Introduction

Having finished the unit on essay writing, you already know how to write a research paper. That's because the process is essentially the same.

1. You start with a thesis (a statement that you think you can probably prove).
2. You find evidence that supports your thesis. (Along the way, you may realize that you need to revise your thesis).
3. You write a number of sandwich paragraphs (paragraphs that start with a topic sentence and present evidence from another source).
4. You write your introduction and conclusion.
5. You clean up the formatting.

The only difference between an "essay" and a "research paper" is its length. An essay is typically one or two pages, while research papers can often be much longer. But these words do not have strict definitions, and thus you can find "essays" that are hundreds of pages, and "research papers" that are no more than five paragraphs.

In this unit, you're going to write a 5-paragraph "research paper", just like you wrote a 5-paragraph "country report". The only difference, really, is that you'll have more freedom to choose your own topic, and you can make it longer than five paragraphs, if you want.

Instructions for the Quiz

Answer the questions.

Quiz