David Lauderback
Department of History

Research Project Guidelines
World History since 1500

http://www.austincc.edu/dlauderb

The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade

Students will examine in detail some aspect of the life of slaves caught up in the Trans-Atlantic slave trade. The traffic in human beings dominated trade in the Atlantic world for more than four centuries and dramatically changed life on four continents. Students will take advantage of a wealth of “slave narratives” -- accounts from slaves and former slaves themselves -- to research and write about slave life and the impact of the Trans-Atlantic slave trade.

To begin, students will read one of the Classic Slave Narratives: The Life of Olaudah Equiano. The narrative will form the foundation of the research project. Drawing on the experiences of Olaudah Equiano, students will decide on a a Topic -- a specific aspect of slave life in the in the Trans-Atlantic trade -- to research. Then, students will assemble an Annotated Bibliography of primary and secondary readings for the project where they will describe the utility of each source. Next, students will prepare a detailed Outline that will conform to the specific guidelines on the Outline page. Finally, students will prepare a Final Draft of their research in a paper. All written work submitted for the Research Project must conform to the Format and Documentation Requirements listed below and be submitted by the deadlines listed in the Course Schedule.

The Research Project will require a sustained effort over the entire semester. Be sure to consult regularly with your instructor for details on how to complete the Research Project.

The Research Project is required for those students who desire a grade of B or better. If you do NOT complete the Research Project the highest grade that you can receive is a C. Additionally, completion of the Research Project does NOT automatically guarantee a grade of B or better. The final effort will receive a point value that will be factored into the final course grade.

Please see the Course Schedule for the dates by which you must submit your: Topic Page,  Annotated Bibliography, Outline, and Final Draft.

Selecting a Topic

Students will read The Life of Olaudah Equiano in search of a Topic for the Final Draft. For the purposes of the Final Draft the Topic must be very specific so that students can investigate and usefully explain their findings in one semester. To help disinter the evidence from primary and secondary sources, students will then pick three (3) themes/events/issues to analyze. Students will determine their Topic and the three (3) themes/events/issues in consultation with the instructor.

Submitting a Topic Page

The Topic Page will form the core of the introduction in the Final Draft. So start by making your topic your title. Centered at the top of the Topic Page students will place a word or phrase as the title. The title describes the focus of the Research Project. Underneath on a separate line, students will list the three themes/events/issues they intend to explore in the Final Draft. Next, below the Topic and themes, students will write one paragraph that concentrates on the three (3) themes/events/issues that will be the focus of the analysis. Students need to launch their introduction with a sentence that captures the readers attention. Then, students will discuss each of the three (3) themes/events/issues. Finally, students will wrap up the paragraph with a statement of why they feel the project has merit. Tell me why you believe your topic matters. The Topic paragraph should be at least 13 but no tmore than 17 lines long. Make sure that the Topic Page conforms to the Format and Documentation Requirements specified below.  Students must submit the Topic Page in class by the deadline listed in the Course Schedule.

Selecting an Annotated Bibliography

Next, students will assemble an Annotated Bibliography of primary and secondary readings for the project. A primary source is something written by an individual who lived at the time and took part in the event(s) that he or she is describing. Primary sources usually take the form of letters, diaries, journals, newspapers, government documents, and autobiographies. Secondary sources are books and articles written at a later time, usually by historians who were not participants in the event. Encyclopedias and general information web sites, e.g., The History Channel, Wikipedia, History.com, etc., are not considered scholarly works and will not be accepted as secondary sources.

Students can find a host of primary sources from:

Born in Slavery: Slave Narratives from the Federal Writers Project The most complete collection of recordings from the late 1930s comes from the Library of Congress (LOC).

In Motion -- The African-American Migration Experience

North American Slave Narratives is a remarkable compendium of published slave narratives as well as important documents by free blacks and whites.

Search the Web

and secondary literature can be found from the following links available through the Mira Costa library:

Books in Print

Periodical Portal

Search the Web

And, of course, the search engine at the Mira Costa Library

No Final Draft will be accepted unless it contains the requisite number of primary and secondary sources. If you have any questions about a source, ask the instructor.

Submitting an Annotated Bibliography

The Final Draft must use at least FOUR PRIMARY sources and FOUR SECONDARY sources. The narrative of Olaudah Equiano, The Life of Olaudah Equiano, will be one of your four primary sources. Your textbook The World: A Brief History can be used as one of the FOUR secondary sources.

In the Annotated Bibliography, students will list each of their projected primary and secondary sources in alphabetical order using the Documentation form listed below. Then, students need to annotate each citation. The purpose of annotating your bibliography is to explain not only the contents of the source but its value to you in preparing the paper. Tell me, what the source is about and why does it help you. Be specific and provide at least three sentences in each description. Use quotes from the source in each annotation to demonstrate the author's ideas. Make sure that you use endnotes for each the quotes. And, remember, the Annotated Bibliography must conform to the Format and Documentation Requirements specified below. Students must submit an Annotated Bibliography by the deadline listed in the Course Schedule.

Submitting an Outline

To assist  in developing the Final Draft, students will be required to complete an Outline of their proposed Research Project. The purpose of the Outline is to give students an opportunity to organize their research in a useful manner and to provide the blueprint for the Final Draft. See the directions on the Outline page to complete this stage of the Research Project. The Outline must conform to the Format and Documentation Requirements specified below. Students must submit an Outline by the deadline listed in the Course Schedule.

Please see the Course Schedule for the dates by which you must submit your: Topic Page, Annotated Bibliography, Outline, and Final Draft.

Writing the Final Draft

This is a term project that demonstrates a student's ability to write clearly, use good grammar and punctuation, analyze the material in a concise manner, and offer their thoughts on the primary and secondary sources. The Research Project will require a sustained effort over the entire semester. Be sure to consult regularly with your instructor for details on how to complete the Research Project.

Students are expected to accomplish five (5) tasks in the Final Draft:

Remember:  ONLY students who submit an"Acceptable" Topic Page, Annotated Bibliography, and Outline by the deadline listed in the Course Schedule will be permitted to submit a Final Draft.

Some tips on writing

There are a few important things to consider when you write the Final Draft. To begin with you must:

NEVER ASSUME.

When you write the Final Draft, DO NOT ASSUME that you can leave out critical information because you know that I am familiar with the subject.

Instead, you must tell me the:

MOST IMPORTANT INFORMATION

so that I will clearly understand your analysis of the primary and secondary sources.

DO NOT REWRITE THE SOURCES.

Your task in this assignment is to show that you can digest several different primary and secondary sources, distill them down to their essence, and then apply selected nuggets into a coherent argument. You simply do not have the space to repeat everything. So, do not waste time and effort trying to rewrite the sources.

Each paragraph is a mini-paper. Make the first sentence of each paragraph an introduction to that paragraph. Tell your reader what to expect in the paragraph. This is called the topic sentence. Summarize your point at the end of the paragraph, like the conclusion of a paper. In between, give lots of evidence to prove your point. Each paragraph should be at least thirteen (13), but NOT more than twenty (20), lines long -- NOT sentences, but lines on the page.

Make your sentences active. Fill your Final Draft with verbs that move the reader along from point to point. Writing that relies on the verb “to be” -- is, was, are, etc. -- quickly becomes repetitious and will NOT convince your reader. I do not expect you to eliminate the verb “to be” entirely, but come very close.

Quotes help spice up a paper by giving the reader the flavor of the sources. So, include quotations where appropriate to illustrate your points. Using quotes helps to establish your understanding of the key themes, events, person, etc., in your paper. Hence, the use of quotes constitutes a substantial portion of your Final Draft grade. Remember to cite your quotes following the directions in the Documentation section below. And, if you use information that comes from a source, you must cite that information whether you use a quote or not. Again, follow the directions in the Documentation section below.

Format Requirements

ALL ASSIGNMENTS -- TOPIC PAGE, ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY, OUTLINE, AND FINAL DRAFT -- MUST CONFORM TO THE FORMAT SPECIFICATIONS BELOW.  ANY TOPIC PAGE, ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY, OUTLINE, OR FINAL DRAFT THAT DOES NOT CONFORM TO THE FORMAT SPECIFICATIONS BELOW WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.

The format requirements for the completed Topic Page, Annotated Bibliography, Outline, and Final Draft are:

Please:

DO NOT BOLDFACE; or
DO NOT ITALICIZE; or
DO    NOT         JUSTIFY

your text.

The above particulars are designed to ensure that all students complete works of similar length.

Please:

Do NOT use folders or other such binders; and
You do NOT need a cover sheet.

Documentation

ALL ASSIGNMENTS -- TOPIC PAGE, ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY, OUTLINE, AND FINAL DRAFT -- MUST CONFORM TO THE DOCUMENTATION SPECIFICATIONS BELOW.  ANY TOPIC PAGE, ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY, OUTLINE, OR FINAL DRAFT THAT DOES NOT CONFORM TO THE DOCUMENTATION SPECIFICATIONS BELOW WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.

The documentation requirements for the completed Topic Page, Annotated Bibliography, Outline, and Final Draft are:

To ensure that you give credit where credit is due, please refer to the source from which you extracted information.  Please use end notes to document your sources using the appropriate formatting (see above). For the correct style, see the Mira Costa links to the Chicago style sheets. And, remember, you can always reference Kate L. Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, 6th ed. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1996), or John Grossman, ed., The Chicago Manual of Style, 14th ed. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1993). Both guides can be found at the Mira Costa library. Include a Bibliography on a separate page (with no page number), at the end of your Topic Page, Outline, and Final Draft. Here you provide a complete citation for each work cited. Please use the appropriate formatting (see above). And, please, do NOT ask if you can use MLA. Use Chicago.

Grading Policy

The Topic Page will be graded "ACCEPTED" or "NOT ACCEPTED." Recognize that a Topic Page rife with misspellings and grammatical errors will NOT be considered acceptable. Any Topic Page that does NOT conform to the Format and Documentation specifications above will NOT be accepted. If you submit your Topic Page before the deadline date in the Course Schedule and it is graded "NOT ACCEPTED" you may revise it and resubmit it prior to the deadline date. Any Topic Page that is submitted after the deadline listed in the Course Schedule will NOT be accepted.

The Annotated Bibliography will be graded "ACCEPTED" or "NOT ACCEPTED." Recognize that an Annotated Bibliography rife with misspellings and grammatical errors will NOT be considered acceptable. Any Annotated Bibliography that does NOT conform to the Format and Documentation specifications above will NOT be accepted. If you submit your Annotated Bibliography before the deadline date in the Course Schedule and it is graded "NOT ACCEPTED" you may revise it and resubmit it prior to the deadline date. Any Annotated Bibliography that issubmitted after the deadline listed in the Course Schedule will NOT be accepted.

The Outline will be graded "ACCEPTED" or "NOT ACCEPTED." Recognize that an Outline rife with misspellings and grammatical errors will NOT be considered acceptable. Any Outline that does NOT conform to the Format and Documentation specifications above will NOT be accepted. If you submit your Outline before the deadline date in the Course Schedule and it is graded "NOT ACCEPTED" you may revise it and resubmit it prior to the deadline date. Any Outline that is submitted after the deadline listed in the Course Schedule will NOT be accepted.

The Final Draft of the Research Project will receive a point value equivalent to one (1) Exam grade that will be factored into the final course grade. Recognize that a Final Draft rife with misspellings and grammatical errors will NOT be considered acceptable. Any Final Draft that does NOT conform to the Format and Documentation specifications above will NOT be accepted. If you submit your Final Draft before the deadline date in the syllabus and it is graded "NOT ACCEPTED" you may revise it and resubmit it prior to the date listed in the Course Schedule. Any Final Draft that is submitted after the deadline listed in the Course Schedule will NOT be accepted.

Deadlines

ALL ASSIGNMENTS ARE DUE NO LATER THAN THE BEGINNING OF CLASS ON THE DEADLINE LISTED IN THE COURSE SCHEDULE;

and

STUDENTS WHO DO NOT SELECT A BOOK BY THE DEADLINE LISTED IN THE COURSE SCHEDULE WILL NOT BE PERMITTED TO SUBMIT A FINAL DRAFT;

and

STUDENTS WHO DO NOT SUBMIT A TOPIC PAGE BY THE DEADLINE LISTED IN THE COURSE SCHEDULE WILL NOT BE PERMITTED TO SUBMIT A FINAL DRAFT;

and

STUDENTS WHO DO NOT SUBMIT AN ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY BY THE DEADLINE LISTED IN THE COURSE SCHEDULE WILL NOT BE PERMITTED TO SUBMIT A FINAL DRAFT;

and

STUDENTS WHO DO NOT SUBMIT AN OUTLINE BY THE DEADLINE LISTED IN THE COURSE SCHEDULE WILL NOT BE PERMITTED TO SUBMIT A FINAL DRAFT;

and

ANY FINAL DRAFT THAT IS NOT SUBMITTED BY THE DEADLINE LISTED IN THE COURSE SCHEDULE WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.

REMEMBER:  ALL ASSIGNMENTS ARE DUE NO LATER THAN THE BEGINNING OF CLASS ON THE DEADLINE LISTED IN THE COURSE SCHEDULE

The Research Project has several components. Please see the Course Schedule for the dates by which you must submit your: Topic Page,  Annotated Bibliography, Outline, and Final Draft.

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© David Marcus Lauderback, 2008 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED