APA7
Length: No more than 2–3 double-spaced pages
Instructions:
The purpose of the research paper proposal is to get you thinking about what you will be writing for the research paper. Once your tutor returns this assignment to you, be sure to keep it handy as you must use the written tutor feedback for writing your research paper.
Step 1: Determine your research question
There are a number of interesting areas in the study of youth justice. For the purposes of this research paper proposal, review the unit topics in the Study Guide and select an area of interest. You may find the study questions useful in determining the question you want to pose for your research. You are not required to have completed all of the units prior to selecting your question, but you may opt to read ahead in order to select a question that interests you.
You are permitted to select one of the study questions as your research question, or you may come up with your own question. You must conduct some preliminary research in order to develop your thesis statement (the response to the research question and central argument for your final research paper). This preliminary research will also help you to develop a minimum of three sub-arguments or points that further help to support and develop your central argument. These must be included in the proposal and include citations to relevant sources of evidence.
Recall from Unit 2 and Chapter 5 of your textbook the distinction between what we believe to be true and what is scientific fact. It is critical to this proposal, and the writing of the final research paper that follows, that you develop a thesis that is based on the available empirical evidence. Remember when writing this proposal (and the research paper) to ask yourself: What does the empirical evidence tell me about the topic under examination? Be prepared to have your assumptions challenged and address the assumptions of critics to your position.
It is also important to remember that your tutor is available to help you with your assignments. Should you have any difficulties in deciding on a research question, or need help developing your thesis and/or sub-arguments, please be sure to reach out and get some help.
Step 2: Structure and format your proposal
While the proposal does not have to be structured like an essay, it should include the following parts:
State your research question.
State your thesis (central argument). This is your main argument for the research paper and it must, in a meaningful way, address the issue posed by your research question. Your thesis statement should answer the question you are asking; the question, itself, cannot be your thesis statement.
Provide a brief summary of how you plan to support your argument. You may use point or bullet form (but be careful not to be too brief—the more you provide, the better feedback you will receive for the final paper). You should plan to develop at least three major points to support your thesis that you will later discuss in depth in your Research Paper. You must support each point with research evidence.
Include a preliminary list of references for your paper, or a bibliography. The references must be formatted using APA style.
Unit 1 & 2 modules attached
