Analyzing the Situation

Aim: How do we analyze the results of your search, draw a conclusion, and design questions for further research?

Do Now: Review the standards below for your I-Search paper. Assess your understanding of each of them on a 1-4 scale. 4 = Exemplary; 3 = Proficient; 2 = Developing; 1 = Emerging. Post your self-evaluation and comments explaining why on your blog for both standards. Do you anticipate you will meet or exceed the standards by the time you finish your project? Why or why not?


Standards: 

• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.11-12.7 Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects to answer a question (including a self-generated question) or solve a problem; narrow or broaden the inquiry when appropriate; synthesize multiple sources on the subject, demonstrating understanding of the subject under investigation.

• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.11-12.8 Gather relevant information from multiple authoritative print and digital sources, using advanced searches effectively; assess the strengths and limitations of each source in terms of the task, purpose, and audience; integrate information into the text selectively to maintain the flow of ideas, avoiding plagiarism and overreliance on any one source and following a standard format for citation.

Now that you have completed your hunt for answers (the third section of the outline), it’s time to analyze what you discovered and see if you proved or disproved your hypothesis. This is where you put all the finishing touches on your project and formulate questions for further research as you progress in this course.

Step 1: Review everything you have so far. What assumptions did you have before you embarked on your journey of discovery? What did you think you were going to prove? What did you find out as a result of your hunt for answers?

Step 2: Compare what you thought you knew/assumed with what you actually discovered. Give your readers some personal commentary about what you discovered and the value of this discovery. What did you learn that surprised you? What value did you get from this process of searching and discovering? This is where you draw your conclusions. Feel free to state your opinion. You’ve earned that right with all of the evidence you’ve uncovered along the way!

Step 3: What further questions do you have? What else do you want to know? This is where you formulate questions that will guide you through the rest of this course.

Step 4: Create your title and works cited pages. Make certain your project is formatted correctly: 12 pt Times Roman, double-spaced. Did you include photos, info-graphics or hyperlinks? Did you use as least four sources. P.S. Photos and interviews count as sources.

Review the rubric for the project and evaluate your completed project based on it. Pay particular attention to the Writing Conventions criteria. Get your editor to check it one last time. When you have all the “t’s” crossed and “i’s” dotted, it’s time to upload your completed I-Search paper to Google Docs and then share the link with anyone.

Final Reflection: In what ways did this project exercise your brain?