Paper instructions:

Final paper definition: Students should consider that the final paper for this course is conceived as the practice of carefully formulating or addressing a question, problem or objective, analyzing it within a disciplinary or interdisciplinary framework, producing findings, conclusions, designs, or creative works, and clearly communicating and defending such to a critical audience.

Learning Goal:

Develop in students the capacity to conduct research, and the habits of mind of learners who frame and contextualize knowledge within their own reasoned points of view, recognize that knowledge evolves, and actively rethink and question existing assumptions, arguments, methods of inquiry, and facts.

Student Learning Outcomes

Pre-research

Students must be able to:

• approach the study of a subject or problem, from a particular disciplinary or interdisciplinary point of view (e.g., “thinking like an economist”)

• apply distinct techniques, research methods/methods of inquiry.

• ask sufficiently narrow research questions and/or formulate appropriate

hypotheses.

• work independently or collaboratively, as appropriate

In an academic research project, a student will:

• Form a research question based upon the relevant literature and/or observations.

• Collect pertinent data/information.

• Analyze data/information.

• Draw logical and defensible conclusions.

• Communicate clearly and effectively findings and conclusions.

• Defend the research to a critical audience

Structure: The final paper should be at least 8 (eight) pages long in typewritten form with one-inch margins and a font size no larger than 12-point type.

Notations and selected bibliography should follow the MLA Style Manual Guideline.

Depending on the topic, the bibliography of the final paper should include the following:

· at least two/three printed books source

· at least two printed articles from scholarly journals

· maximum two websites (also scholarly valid)

If the topic you choose requires it, (for example a research on Italian newspapers of television) you may need to use more web sites or other specific type of multimedia material. If this is the case you should contact me to discuss your specific needs.