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Contributor: Jodi Powell. Lesson ID: 11705
Choosing from a fancy restaurant menu can be more difficult than picking from a pizza place -- too many options! Same is true when you have to pick a topic, but you will learn how to narrow them down!
Often times when doing a research paper, you (as the writer) are assigned a topic, or sometimes given a small selection of options. There are times, however, when the sky is the limit! So, how do you choose?
Before moving on, if you missed or would like to review the introduction Related Lesson in our Writing a Research Paper series, you can find it in the right-hand sidebar.
The freedom of selecting your own topic for a research paper is both exciting and overwhelming!
It is great because it allows you to choose a topic you're interested in. It can be overwhelming, however, because then you must think:
Don't fear, because there is a helpful way to answer each of these questions.
Begin by viewing the video, How to Develop a Good Research Topic (KStateLibraries):
A Teacher's Discovery book, entitled Research Paper Procedure: High School, by Amy M. Kleppner and Cynthia Skelton, organizes the process into four primary tasks:
Task 1: Select an excellent topic. This means a topic that:
Task 2: Find an angle. It's a good idea to:
Task 3: Do some serious preliminary work. Serious preliminary work includes:
Task 4: Brainstorm Brainstorming includes:
Also, keep in mind these five questions:
Next, view the video, Choosing a Manageable Research Topic: Avoiding Pitfalls (PfauLibrary), to learn how to avoid the most common pitfalls. Take down a few notes while you're watching:
Discuss with your teacher or parent some of the most helpful tips you learned from the video.
Continue on to the Got It? section, where you will do some application of your own.