Research Project
Reflective Annotative Bibliography on the Impact of the Corona Virus Pandemic on Life
How is the Corona Virus pandemic impacting the world? How has the virus disrupted your life? What changes — big or small — are you noticing in the world around you? A glance at the front page of The New York Times or any other paper right now will show you that this global pandemic is impacting everything from the world economy to our social rituals. It is raising questions about our daily lives from how we work, how we learn, how we get around the city, to how we socialize and have fun. There are also bigger issues such as what responsibilities governments have to prepare for pandemics and keep the citizens informed; how we care for our most vulnerable people. The virus has exposed and widened the socio-economic gap. It has fueled racism and xenophobia.
THE RESEARCH QUESTION
For Unit 2 Research Project you will choose one (ONLY ONE) aspect of life or society and examine how the CV has impacted and changed that aspect of life.
You will formulate one question to investigate:
For example:
- How has the CV pandemic affected the mental health of teens?
- How has the CV pandemic changed the work world?
- How has the CV pandemic changed the way people socialize?
- How has the CV pandemic exacerbated Anti-Asian racism?
- How has the CV pandemic disproportionately affected the African-American community?
- How has the CV pandemic changed the way certain institutions do business (sports organizations NBA UFC, funeral homes, restaurant)?
You must fine-tune your question: the more focused your question the better — but you can start with these possible broad topics. These are suggestions.
How has the CV pandemic changed _______ ?
- Socializing / friends family get-togethers / Friendships and maintaining friendships / Dating CHOOSE ONE
- Learning (remote) / School-life / College (online) CHOOSE ONE
- Exercise / Staying fit / Sports
- Transportation / Commuting / Mass Transit / Biking walking / Travel
- Entertainment / Play / TV & films / Music – concerts / Extra-curricular activities
- Food / Food production/ Gardening / Eating / Dining in or out / Restaurants / Cooking
- Medicine / Health / Hygiene / Healthcare / doctor visits
- Mental and Emotional health / suicide / depression / domestic abuse / laughter / best ways to combat fear and sadness
- Environment / Climate change – GOOD TOPIC lots of science here
- INTERNET (should be a utility) / computer use / technology and privacy issues / innovation
- More belief in science / climate change / belief science experts
- Shopping
- Work / Job searching
- Information Media / The spread of disinformation
- Society — Sense of Community / Race Relations / Zenophobia
- Politics / Voting since we are going into a very important election / importance of Global Efforts / Blue Wave
- Socio-economic income disparity
Table of Contents
Get some ideas by reading this New York Times article: “One Year In A Pandemic“
THE SOURCES
To conduct your research, you will consult a variety of print and non-print genres: newspaper and journal articles, op-ed pieces, interviews, documentaries, songs, poems, government reports, etc. You will use reliable journalism including The New York Times (free subscription with your CUNY email – we signed up at the beginning of semester). The Washington Post, The Economist, The Guardian. You will use news or university videos (ex Univ of Chicago), ted talks, podcasts, or interviews. You will also conduct one original interview. You will use creative art forms such as photographs, poems, songs, music videos. (We will talk about genre awareness together.)
You will find 4 FOUR sources. Note: having a variety of genres — print and non-print — is important.
- One News Report Article
- One Opinion / Editorial piece
- One 1 audio or visual source (tedtalk, podcast, interview, documentary or news or university website video) or creative source (poem, song)
- One 1 original interview with a family member or close friend. You can do phone/zoom interview. You will create a list of questions to ask and write up a paragraph documenting this interview — or — write a transcript of the questions and answers.
THE REFLECTIVE ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPH Y (RAB)
For Unit 2, our goal is to create a reflective annotated bibliography (RAB) of your 4 sources.
- A bibliography is a list of sources that one consults in a research process.
- A Reflective Annotated Bibliography (RAB) includes more information about each source, including a summary, important quotes, rhetorical analysis, and response.
What are the parts of a RAB?
Your annotated bibliography will be approximately 1800 words and will include the following:
- Your research question at the top of the page.
- An introduction: introduce your question, explain why this question intrigues you, and say what you expect to find in your research (approx. 300 words).
- MLA bibliographic citations for three sources. Sources should be listed in alphabetical order by the author’s last name.
- You can find more on how to do MLA citations at this Purdue OWL link and throughout the Purdue OWL site.
- You can also use Purdue OWL, Easy Bib, or Citation Machine to do your citations—you can google for the second two sites and the first is at the link above.
- The City Tech Writing Center can also help you with citations. Send an email requesting an appointment to CityTechWritingCenter@gmail.com
- Three source entries after each bibliographic citation (approx. 300 words). Each entry includes the following:
- a summary of the source’s content.
- a reflection on that source, which includes your opinion of what you’ve read.
- a brief analysis of the author’s writing style: for example, What is the genre? What is the tone? Is the author and source credible? What is the author’s purpose? What is the intended audience?
- key quotes you might want to use in your paper.
- Your fourth source is a testimony of oral history. You will interview a family member or close friend (email, phone, zoom). You will create a list of at least 6 questions to find out more about your research question topic from a first hand experience. Then you will type up two paragraphs on what you learned. This is your fourth source.
Note: Each of these four sources will be a different genre. Examples of genres and media include: newspaper articles, op-ed, TED Talks, podcasts, personal essays, documentaries, magazine articles, scholarly articles, museum websites, interviews, video, songs, etc.
A conclusion (approx. 200-300 words): What did you learn about your topic? How did your thinking change? Why is the research you found important? Who do you think would benefit from your research? What is the importance of your research?
GETTING STARTED — PROPOSAL
Write a paragraph in which you address the following questions:
- What is the topic that interests you? Why does it interest you?
- What do you already know about it? What do you want to explore further and find out?
This paragraph is your proposal now and later will become your RAB introduction.
Example paragraph starter:
My research question is: How has the CV pandemic impacted and changed the way people socialize? This topic interests me because ______________. (good solid explanation — a personal connection – 3 more sentences) I already know that ____________. (3 more sentences). Some points that I plan to explore and find out more about are _________ (at least 3 points).
NOTICE: Your proposal should explain a personal reasoning and connection to your RQ. Why are YOU personally interested in this RQ? Your proposal is just that a proposal, therefore it is written BEFORE you do the research! Your proposal should not have researching-sounding-speak. Instead show your passion and curiosity.
WORK ON RAB SOURCE ENTRIES
- Begin researching your topic and possible sources. What are some possible sources you could consult (newspaper articles, editorials, interviews, podcasts, songs, documentaries)?
- We will work on each source entry one by one. Two (2) from periodical journalism newspaper. One from an audio or visual or creative source.
- We will work on the interview: For this interview, write up 6 questions to ask your interviewee. I suggest a family member or friend. Do your interview as your 4th You can do phone/zoom interview. Write one to two paragraphs documenting this interview — or — write a transcript of the questions and answers.
FINALLY WRITE THE CONCLUSION (200 – 300 words)
Write your conclusion paragraph, reflecting on what you have learned, how this information could be assembled (what genre?), and who would be interested (audience).
What you’ll be graded on:
- Content: Is it readable and informative? Does it teach us about the topic?
- Research: Did you dig deep? Were you open to being surprised and contradicted? Did you look further than the first three hits on Google?
- Genre: Remember that your four sources must be different genres. And you must have a personal interview.
- Presentation: Basically, can someone who is not you make sense of this visually? Did you use subheads for each part (or make other formatting choices) to help a reader make sense of your document?
- Citation: If you quote something in your introduction or conclusion that’s from one or more of your sources, be sure to cite it.
- Grammar, sentence structure, punctuation.
MORE BELOW – SCROLL DOWN
TEMPLATE
Below is a template for your RAB (reflective annotated bibliography). This will help you organize and format your annotated bibliography.
Annotated Bibliography Template (1200-1800 words total)
The document below is designed to help you break down this assignment, so you can clearly see what is expected in each section.
Introduction (approx. 200-300 words)
- Introduce your question.
- Explain how or why you got interested in your question.
- Write this in paragraph format (1-3 paragraphs).
Source Entries (approx. 200-300 words each)
You need three entries plus your personal interview as a fourth entry.
- Use three sources.
- Organize the sources in alphabetical order by author’s last name.
- Be sure each source is a different genre.
- Include an entry for each source (direction for entries are below).
- Include all four parts for each entry (summary, reflection on the source, analysis of the author’s choice of genre and writing style, and quotes).
- Then your Interview Project — Include 1-2 paragraph entry that is a summary of what you learned from your interview.
How do I write an entry?
Remember each part has its own components, its own requirements. The author’s main ideas (MIs) go in the Summary and not in Reflection, not in Rhetorical Genre Analysis! The parts of the source entry — 1Citation, 2 Summary, 3A Reflection, 3B Rhetorical Genre Analysis, 4Notable Quotables — are Distinct and Different and Separate (DDS!).
Here are the four parts of the source entry.
Part 1: MLA Citation
The first part of your entry will be the MLA (Modern Language Association) style bibliographic citation for your source. The citation gives the publication information, author, date, title, and so forth. There are many websites (like easybib.com) that can help you do this. Here is one example of a citation:
Yang, Andrew. “We Are Not the Virus But We Can Be Part of the Cure.” 1 Apr 2020 The Washington Post. The Washington Post. Web. 2 Apr 2020. www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/04/01/andrew-yang-coronavirus-discrimination/
Part 2: Summary
For the second part of your entry (right beneath the citation), you will write a summary. This will be useful for remembering what you read. The summary should convey what the author states in the article and not your opinions. Write what you think the main point is, but also what you think the most important points are (these aren’t always the same.) This is also a good time to make note of what data, facts, and evidence the author uses to support his/her claims, and how s/he uses this evidence to arrive at conclusions.
Part 2 Summary will be approximately a paragraph long. It should be about 6 sentences. Remember you cannot put everything darn thing into the summary! Your job as a summary writer is to select the most important ideas (not all the ideas). After reading your summary, I should know what that article is about. If your summary leaves me asking questions and I need to go and read the article — then something is wrong with your summary!
Part 3: Reflection and Rhetorical/Genre Analysis
A. In the third part of your entry, you will write a reflection. This part is perhaps the most important part, so don’t skimp here! you respond to the text you’ve read. Here you are showing what YOU think.
- Do you agree or disagree with the information that the author presents? Why or why not? Be specific!
- Find a significant quote.
- What questions do you have about what the author is saying? What don’t you understand?
- What other information do you need to look up to better understand this topic?
- If you could say something to this author, what would you say?
- What does this document tell you about your research question?
- B. Also consider rhetorical factors here like the genre, writing style, purpose, and author’s credentials. Here you are analyzing the effectiveness of the writing.
- Describe the author’s writing style? tone? (think ethos, pathos, logos)
- What is the author’s intended audience and purpose (reason for writing)?
- What is the genre? Is the genre effective? Does the choice of genre make sense for what the author wants to accomplish?
- Consider Relevance: Does this source help you answer your Research Question? How?
- Consider Occasion: Why is the writer writing this NOW?
- Consider Currency: Is this source current up-to-date information?
- Consider Credibility: How do you know this is a credible author and document? Find CSD facts and credentials about the author and source to prove credibility and reliability.
Part 3 will be 1-2 paragraphs.
Part 4: Notable Quotables
Quotations: Make a note of at least one direct quote from each source that you feel really exemplifies the document’s claims or interpretations or that you feel is important or useful in some way. Be sure to put the quote in quotation marks and note the page number.
“Put the quoted words here” (Smith 45).
Your fourth source entry is a little different because it is an original interview. This is your chance to gather first-hand experience from a relative or friend who is experiencing changes in travel, education, sports, racism, or media disinformation — whatever your topic is — right now in this time of the pandemic crisis. Think about what you really want to know. Create a list of questions or talking points to guide your talk.
Ideas: You may want to ask about their experience of whatever your topic is now during Co-Vid. Do they have any stories to relate to you? Their positive or negative experiences? How have they been dealing with this issue? What are their frustrations? What do they hope will change about ______ (your research topic)?
You must do the interview in person, by phone, by zoom, or by email. Devote one paragraph to it in your RAB Paper. You do not need to record the interview. Just get the person to open up so you can learn something from him or her. Enjoy your conversation and take notes on interesting things and stories the person shares with you. Have a good conversation and learn from your interviewer.
Write one paragraph (250 words) word report on the main findings of your conversation with the interviewee. OR write a transcript of the questions and answers. Establish who your person is and why s/he is a credible source of information. Consider if the genre of the interview is an effective way to get information. Explain why or why not the interview form works for this situation.
MLA Works Cited example for interview:
Johnson, Abbie [immigration layer]. Personal Interview. Brooklyn, NY. 22 Nov 2013.
Each of your 4 source entries is 200-200 words.
Conclusion (approx. 300 words):
After completing all four (4) of your Source Entries — RAB Source Entry #1, #2, and #3 and interview source — each of your 4 source entries is 200-200 words — you will write a conclusion for the entire RAB document.
- Summarize what you found in doing your research project.
- Tell readers what surprised you, or how your understanding of your question deepened or changed.
- Explain why what you learned is important.
- Explain who you think needs to know about your research and why– be specific! (The answer cannot be “everyone needs to know.” That is too big of an audience.) Narrow it down to who needs to hear about it first or the most!
Here’s another way to think about the Conclusion:
What did you learn about your topic? What surprised you? How did your thinking change or how did you knowledge deepen? Why is the research you found important? Who or what group would be the ideal audience for your research? Why would this audience benefit from your research? What genre will you choose to present your research?
(at least 250 words)
RAB Review Checklist
Your assignment should include the following:
| Yes/No? | Parts/components | What to include? |
| Your research question/topic | Place your research question on top of your document | |
| Introduction | You need a general introduction for the entire document. Introduce your question, explain why this question intrigues you, and say what you expect to find in your research (approx. 250 words). | |
| SOURCE ENTRIES
Part 1 MLA citation |
MLA citations for three sources (listed separately, with summary, rhetorical analysis.response,and quotations following each citation) | |
| Part 2 Summary | For each source, write a brief summary stating the main point of the text. | |
| Part 3A Reflection | Write about your opinion your thoughts on the source. | |
| Part 3B Rhetorical analysis | After the summary, write a brief analysis of the author’s writing style: for example, what is the tone and choice of genre? You should also look at the purpose along with the author’s credentials (address why you think the author is credible). | |
| Part 4 Important quotes | Include at least 2 important quotes from each source | |
| Conclusion | Write a conclusion for the entire document.
What did you learn about your topic? How did your thinking change? Why is the research you found important? Which community do you think would benefit from your research? Why and how would this community benefit from this information? (around 250 words) |
|
| Note: Each of these three sources will need to be a different genre. For example, you can’t have three magazine articles or three YouTube videos. Examples of genres and media you might include are: newspaper articles, TED Talks, podcasts, personal essays, documentaries, magazine articles, scholarly articles, museum websites, interviews, video, songs, etc. | ||
RAB Document — What you’ll be graded on:
- Content: Is it readable and informative? Does it teach us about the topic?
- Research: Did you dig deep? Were you open to being surprised and contradicted? Did you look further than the first three hits on Google?
- Genre: Remember that your three sources must be different genres. And you must have a personal interview.
- Presentation: Basically, can someone who is not you make sense of this visually? Did you use subheads for each part (or make other formatting choices) to help a reader make sense of your document?
- Citation: If you quote something in your introduction or conclusion that’s from one or more of your sources, be sure to cite it.
- Grammar, sentence structure, punctuation.
