Mini Extended Essay
To prepare for the Extended Essay (a 4,000 word research paper required by the IB program), you will complete a mini-extended essay (only 2,000 words) over the next two years.
This year, you will complete the research portion. You will need internet access for your research outside of school. |
MINI EE STEPS:
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Assignments due for this unit...
1. RESEARCH QUESTION
A. NARROWING DOWN YOUR TOPIC
Think of a topic you'd like to research. Start with something broad (like science, or math).
Then, narrow it down more (science->biology->the brain->the cognitive development of infants).
Then, think about the kind of research you want to do. You are not trying to list, identify, or show. You want to measure, determine, analyze, etc.
Some options are:
Think of a topic you'd like to research. Start with something broad (like science, or math).
Then, narrow it down more (science->biology->the brain->the cognitive development of infants).
Then, think about the kind of research you want to do. You are not trying to list, identify, or show. You want to measure, determine, analyze, etc.
Some options are:
- Measure the impact of x on y.
- Analyze the cause of x.
- Analyze the effect of x.
B. CREATING THE RESEARCH QUESTION
Click here for <QUESTION STARTERS>. You can use these to help you formulate your question. Remember, be specific, avoid opinions, speculation, and generalizations. Email me if you have questions.
Then, submit your typed research question for approval. You may change your question after the initial submission, but it must be approved by me. The document must be in MLA format.
MLA Guidelines can be found here:
<PURDUE OWL WEBSITE>.
Click here for <QUESTION STARTERS>. You can use these to help you formulate your question. Remember, be specific, avoid opinions, speculation, and generalizations. Email me if you have questions.
Then, submit your typed research question for approval. You may change your question after the initial submission, but it must be approved by me. The document must be in MLA format.
MLA Guidelines can be found here:
<PURDUE OWL WEBSITE>.
2. ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY
A. LOOKING FOR SOURCES
Additionally, here's a <LIST OF RESOURCES>.
Online Encyclopedias:
Acceptable sources:
You are looking for valid, relevant sources. You should be looking at publications and authors with good reputations and experience in your subject.
Unacceptable Sources:
Chat forums; Wikipedia; About.com; History.com; Answers.com; Yahoo Answers; certain blogs and vlogs (depending on the author and research topic).
Source Requirements
You must have at least 6 sources. Your sources must include at least one of each of the following:
- NEW! Here is a link to a database with research resources paid for by the school:
Additionally, here's a <LIST OF RESOURCES>.
Online Encyclopedias:
Acceptable sources:
You are looking for valid, relevant sources. You should be looking at publications and authors with good reputations and experience in your subject.
Unacceptable Sources:
Chat forums; Wikipedia; About.com; History.com; Answers.com; Yahoo Answers; certain blogs and vlogs (depending on the author and research topic).
Source Requirements
You must have at least 6 sources. Your sources must include at least one of each of the following:
- 1 book; 1 encyclopedia; 1 periodical
- 1 print source; 1 non-print source.
B. CREATING THE ANNOTATED BIB.
Order of Elements:
Author. Title of source. Title of container, Other contributors, Version, Number, Publisher, Publication date, Location. Date of Access.
- What is an annotated bibliography?
- How do I create the source citations?
Order of Elements:
Author. Title of source. Title of container, Other contributors, Version, Number, Publisher, Publication date, Location. Date of Access.
This is a list of each element, in the order in which they should appear, along with an explanation of how to format them.
1. Author: Last Name, First Name. If there is no known author, don't put anything down. Ex: Martinez, Maria. Variations: 2 authors, more than 2 authors. 2. Title of source: Use italics if it's a long work (book title, film title, etc.) or quotations if it's a short work (article, song, essay, short story, poem, etc.). Ex: Rome: An Empire. OR "The Roman Empire". 3. Title of container: If your work was contained IN another source (like an article is IN a magazine, or a song is IN an album, or a word entry is IN a dictionary), then you need to include the title of the container. The title should be in italics. Ex.: The Amazon: A Languishing Lung OR "The Effects of Deforestation". 4. Other contributors: These are people who contributed to your source and should get credit, like translators, illustrators, editors, etc. Include what they did and their name. Ex.: Translated by John Smith. 5. Version: If your source is a specific version or edition of a work, you need to include that information. Otherwise, your reader will not be able to locate the specific version/edition you used. Ex. 3rd ed. 6. Number: If your source is part of a numbered series (like a volume or issue number, which is common with magazines, journals, tv shows, and comics, for example), you need to include that information. Ex: vol. 2, no. 5 OR season 1, episode 15 7. Publisher: The publisher is the person or company that produces or distributes the source. DO NOT include the publisher if your source is a periodical, if the container and the publisher are the same, or if it is a website that makes a work available but doesn't actually publish them (like YouTube, WordPress, or JSTOR). Ex. Oxford University Press. 8. Publication Date: The date when your specific source was published. For example, if the article you are using was published by a magazine twice in the same year, you would have to give more information than just the year in order for your reader to find that source. Ex. 12 Dec. 1991. 9. Location: Where is your source located? If it's in a specific page range in a book, then put the page numbers. For more than one page, use "pp.", and for a single page use "p.". If you are dealing with an online source, you would give the URL, without the https://. Ex.: pp. 12-45. OR www.purdueowl.edu/owl/mla 10. Date of Access: Use this only if you are citing an online work. Ex: Accessed 24 Feb. 2020. |
This is how your entry should look like with each element added to it:
1. Author. Martinez, Maria.
2. Author. Title of source.
3. Author. Title of source. Title of container. Martinez, Maria. "The Roman Empire". Introduction to Ancient Roman History. 4. Author. Title of source. Title of container, Other contributors.
5. Author. Title of source. Title of container, Other contributors, Version. Martinez, Maria. "The Roman Empire". Introduction to Ancient Roman History, translated by John Smith, 3rd ed. 6. Author. Title of source. Title of container, Other contributors, Version, Number. Martinez, Maria. "The Roman Empire". Introduction to Ancient Roman History, translated by John Smith, 3rd ed., vol. 2, no. 5. 7. Author. Title of source. Title of container, Other contributors, Version, Number, Publisher. Martinez, Maria. "The Roman Empire". Introduction to Ancient Roman History, translated by John Smith, 3rd ed., vol. 2, no. 5., Oxford University Press. 8. Author. Title of source. Title of container, Other contributors, Version, Number, Publisher, Publication Date. Martinez, Maria. "The Roman Empire". Introduction to Ancient Roman History, translated by John Smith, 3rd ed., vol. 2, no. 5., Oxford University Press, 1999. 9. Author. Title of source. Title of container, Other contributors, Version, Number, Publisher, Publication Date, Location. Martinez, Maria. "The Roman Empire". Introduction to Ancient Roman History, translated by John Smith, 3rd ed., vol. 2, no. 5., Oxford University Press, 1999, www.ancientromanhistory.org/the-roman-empire. 10. Author. Title of source. Title of container, Other contributors, Version, Number, Publisher, Publication Date, Location. Date of Access. Martinez, Maria. "The Roman Empire". Introduction to Ancient Roman History, translated by John Smith, 3rd ed., vol. 2, no. 5., Oxford University Press, 1999, www.ancientromanhistory.org/the-roman-empire. Accessed 24 Feb. 2020. |
Here are samples of Annotated Bibliographies for reference: <SAMPLE 1>; <SAMPLE 2>.
For additional help, here is a <STUDENT SAMPLE> from a previous year.
For additional help, here is a <STUDENT SAMPLE> from a previous year.
3. EVIDENCE
A. EVIDENCE REQUIREMENTS
Total number of sources: 6
Total pieces of evidence per source: 6
Total pieces of evidence overall: 36
FAQ:
Total number of sources: 6
Total pieces of evidence per source: 6
Total pieces of evidence overall: 36
FAQ:
- What if I can't find 6 for one source? What if I find more than 6 for another?
B. FORMATTING THE EVIDENCE
Sources:
You will label each of your sources with letters (A-H). They must be listed alphabetically. Make sure you have the citation in MLA style (even the indent).
Evidence:
You will label each of your pieces of evidence with numbers (1-6). They should be listed in order, if applicable (for example, if there are page numbers). You must include:
For guidance, see this <STUDENT SAMPLE>.
Sources:
You will label each of your sources with letters (A-H). They must be listed alphabetically. Make sure you have the citation in MLA style (even the indent).
Evidence:
You will label each of your pieces of evidence with numbers (1-6). They should be listed in order, if applicable (for example, if there are page numbers). You must include:
- in-text citations for each piece of evidence.
- quotation marks (if word-for-word)
- no quotation marks (if paraphrasing)
For guidance, see this <STUDENT SAMPLE>.
4. WORKING OUTLINE
Use the <WORKING OUTLINE GUIDE> to help you put together your outline.
For reference, see this <STUDENT SAMPLE>.
For reference, see this <STUDENT SAMPLE>.
5. FINAL OUTLINE & WORKS CITED PAGE
Works Cited page (MLA style (No bullet points/numbers). Email me if you have doubts/questions, but also use the resources under the MLA section).
***Note: The works cited should not have a heading (your name, instructor, class, date), but it should have a header (last name, page #). Your Working Outline and Annotated Bibliography should have a heading, on the upper left corner, and a header, on the upper right corner.