LibGuides: Library Instructional Services: Research Assignment Design

Research Assignments

Jennifer Esperanza - Approaching Social Problems Using Anthropological Perspectives
Student groups find journalistic and academic sources regarding a social problem. They analyze how to view the issue as anthropologists.
Jennifer Esperanza - Refugee Resettlement
Student groups conduct research about an ethnic group and how the group has gained refugee status, then design an orientation program for refugees in Beloit.
Shannon Fie - FYI Research Paper, Step by Step
Each of the component assignments (i.e., preliminary bib, article summaries, paper outline, draft, and final paper) has additional instruction. But this should be sufficient for someone looking for ideas. I would emphasize that first, we were doing the "science" section of the course, so I emphasized certain literature and writing styles. Also, I strongly encourage anyone learning to write a research paper to read The Craft of Research volume.
Yaffa Grossman - Botany Book Review
Students read a book, write a review, and then we have a "book club" day. Students give a brief oral description of the book, how it connects to the course material, and then say whether they recommend the book. This process takes two hours for a course with 24 students. We eat doughnuts while we talk.
Heath Massey - Research Paper in Existentialism
Steps in the process include preparing a proposal, searching for and evaluating sources, writing a draft, peer review, and revision.
Philosophy Colloquium - Comparing Research Tools
The task is to do preliminary research on a sample topic and compile a list of references. Then students compare the advantages and disadvantages of two or more research tools.
Catherine Orr - Term Tracing in Feminist Theorizing
Students choose a single term, idea, text (article, book, etc.), or author. They investigate the “traces” (signs of presence) of that term in other feminist theory journals, books, blogs, videos, encyclopedias and resources.
Jo Ortel - FYI Book Review Assignment
Students review a book on an aspect of sustainability that relates to their potential major or a future project. Reviews are posted on the sustainability resources web page.
Tes Slominski - Preparing a Lesson Plan for a High School Unit about Music Cultures of the World
Each student prepares a detailed lesson plan to introduce high school students to a musical genre from a place they may not know much about.
Larry White - Applying Social Psychology Principles to Solve Societal Problems
The first assigned component of the research paper is an abstract with a list of sources. The abstract describes the societal problem, identifies likely causes of the problem, and lists strategies that make use of social psychological principles.
Larry White - Learning about and Portraying an Eminent Person in the History of Psychology
Students present a paper about an important figure in the history of psychology, then become the person as class members ask interview questions.
Carol Wickersham - FYI Research Paper, Letters from Prison
Students analyze the social context of incarceration. Steps in the assignment include an annotated bibliography and an outline. Critical reading exercises beforehand help students understand how authors approach and articulate this kind of analysis.
Ken Yasukawa - Critiques Designed to Develop Critical Analysis Skills
Students compare and critically evaluate articles in Biology 343, Animal Behavior.
Ken Yasukawa - Writing a Critique
Students are to present a constructive evaluation of information, while attempting to understand the topic from different perspectives and in relation to the hypotheses, approaches, and frameworks of animal behavior.

Adapting Assignments for Information Literacy

In addition to giving students their readings, data, etc., have them find something.

Original plan: Post a saved PDF on Moodle.

Slight change of plan, when possible: Post a link to the article in Jstor, Academic Search Premier, etc. so students see the source. (Ask library staff about stable URLs and exproxy.)

Original assignment: Students analyze a statistical chart.

Restructured: Each student finds an article that includes statistical data and explains why their choice was a good one for their topic.

Give students opportunities to evaluate information.

Original assignments: Find a -- scholarly article or -- scientific article that’s a primary source.

Restructured: Find two articles on your topic, one that you consider scholarly (primary) and one that you do not. Explain your criteria.

Original assignment: Research a company or a nonprofit organization.

Restructured: Include information that indicates how the organization sees itself and how others perceive it.

Portions of these assignments and questions have been adapted from Project SAILS sample questions and Debra Gilchrist’s ACRL Information Literacy Immersion assessment materials.