This project represents your greatest opportunity to demonstrate your personal interests and research abilities in Native American studies. You are being asked to conduct your own research that is relevant to the overall course topics and objectives. You may choose to further explore an issue discussed in the course, topics addressed in the suggested materials, or topics found elsewhere through your own research. You are constrained by only three factors when selecting your topic:
Your research must be centered on indigenous peoples and relevant issues in Native North America.
Your research should be ethnographic, meaning narrow and focused in scope (i.e. on X issue or X group of people, at Y place, at Z time).
You must select and research a topic that you can access adequate information on. You are strongly advised to use ethnographic resources such as eHRAF, volumes from the Handbook of North American Indian series, and prominent scholarly writing related to your topic (Handbooks and journal articles are great resources to begin snowballing those key sources, journal articles being the easiest to get your hands on electronically).
The main objective here is to learn and teach something new that aids in your ability to benefit from and contribute to discussions of other topics in class.
Your research paper should include several key elements:
A creative and representative project title (Think of this as a publication title and quality of work)
A one paragraph (single spaced) abstract, which includes a statement of the problem or topic, a brief explanation the key factors involved, and your main conclusion.
An introduction that includes discussions of cultural context and historical background related to your topic.
The main body of your discussion, in which you draw on key points from the background and your sources.
A relevant summary and conclusion that included recommendations for future research.
A Works Cited section with a minimum of four scholarly sources (peer-reviewed journals and/or monographs [peer-reviewed only, not government or NGO reports, for example); and any other reliable sources that you incorporate and cite in your paper. You are very strongly advised to utilize Yale’s eHRAF World Cultures (Access through the WSU Library via anthropology resources in the Databases List – then see instructions for finding specific cultural information at Yale’s Practical Guide to Using eHRAF ). You are welcome to use other popular media or non-academic sources as long as you effectively utilize the four required sources. This paper should be rigorous in its research – this is not an opinion piece, rather, an in-depth treatment of your topic requiring substantial defense of ideas and data.
The final research paper should be 5-7 well-written, double-spaced pages, not including your Works Cited section, tables, figures, images, cover sheets or appendices. You should use any sections and titles/subtitles that you feel are appropriate for your topic and style. Use standard margins and font (in size 11 or 12), and be sure to provide thorough citations in accordance to the Chicago Manual of Style or style guide for your discipline.
Editing and polishing should be thorough. The quality of your sources and your application of them will be closely evaluated. Plagiarism, including liberal use of ideas or quotes without citation will result in automatic failure, so double- and triple-check your work. You are encouraged to run your complete draft by an advisor at the writing center before the due date. You are also encouraged to review the grading rubric
for the assignment in advance, which is based on percentage values.
