J. Alexander (ENG 101)
College Composition I

Common Pitfalls of the Research Process
for students of English Composition

• Evaluate all information for credibility, considering date, author, source and objectivity
• Take notes as you read while the information is fresh in your mind and comment on every note you take to reduce the amount of writing needed once the reading has ended
• Include with every note card a source identifier (either author name or title) and page number

• Don’t just cut and paste source information; be sure to introduce and interpret every piece of external information used
• Keep in mind whether your goal is to analyze objectively or be subjectively persuasive
• Make sure your work is coherent (understandable and meaningful)
• Make sure your work maintains unity (consistency of focus and relevance)
• In the introductory section, state the thesis or purpose of the paper followed briefly by the major points you intend to use to achieve this purpose
• After suggesting the issue to be covered, make sure your paper clearly supports whatever perspective you have adopted on that issue
• Remember that only secondary sources count toward your minimum number of acceptable sources used
• Do not include any new information in the conclusion of your research; leave little or nothing open for discussion

• You must cite someone else’s words, ideas, organizational patterns, or little-known facts
• You do not have to cite results of your own field research and observations or whatever is considered common knowledge
• When paraphrasing (using another’s ideas in your own words), no quotation marks are necessary, but source information is
• Use brackets within quotation marks to clarify information in your own words or include necessary background
• Use ellipses within quotation marks to show where part of the quote has been removed
• Parenthetical citations include only the author’s last name and a page number; no comma is used to separate these items
• If the author’s name already appears in the research text, the parenthetical citation needs only the page number
• For a direct quotation of four lines or fewer, keep the quote within the body of your research and follow the parenthetical citation with a period
• For longer quotations, separate the passage from the body of your research by starting on a new line, indenting ten spaces, and not using quotation marks; follow the quotation with a period and then provide the parenthetical citation

• Remember that once you cite a source, the source information belongs on the Works Cited page; if you merely consult a source but do not cite information from it, include it on a separate Bibliography page, but a work cannot appear on both pages
• Understand the key differences between MLA and APA styles of documentation (such as which uses page numbers and which uses dates in parenthetical citations)
• Works Cited and optional Bibliography pages always appear on new sheets of paper at the end of the body of the research
• Each Works Cited and Bibliography entry begins at the one-inch margin with subsequent lines of the same entry indented five spaces (so it looks like an inverted paragraph)
• Works Cited and Bibliography entries are organized alphabetically by last name of the first author (or editor) listed on the source; for books with more than one author or editor, do not rearrange the names but keep them in the order in which they appear
• In Works Cited or Bibliography entries, following the book title is the city of publication, then the name of the publisher
• For a source published in more than one city, use only the first city listed
• If the city of publication is deemed not easily recognizable (like Springfield), follow it with a state abbreviation
• For more than one book by the same author, substitute 3 dashes for the name (---) and list alphabetically by the titles
• Titles of books, newspapers and magazines are underlined
• Titles of articles from magazines or newspapers appear in quotation marks
• Remember to list both the date of publication and the date of your access for all online source entries
• Remember that the "internet" is not a source; you must locate whatever newspaper, magazine, journal or e-text book you are using and document it as such

• Papers must be between 1250 and 1500 words of research text
• You must use at least five secondary sources with at least three periodicals
• All research papers should be printed in Times Roman or Courier fonts with a 12 point font size; minimize the use of bold or italic print
• Left justify the entire research document
• Use one-inch margins throughout all pages
• Double-space everything including the Works Cited and optional Bibliography pages
• All pages must be numbered in the upper right-hand corner; do not include "p." or "#" with page numbers, but your last name is acceptable in the header if you choose
• The tab key may substitute for five space bars; two tabs equals ten space bars
• All research papers require a cover page with a substantial title that focuses the reader on the issue and the specific perspective taken by the student on that issue; also include on the cover your name, the course name, the instructor’s name, the date of submission and any graphics you deem appropriate
• Do not use quotation marks, underlining or all capital letters for the title of your research
• Do not print on the back of any page of the research paper
• Bind your research with a staple; no paper clips, folders or external covers are acceptable

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