Discussion Forum
Discussion Forum
Hopefully someone here can understand what exactly the professor wants.
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This discussion forum in designed to lead you to a research question.
Please first take a look at the diagram that I’ve posted above this week’s forum and then answer this question:
1. What are the most important similarities and differences between a research essay (the steps of which we work through here) and an argument essay (of the kind you’ve just written)?
2. After completing step 1, I’d like you to make a list of at least five topics that interest you and that you might be able to find sources for from the library. For example, right now, here are five topics that are interesting and important to me:
-prenatal health, especially things mothers can do to improve health outcomes for the baby
-early childhood development, especially the first two years
-student success in composition classes
-online teaching and learning
-cardiovascular health, especially hypertension (a chronic problem in my family, and one I suffer from despite being otherwise healthy)
Your list of topics need only be a bulleted list like mine.
3. I want you to come up with at least three questions about your topics; you could have three questions on the same topic, or treat different topics in your question. In college-level research projects, questions need to be “why,” “how,” or “what are the causes” or “what are the effects”-type questions. Asking a “what” question usually won’t cut it for college-level research because your audience (college students) can easily find the answer to that question himself or herself.
So, I might ask
“How can parents of very small children best foster and develop their children’s intelligence?”
or
“What are the effects of Omega-3 fatty acids on fetal brain development? Why?”
or
“How can online teachers best retain and promote successful student outcomes in online college courses?”
4. Once you’ve written your own questions, tell us which one (or ones) is most interesting to you and why.
5. Post and then thoughtfully comment on the questions of at least two peers. Try to write at least fifty words per post on what you believe would make a great research question and why.
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I’m guessing 3 topics have to be picked which can be anything? Such few instructions provided.
Hopefully someone out there understands this perfectly?
