
Look at each research question below. Does each question meet the criteria? What are their strengths or weaknesses? Note: You may have to do some pre-search to determine if the scope is appropriate.
Together:
Research Question A: How can incoming freshmen students better improve their writing?
Research Question B: How do bilingual or multilingual speakers approach creative writing in contrast to undergraduate native speakers?
Research Question C: How do advanced writers construct their writing environment to fully engage in the writing process?
In Groups:
Research Question D: What writing processes do college students employ when crafting personal communications?
Research Question E: What rhetorical moves do opinion writers make most often in order to communicate with their readers?
Research Question F: How do college students transfer their writing knowledge and processes from writing classes to other non-writing focused classes in their discipline?
Research Question G: What is the role of self-efficacy in college students’ successful transition to academic writing?
Research Question H: How do undergraduates incorporate evidence into their academic writing?
Research Question I: How does someone overcome writer’s block?
Research Question J: What strategies can be employed to prepare and motivate basic writers to move from editing to revision?
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