INTL 501 W4

Assignment Background

In addition to learning the core concepts of Strategic Intelligence, masters students must learn the research basics so they are prepared to begin writing assignments using commonly accepted academic formats and constructs. This written assignment requires you to produce a graduate-level paper describing and explaining the academic research process to ensure you understand the basic concepts of academic writing. A clear understanding of the academic research process is critical for completing future graduate courses and, ultimately, your capstone paper.

Instructions

Describe the academic research process as covered in the course Learning Materials and Required readings (The PDF files uploaded) for this written assignment. In this paper, you are explaining the academic research process to someone without knowledge of it. Therefore, your explanation needs to be informative yet concise.

This assignment requires the production 4 page paper. Students must cite at least five (5) academic, peer-reviewed scholarly sources from the Week Two: Research and Writing for Intelligence learning material and use the APUS Trefry Library. In addition, students must format the paper per the Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS) using the author-date format for citations and references, double-spacing the text, using Times New Roman 12-point font, and using one (1) inch page margins.

Since this is the first class for many of you, for this class, I created Microsoft Word document using the CMOS formatting. You must use this template for this assignment. Remember, this is a template. You edit the template to create the written assignments for this class following the required outline.

Paper Outline

Title Page: Unless otherwise specified, you should always use a title page for any written assignment. The title of your paper should be brief and inform the reader of the general topic and focus of the paper. Your title page must also include the paper title, your name, and the corresponding course name and number. NOTE: The paper title and assignment title are not the same!

Introduction (approximately half a page): In the introduction section, you provide an overview of the academic research process, which is the topic of your paper. This section should be concise, comprise one well-developed paragraph, and include a thesis statement as the last sentence of the introduction paragraph. If you do not know (or forgot) how to form an academic thesis statement, I recommend you click the link below for a quick thesis statement refresher.

Body of Paper (approximately three to four pages): In this portion of the paper, the writer explains the academic research process. Students will need to provide details about the process (steps) while practicing writing concisely due to the limited length of the overall paper. Students also need to cite the sources (using CMOS author-date format) that informed their thinking. Students can structure this portion of the paper as needed. However, students must use a logical structure. Use section headings to organize information for your readers. Be sure to follow the Chicago Manual of Style requirements for section headings.

Conclusion (approximately half a page): In this section, concisely review the paper’s main points. HINT: Restate your thesis USING DIFFERENT words. Do not just copy and paste it.

References: This section will contain all references cited in the Chicago Manual of Style author-date format, properly indented and alphabetically arranged. At least five (5) sources must be from academic, peer-reviewed scholarly sources from the Week Two: Research and Writing for Intelligence material, and using the APUS Trefry Library. Using Wikipedia and similar online references, including encyclopedias, is unacceptable when writing at the master’s level. Your instructor will evaluate the references you select for academic rigor using the CRAAP model employed throughout academia. The acronym CRAAP defines the five (5) criteria used to assess sources: Currency, Relevance, Authority, Accuracy, and Purpose. Don’t know what the CRAAP test is? Look for the “craap-test.pdf in the Trefry Library. Hint: It’s at the bottom of a Q&A in LibAnswers.

Editing

As you proofread your assignment, I encourage you to edit your sentences to achieve concise language. A good source for guidance is Belcher Wendy Laura. 2009. “.” In Writing Your Journal Article in 12 Weeks: A Guide to Academic Publishing Success. Sage. This source has an excellent step-by-step process for enhancing your writing.

Do not forget to edit and spell-check before submitting your assignment! There is no excuse for incorrect spelling when every word processor has a spell-check function. Remember, spell check does not replace the need to proofread.

The final part of editing your paper is to ensure you do not overquote. See the Turnitin (TII) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) paragraphs below.