Which is a helpful way to choose a topic for a research paper?

Answer 1

To narrow down a research topic, a student must first decide what he or she wants to research. For example, a student may want to research bears. Then, the student should decide what type of bears he or she would like to study.

Answer 2

First determine what the range of acceptable topics are. Then determine which topic within that range you are most interested in learning about. Loop back to make sure your topic is actually acceptable.

Answer 3

Once you have a general topic of interest, I begin making a chart or list of my basic questions re: the topic. After you make these general notes, narrow the list to 3 or 4 that are most interesting to you.

Then, begin your preliminary reading & notes on the list of 3 or 4 areas. Keep a file online or on paper with sources, in case you use some of this information.

Depending on the length of the paper, or what you discover in basic research, you may wish to narrow the topic further, or use your list of 3 or 4 as your main ideas. Keep crossing off things you don't want to include, or can't find enough material on.

Sketch out your main ideas on paper, without details or sources. Then decide what

your theme and thesis statement are. Accumulate more detailed information. Write more than you need to, and then delete about a third of it.

Refine your thesis statement, write your introduction and conclusion, and make sure to include all your citations. Voila, you will have a great paper!

Answer 4

One good way is to use your textbook - if your teacher has assigned a topic in your book, look up that section and see what headings are listed under that general category.

Another way is to use online search engines. Search for the broad topic and see what comes up when you do that - you will find websites that give you information similar to what would be in a textbook, and can pick headings and sub-topics that way.

Answer 5

We have this problem with Wiki-questions, too! Having too broad a topic would make you end up writing an encyclopedia in order to explain it!

For example, writing a paragraph about animals would be a very broad topic - unless you are going to talk about what makes something an animal versus a plant, then this topic is too broad. There are just too many different animals! You need to narrow it down to a specific type of animal, or even one specific animal.

Answer 6

Factors that must be considered in choosing a research topic include:

• the student's interest in the topic (it's easiest to write about a subject you're interested in)
• whether the topic is broad enough to allow in-depth discussion
• whether the topic can be narrowed to discuss one to three points about the topic
• how much has been written about the topic; how easy or hard will it be to find citations?
• whether the topic has been written about by several or more separate authors so you can present opposing and supporting "evidence" for your argument
• the assigned length of the paper - it may be very hard to fill up 10 pages on an obscure topic, but a too broad of topic could fill 100 pages
• how much time you have to gather sources, do interviews, write an outline, write a first and second draft, and write the final paper