Term Paper Information
   
You are required to turn in a term paper. You must turn in a draft paper by Wednesday, April 25. Final version of the paper must be submitted by Friday, June 1. As long as your term paper topic is about GIS, you are OK. However, it would be easier to write about implication of GIS in a particular filed or subject. Examples can be “implication of GIS in Marketing,” “implication of GIS in local government,” “implication of GIS for disaster prevention,” and so on. Please CLICK HERE to see some example papers and possible paper titles. Please refer to the course schedule for paper due date.

 

Paper Deliverables:

 

Here are useful websites for a paper writing

    For your paper references, you must rely upon academic journals and books for your research. However, I prefer that you focus upon journals. You need at least 20 sources, and only 3 or 4 should be books and Internet sites. However, if you can download a full-length academic journal article thru the Internet, it is OK to use it as a reference. The term paper should be typed, single-spaced, at least 5 pages, with one inch margins and use Times New Roman 12 point font.

 

References

Deliverables:

 

Advice on Writing Papers:

 

  1. Write the paper as if it were going to be read by someone who has no knowledge about the subject matter. This means that you must cite the authors and the year of publication when you refer to published work. Also, assume that the person reading the paper is not predisposed to agree with you, but needs to be convinced.
  2. Do not present just facts or just opinions. Your aim should be to make an argument backed up by evidence. "Facts" only become evidence when they are connected to an argument, and when you show why these facts are relevant to the points at hand.
  3. The best papers consider at least some counter-arguments. Who would disagree with what you are saying and why? What opposing arguments do/would they make and why don't you find that convincing? Why should a reader accept your argument? You make your own position stronger if you present and refute counter-arguments. Often the best papers begin by presenting the arguments they oppose, demonstrating how such a perspective is flawed, and then showing how their position is more suitable.
  4. Make an outline of your thoughts before you begin. You can use this outline to structure your ideas, but don’t feel that you have to stick to it too carefully. Outlines are helpful, however, when used to make sure that you have included all of your ideas and that they are presented in a logical order.
  5. Your paper will be graded on several different criteria, including: strength of argument, use of research material, presentation and writing style, grammar, spelling, etc. Of course, content is most important, but writing style, spelling and grammar can all add or detract from the persuasiveness of your argument. Be sure to edit your paper several times.
  6. The structure of the paper should include an introduction, a body, a conclusion, and a list of references. Each of these sections can include as many paragraphs as you wish.

 

    A good introduction briefly describes the specific research question that will be answered in the paper. Feel free to hint as to what conclusions you will draw and any opposing arguments that you will address, but don’t spell it all out here. It is often helpful to go back and edit the introduction after you have finished writing the paper to ensure that it truly reflects what the paper is about.

 

    The body of the paper should include everything that you want to say. Describe the issue in depth. Why is the issue important? What does prior research on the topic find? What evidence, theories, or reasoning do different researchers give to support their stances? What are the strengths/weaknesses of arguments made by researchers? What are your reactions to the ideas/materials you find? Someone reading your paper should be able to read only the first sentence of each paragraph and have a pretty good idea of what the paper is all about. The rest of each paragraph should be used to back up that topic sentence.

 

    The conclusion should be used to briefly summarize the main points/arguments and spell out the conclusions that you have drawn from the research. Also, feel free to be adventurous. What couldn’t this paper cover? What are some related side issues that could be further explored? What are some solutions to a problem you analyzed?