Research Project
The CSB’s rubrics for written communication and critical thinking are pasted at the end of this document. These, along with everything else in this document, is intended to give you everything you need to know to write an A paper. Let me know if you have any questions about anything.
General
This is a paper that tells something about how to manage people well. You don’t have to write about a topic from the textbook at all, but if you do you must go beyond what the textbook says about the topic, citing at least 1 source beyond the textbook.
Papers should contain a clear thesis statement, in the introduction paragraph or section. A standard thesis statement for this project is something like “Understanding [your topic] is important for managing HR/employees/people/etc. well because [x, y, z].” This requires summarizing into a 1 – 3 statements the reasons your paper helps manage people well, and also provides a sort of outline for the paper. You can break up this standard thesis into 2 or 3 sentences if necessary.
Note that your thesis statement won’t become clear until you have chosen a topic and started piecing together the content of your paper. Don’t begin by trying to write a thesis statement.
Length and Formatting
Shoot for 2000-2500 words (excluding references), or about 8 – 10 pages. Double-spaced, 12-point font, and use a professional font (no wing-ding! If that even exists anymore).
Citations
You must cite the sources of your ideas. As you research, keep track of any page you visit, paper or article you read, etc., whether you think you will use it or not. You might create a spreadsheet or text document and paste in URL’s for websites and title/source/author/date for sources visited within the library’s database. You could highlight those that you think will be primary sources, but keep this info for anything you read, since you absorb a whole lot of information as you read. Some useful idea is likely to pop into your head later, and ideally, you will be able to cite the source.
Create a reference list at the end of your document. APA or MLS are 2 good formats to use, but any way you do this that allows me to locate the source is fine with me. You can even just list the URL (web address) and the date you visited it, as long as it works for me. I absolutely will verify at least some of your sources. I will also deduct points if you don’t cite the source for ideas that should cited, though I don’t expect anyone to be perfect here.
At the end of the sentence after the idea, cite the reference from your reference list in parentheses. If a sentence has ideas from 2 sources, put them both in parentheses.
Always put quotations around any exact words you use from any source, then cite the source. More than one or two long quotes are not a good idea; reserve this for things that are stated so well that you can’t paraphrase it without losing some of the statement’s magic. Quotations longer than 3 lines should be set off from the rest of the text (see APA or MLS guidelines for this if you have this for your paper).
Topics (2 points)
Choose an HRmanagement topic for your research paper. An HR management topic is anything related to how to manage people in an organization. A good place to start is the table of contents of the textbook, looking for chapters and then sections that look interesting to you. Read a little about them in the book and with some basic internet research to make a decision.
Avoid overly broad topics like ‘Human Resource Management.’ You will want to avoid overly narrow topics, too, but if I suspect your topic is too narrow I will give you that feedback. You can change your topic anytime up until the deadline for the first draft (Mar. 25).
Many students find interesting topics in an area called ‘future of work.’ If you google ‘future of work’ or ‘future of work blog,’ there are many good websites on the 1st results page.
Drafts(2 points)
There is no length requirement for drafts. The intention is to encourage you to work on the paper throughout the semester. You are encouraged to also create an outline of the major sections and sub-sections of your paper, and include it at the beginning of your draft. Creating an outline forces you to think early about how your paper will be structured, and allows me to give you feedback on the organization.
If you find yourself without much of a draft at the due date, just brain dump what you have been researching on your topic. If you do this, do still try to put your ideas into a reasonable order. The better I can make sense of what you have, the better the feedback I can give you.
Writing Center
This is a great resource! They are located in the Center for Academic Support, which is in the same building as the library (Hearnes 213), and they now do remote appointments.
A visit to the Writing Center is worth 3 extra points on this project.
Craig School ofBusiness
Written Communication Rubric
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| STRUCTURE | EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS | MEETSEXPECTATIONS | BELOWEXPECTATIONS |
| 1. Summarizes the problem or issue | |||
| 2. Presents topics in logical order | |||
| 3. Groups similar ideas in paragraphs | |||
| CLARITY | EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS | MEETSEXPECTATIONS | BELOWEXPECTATIONS |
| 1. States ideas clearly | |||
| 2. Explains keypoints | |||
| 3. Uses transitions between ideas and/or paragraphs | |||
| 4. Uses consistenttense | |||
| EDITING | EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS | MEETSEXPECTATIONS | BELOWEXPECTATIONS |
| 1. Uses appropriate language | |||
| 2. Avoids grammar errors | |||
| 3. Avoids spelling errors | |||
| 4. Avoids run on/incomplete sentences | |||
| FORMATTING | EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS | MEETSEXPECTATIONS | BELOWEXPECTATIONS |
| 1. Uses proper headings | |||
| 2. Has consistent formatting | |||
| 3. Cites sources | |||
| 4. Double-spaced, 12-point, Times New Roman font | |||
| EXCEEDSEXPECTATIONS | Demonstratesthroughout | ||
| MEETSEXPECTATIONS | Demonstrates for amajority | ||
| BELOWEXPECTATIONS | Demonstrates less than amajority |
Craig School ofBusiness
Critical Thinking Rubric
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| REASONING | EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS | MEETSEXPECTATIONS | BELOWEXPECTATIONS |
| 1. Clearly states a position or proposition | |||
| 2. Considers possible biases | |||
| 3. Avoids unsupported assumptions | |||
| 4. Makes appropriateinferences | |||
| ASSESSMENT | EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS | MEETSEXPECTATIONS | BELOWEXPECTATIONS |
| 1. Expands on and clarifies position | |||
| 2. Analyzes keypoints | |||
| 3. Considers possible implications | |||
| 4. Makes neededcomparisons | |||
| DATAUSE | EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS | MEETSEXPECTATIONS | BELOWEXPECTATIONS |
| 1. Provides relevant specific examples to support position | |||
| 2. Presents needed supporting data | |||
| 3. Examines applicable data | |||
| 4. Cites sources of data properly | |||
| CREATIVITY | EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS | MEETSEXPECTATIONS | BELOWEXPECTATIONS |
| 1. Creates appropriate analogy or illustration | |||
| 2. Considers multiplecontexts | |||
| 3. Evaluates relevant options | |||
| 4. Provides support forconclusion | |||
| EXCEEDSEXPECTATIONS | Demonstratesthroughout | ||
| MEETSEXPECTATIONS | Demonstrates for amajority | ||
| BELOWEXPECTATIONS | Demonstrates less than amajority |