Writing the I-Search Paper

Learning Targets for this session

• To create a research question that is debatable and significant

• To use significant and appropriate background information to provide a context for understanding the question

• To use relevant, accurate evidence and citations to answer your question

• To explain and evaluate research to show how much you understand

• To explain the implications of your research

What is an I-Search paper and why do I have to do it?

What is the purpose of the I-Search paper?• The I-search paper has two main purposes. The first is to

help you learn how to research in the way that you will need to in college, in work, and even in figuring out what kind of car to buy or how to fix up your home. The second is to help you get a very good answer to a question that you need answered to do a good job on your culminating project. The answer to this question will make your project better.

If you choose the right question to answer….

Choosing a question

The foundation of the I-Search paper is a question to which you do not know the answer. The best questions have these things in common:– They are open-ended: there is no one clear answer– They are focused on a specific issue– They are ones that experts don’t agree on what the

answer is – there is a lot of “grey area” in the answers that experts give or it depends on a specific set of circumstances

– They are meaningful to you and your project

Sample QuestionsProject Topic Good Question Bad Question

Engine rebuild Should I use synthetic or regular oil in my newly rebuilt 1978 F150 engine? Why is it good?: it takes a general topic that might have a simple answer and applies it to a more complex situation – a specific car. Plus, the answer will help the writer make a decision.

Which is better: synthetic or regular oil? Why is it bad?: it takes such a simple position that the writer might find only simple answers put out by motor oil marketers. Chances are that if they asked this question to a mechanic, the answer would be “Depends on what kind of engine you’re talking about.”

Project Topic Good Question Bad QuestionPainting a King County bus stop mural

How does the subject matter of public mural painting differ from the subject matter of private landscape or portrait painting?Why is it good?: It requires that the writer look at the purposes and content of different art forms. The research will focus on these purposes and how they are fulfilled by the content. Knowing the answer to this will allow the writer to produce a truly public piece of art.

What makes a good mural?Why is it bad?: It is too broad to get a specific answer to. Research will be all over the map. Research might talk about colors, paint types, subject matter, styles, etc. and not give the writer the opportunity to learn very much about any of them. Knowing that answer to this won’t provide much guidance for the mural itself.

Can you see the difference between the good questions and the bad questions? Ask your teacher for more examples if you are still unclear.

Formative Assessment: What are the differences between the two?

What are some bad questions?

Make up four “bad” questions individually or as a group.

What are some good questions?

Make up four good questions that are on the same topic as the bad questions (individually or as a class):

Writing Part One of the I-Search

Part One is called the “Introduction of the Problem” and it has two parts1. Statement of Purpose – why did you choose this

topic for your project and this question for your paper? Explain the purpose of each of these choices in one long or two short paragraphs

2. Statement of the Question– State your question

Sample Part One

What do you notice?

• Approximately how long is each paragraph?• Do these paragraphs use first-person (I, me,

we) or third-person (he, she, they)?• How are they formatted?

Writing Part One

Your teacher will email a sample paper to you. You may write your paper right over the top of the sample so that you can keep all of the formatting. Simply read the sample, then highlight the paragraph and start typing yours.

Formative Assessment: Completion of Part One.This should take approx. 25 minutes (or less!)

Researching and Writing Part Two

Your research will take two forms: the standard reading that you would do for any paper and an interview with an expert on your topic. This expert is quite likely your mentor or expert evaluator, but it does not need to be.

You will need to have 5-7 sources for your research, including your interview. Part of your grade will depend on the quality of those sources, so don’t settle for the first ones you find.

If your sources don’t address or answer your question, your teacher will tell you that and you will need to find relevant sources to replace them.

Types of research sources• Books – good for information that has not changed much

with time– Shop manuals, how-to books, etc.– Get from library or bookstores– Advantages: usually very credible as they have been edited

and someone published them• Magazine and newspaper articles

– Good for information that is still changing– Accessed on-line through newspaper sites or through

ProQuest– Advantages: usually very credible since they have been edited

• Websites– Good for information that is changing rapidly– Found through a search engine or links from other sites– Advantages: very current, can find info from experts– Disadvantages: can be very wrong; no idea of person’s

qualifications• Interview

– Can be done in person, on phone, or through email– Find people through search engines, connections, or on-

line– Advantages: straight from the expert– Disadvantages: have to make sure the person really is an

expert

Finding Sources

• Refine your search terms: what words are you using to search for sources? Are they specific enough? Are they too specific? Are you using the wrong words? Ask for help if you are not finding sources

Formative Assessment: Locate one source before the end of class

Writing Part TwoPart Two of the I-Search is called Establishing Relevance and

Credibility and has two paragraphs for each of your 5-7 sources:

Establishing Relevance and Credibility• For each of your 5-7 sources, create a correctly formatted

bibliographic entry and include the following things:– A one-paragraph, 100-word summary of the source that identifies

and briefly explains the key ideas. This summary must be your own work, not the abstract from the source itself.

– A one-paragraph analysis of the credibility of the source that explains the qualifications of the writer or interviewee and concludes with an evaluation of the credibility of the source

Sample of one entry for Part Two

Sample of Part Two (how to summarize the interview)

Writing the bibliography entry

• Go to www.easybib.com• Figure out what type of

source you have found and select that type

Bibliography continued

• Enter all of the information for your source and click “Create Citation”

Bibliography continued

• Copy and paste the entry into a Word document and SAVE IT!!!

• Easybib.com does have a function to save your whole bibliography but it has not been very reliable

Writing your first bibliography entry

Formative Assessment: Write a complete and correct bibliography entry using easybib.com

Writing the summary – Showing Relevance

“Relevance” means that it is related to your question.– You need to summarize your source in a way that

shows the source is relevant to your question

Formative Assessment: Write a 75-100 word summary of your first source and show it to your teacher for feedback

Analyzing the credibility of the writer

• This may be the hardest part of the paper. To do it, you need to ask a few questions:1. Who wrote this? Is it a person with a name or a person working for this

organization?2. If we know the name of this author, what is his or her experience with this topic?

(credibility by experience)3. If we don’t know the name of the author, what is this organization’s experience

with this topic? (credibility by experience)4. How long has the person or organization been involved with this topic? (credibility

by experience)5. Did this piece of writing go through an editorial process? (establishing credibility by

examining the reputation of the editor or publisher)6. What are the reasons to trust this source? What are the reasons to distrust this

source?7. Does this source say things that no other sources say? (establishing credibility

through corroboration)

Sample of analysis of credibility

See how the student shows the person’s experience with the topic.

Formative Assessment: Write the analysis of credibility for your first source and show it to your teacher for feedback.

Completing Part Two

Formative Assessment: For each of the next four days, you will locate another source and write the bibliography entry and both the summary and the analysis of credibility for each one.

Part Three

Part Three is called Analysis of the Evidence and it has one part for each of your 5-7 sources.

• Analysis of the Evidence– For each of the sources that you summarized and assessed

the credibility of above, you will need to do the following:• A full bibliography entry (copy it from Part Two)• An explanation of what the source says in answer to your

question that includes at least two (2) direct quotes from the source that answer the question

• An assessment of how helpful the information in this source was in answering the question

A sample of Part Three for one source

Locating Evidence to analyze

• First, copy the bibliography entries from each of your sources from Part Two

• Next, go to your first source and find at least two direct quotes that answer your question/relate to your question. Copy them below the bibliography entry for that source. You may also summarize some longer segments IN ADDITION to your two quotes.

Formative Assessment: Find at least two quotes for your first source and copy them below the bibliography entry for that source. Show it to your teacher for feedback.

Sample of what this looks like

Writing Commentary

Commentary is when you comment on or explain the quotes. You can…– Explain what the quote means to you– Define the ideas in the quote– Compare the quote to others (if they have the

same info or very different info)– Question what it means or if it is trueThere should be more words of commentary than

are in the quotes, in general.

Sample Commentary

Formative Assessment

Write your commentary for your first source (the one for which you have copied the quotes)

Show this to your teacher for feedback.

Completing Part Three

Formative Assessment: For each of the next four days, you will collect quotes for one source and write your commentary.

Each day, show your work to your teacher for feedback.

Part Four: ConclusionPart Four is called “Conclusions and Implications” and it has two

parts:• Conclusions

– Statement of Theory – write a bulleted list that states what the evidence shows to be the answer to the question. In a paragraph after that, discuss any confusion or ambiguity that remains. Are there things you couldn’t find the answer to? If yes, identify them.

• Implications – Implications for Project Work – Explain in at least one paragraph

how your theory (the best answer to the question that you could synthesize from the research) will affect your work on your project.

Sample of Conclusions

Writing your Conclusions

Make a list of all the things that your research has shown to be the answer to the question. Go through all the quotes you commented on in Part Three to help you with this.

You can’t include anything your research didn’t discuss.

Formative Assessment: Write your conclusions so that they are formatted like the sample.

Show it to your teacher for feedback.

Sample of Implications

Writing your Implications

Your implications section answers one or more of the following questions:

How will this research affect you and your project?How will it affect your thinking about this issue?What should be done by you or others if your

theory is true?Formative Assessment: Write your implications so

they are formatted like the sample. Show it to your teacher for feedback.

Revising

Our revision will take two forms: peer editing with checklists and editing with help from your teacher.

Each day you must be prepared to work on an electronic copy of your I-Search paper.

You must give people feedback and be willing to use the feedback people give you.

Editing Part One

Get a checklist from your teacher and find a classmate to edit it. Give your paper and the checklist to your editor.

Formative Assessment: Show your completed editing checklist to your teacher and explain the feedback you got. Make the changes needed.

Editing Part Two

Get a checklist from your teacher and find a classmate to edit it. Give your paper and the checklist to your editor.

Formative Assessment: Show your completed editing checklist to your teacher and explain the feedback you got. Make the changes needed.

Editing Part Three

Get a checklist from your teacher and find a classmate to edit it. Give your paper and the checklist to your editor.

Formative Assessment: Show your completed editing checklist to your teacher and explain the feedback you got. Make the changes needed.

Editing Part Four

Get a checklist from your teacher and find a classmate to edit it. Give your paper and the checklist to your editor.

Formative Assessment: Show your completed editing checklist to your teacher and explain the feedback you got. Make the changes needed.

Revising with teacher assistance

• Work with your teacher to revise your I-Search to proficiency.