English 1301 - Bell, Yon Hui: Consumerism

An I-Search paper is a mindful introduction to doing research.

Instead of focusing on finding sources that support a thesis, an I-Search paper is all about the process. Through documentation and reflection, students can compare how their understanding of the pair of objects evolves as their knowledge about it deepens. They can examine their search strategies, to become better researchers in the future.

For experienced researchers, the I-Search paper is a way to reflect and improve upon your current research skills.

To write an I-Search paper, you pick a subject to which you have a personal connection, and write about it from a personal point of view. Your paper will consist of three major parts:

• The story of your search.  This section tells readers what you knew about your subject before you began your research, what you wanted to know, and the research steps you went through to find out what you wanted to know-including both the steps that led to useful information and the steps that turned out to be dead ends.
• What you learned. In this section, you give readers the results of your search-both the answers you found and the answers you did not find.
• Your reflections on the search.    You use this final section to tell readers what the experience has taught you about conducting and documenting a search.

Credit: Univ of Wisconsin - Stevens Point

The I-Search Paper

We have watched and discussed Annie Leonard’s classic film “The Story of Stuff” and read Chris Winter’s provocative article “Could We End Wealth?” With these two sources and the weekly discussions, we have hopefully expanded our understanding of consumerism and how it affects the planet, its people, and our sense of fulfillment.

For our next paper, we are going to research and write about a specific topic that is socially relevant and directly or indirectly connected to consumerism. This topic cannot be too broad and should be a narrow aspect of a larger issue you are interested in and want to make a claim about. You may select your own topic for this project, but your topic must be approved.
 

Structure and Format

The I-Search paper will be written in three sections: (1) Personal Connection, (2) The Research, and (3) Writing Process Reflection.
 

I. Personal Connection – (1-2 pages)
Before conducting any formal research, write a section in which you discuss your relationship to the topic. Is there a personal experience or motive leading you to research this particular topic? What do you already know or think you know about the topic? What would you like to learn about the topic? Develop a working thesis. What do you think you want to say about your topic?

This section will act like a personal preface or beginning). Separate this section into a minimum of two paragraphs: 1) Personal experience and what you already know, and 2) Research goals and what you want to learn and what claim you think you might make about your topic (working thesis).

II. The Research – (3-4 pages, 3-5 reliable sources)

Describe your research experience. Describe the findings of your research and how your sources contributed to your understanding of the topic. Support your findings with quotations, paraphrases, and summaries of information from your sources, providing in-text citation appropriately.

This section must have in-text citation and a Works Cited page. The Works Cited page does not count for the page requirements.

III. Research Reflection – (1-2 pages)
After concluding your search, compare what you thought you knew, assumed, or wanted to know with what you actually discovered, and offer some personal commentary and/or draw some conclusions. (Some of these ideas may be in section II). Also reflect on your writing and research process. Think about strategies that worked well, areas that caused difficulty, and new awareness of the writing and research process and yourself as a writer. 

This section will act like a personal afterword or conclusion. Separate this section into a minimum of two paragraphs.