Research Writing in the Information Age reflects a unique collaboration: the expertise of a librarian, a classroom teacher, and a rhetorician guides students through the research process. Beginning with invention and exploration, this book integrates current technology, research methods, and evaluation of sources to help students construct cohesive and responsible research papers. Students learn to write in their own voices to an audience whose needs they have been taught to discover. The text covers both APA and MLA styles of documentation, with sample papers in each style, and treats both library and electronic research techniques as integral steps in the process. Research Writing in the Information Age is a collaborative, real-world, user-friendly text designed to teach students contemporary techniques to take them into the next century.

Table of Contents:
Preface. Acknowledgments. 1.Starting Points. Student Voices: On Beginning the Research Paper. The Teacher and the Librarian Respond. Student Scenarios. Response Activity: The Research Paper Assignment. Group Activity: Comparing Responses. Writing Activity: Looking at Student Scenarios. 2.Discovering Multiple Perspectives: Self and Community. Multiple Perspectives. Writing Activity: Responding to a Visual. Group Response Activity: Sharing Perceptions. Writing Activity: Responding to a Poem. Group Response Activity: Exchanging Viewpoints. The Electronic Community. Writing Activity: Computer Technology. E-mail as a Way of Communicating. Writing Activity: Getting Started and E-mail. Student Samples. 3.Observation Research. Case Study: The Collision. Group Activity: Role Playing and Recording Details. Case Studies. Group Discussion Activity: Comparing Notes. Into the Community: Sharing Information. Group Writing Activity: The News Reporter's Story. Research Activity: Using Observation. Quoting and Paraphrasing: Conveying Information. Writing Activity: Evaluating Paraphrase. Writing Activity: Creating Your Own Paraphrase. Group Discussion Activity: Comparing Paraphrases. Group Writing Activity: Distorting Information. 4.Interview Research. The Journalist's Approach. Interview Research and Its Uses. Varieties of Interview Research: Four Scenarios. Interview Research: Professional Uses. Electronic Interviewing. Group Research Activity: Learning to Network. Writing Activity: Focusing the Interview. Designing Interviewing Questions. Conducting the Interview. Writing the Interview Report. Quotation Etiquette. Paraphrasing Sentences. Synthesis. 5.Working with Written and Electronic Texts. Reading a Cultural Context. Writing Activity: Interpreting a Children's Text. Browsing as a Form of Observing. Writing Activity: Researching the Library. Research Activity: Comparing Written and Electronic Texts. Active Reading: Responding to Essays. Writing Activity: Working with Essays. Writing Activity: Summarizing an Article or an Essay. Group Writing Activity: Evaluating Summaries. Synthesis. 6.Discovering a Topic. Student Scenarios. Writing Activity: Exploring a Topic of Interest. Writing Activity: Library and Technological Anxieties. The Librarian's Response. 7.Exploring Your Topic in the Library. The Nature of the Research Process: Student Response. The Nature of the Research Process: The Librarian Responds. Using the Library for Exploration. The Reference Collection. Using the Library Catalog. Using Periodical Indexes for Exploration. Alternative Exploration. Locating an Article in the Library. Citing Information. Writing Activity: Examining Format. Writing Activity: MLA Format for Articles. The Importance of Abstracting. Synthesis. Research/Writing Activity: Locating and Summarizing an Article. Research Worksheet: Exploring Your Topic Using Library Resources. 8.Finding a Focus and Crafting a Proposal. Writing Activity: Freewriting to Find a Topic. Group Activity: Getting Feedback. Writing Activity: Beginning the Proposal. Sample Proposals. Writing Activity: The Three-Part Proposal. 9.Directed Searching in the Library. From Three-Part Proposal to Search Strategy. The Search Process. Synthesis. Research Activity: Beginning the Research Log. 10.Working with Sources. Notecards. Photocopies. Double-Entry Logs. Computer Disk Logs. Using the Journalist's Questions to Analyze a Text. Recording Bibliographic Information. 11.Preparing the Annotated Bibliography. Evaluating and Selecting Sources. The Annotated Bibliography. Writing Activity: Preparing an Annotated Bibliography. Anne's Annotated Bibliography. Writing Activity: Critiquing the Annotated Bibliography. Follow-Up Scenario: Avoiding Problems. Synthesis. Model Works Cited Formats (MLA and APA). Commonly Used Citation Formats. Additional Style Formats. 12.Determining Audience, Purpose, and Rhetorical Strategy. Determining Your Audience. Writing Activity: Discovering Audience. Group Activity: Responding to Readers. Discovering a Purpose. Translating Purpose to Writing Strategy. Using Writing Strategies. Scenario: Michael's Writing Process. 13.Drafting the Essay. Preparing the First Draft. Integrating Sources. Formats for Parenthetical Citations. Group Activity: Responding to the First Draft. Manuscript Preparation and Final Source Check. Style and Usage Guidelines. 14.The Final Presentation. Manuscript Format. Student Models. Glossary. Appendix: Selected Reference Sources. Index.