annotated bibliography Essay

A fundamental step to confronting any problem is researching it. This is a familiar process, although we do not often consider it that way. It all starts with a problem. For example, let’s say your smartphone stops working; what do you do? The most common practice in modern times is to do a Google search or turn to another internet source. After querying the search engine, you scroll through the returns to find the one most similar to your problem. This, in a nutshell, is research. Research is a wide umbrella though and can take many forms. You are using the means available to understand and solve a particular problem. Academic and professional research is similar, but there are certain expectations.

The most important concept is the understanding of a research problem. First, you must start with a practical problem. This is something you can work towards creating real change or an impact on. While you may want to work on SDG 1: No Poverty, researching “poverty” is way too broad a topic. You must narrow it down to an aspect of the topic which you can work at. Maybe something like:

“why is there such a high rate of poverty in first-world countries?”

While that is still a large topic, it is much more manageable. From this practical problem, you need to narrow it down to a research problem. This look something like:

“what are the five major factors of poverty in the United States?”

Researching specific s a solid research problem. It is a defined scope. This is essential to solving any problem.

Academic research relies on information that is peer reviewed. If a scientist writes a white paper on an issue, other scientists within that field review the paper and accept it for publication or reject it. This process affords some security that the information is accurate. Yet, practical problems usually require a complex approach that requires unclear connections to be made. Academic research is often just that: academic. You may need to examine your particular issue through both an academic and practical lens. Collection and analysis of peer-reviewed research is at the heart of undergraduate academic research. In this assignment, you will conduct focused, academic research about a social issue of interest to you.

Learning Outcomes
Conducting comprehensive research to define a problem
Engaging in collaborative, professional writing
Evaluating resources for appropriateness and usefulness
Collecting resources that demonstrate an understanding of the complexity of addressing practical and academic problems
Assignment
Choose an issue that is relevant or of interest to you and can be categorized under one of the 17 SDGs.

Begin preliminary research planning. Name your topic, then narrow it down into a specific problem. Create a list of possible keywords you might use to search. Taking these steps will help you focus your interest down into a researchable problem.

Using library databases, available materials, and the internet, conduct research to find five (5) reliable sources to help inform you about your subject. These will also be the sources you will cite in the following documented essay assignment. You will need to find at least two (2) academic sources, either through databases or book, and a three others of your choice, such as a website, YouTube video, interviews, or a documentary (although, I highly recommend using the vetted library sources). You must check with me on any you are unsure of one to make sure it is acceptable.

You will create a works cited entry and annotation for each source. These will be compiled into an annotated bibliography that will be MLA formatted and have a short introduction to what your research is about and how you went about it. Here is an example annotation:

Baldwin, James. “Fifth Avenue, Uptown.” 75 Readings Plus, Edited by Santi V. Buscemi and Charlotte Smith, 10th ed., McGraw Hill, 2013, 49-52.

Baldwin’s personal essay portrays the neighborhood where he grew up by reflecting back on it and how the people within lived. While this is a very outdated piece, considering it was written in 1948, it shows how these problems are still relevant today. His work is helpful as it establishes some of the commonplace problems faced by people in poverty. For example, he highlights local credit systems, and uses allegory to illuminate how poor these people are. This will provide an illustrative example to compare to more recent studies and research.

The final part of the project is creating a short introduction that presents your topic and argues the importance of it as a research topic. For example, you are researching methods to deal with plastic trash and the ocean which is important because…why. IF you pay close attention, you will realize most of this information is actually contained in your research question if developed fully.
Turning It In
The project grade will be determined according to the accompanying evaluation sheet. This assignment will be graded on a 100-point scale (75 for annotations; 20 for introduction; 5 for MLA). Face-to-face classes will turn it in as a hardcopy in class and on Canvas as well; online classes will turn it in through Canvas.

Here is an example of a well-developed bibliography, although student lost points for not having annotations in alphabetical order: ExamplePreview the document