English 1551
Margaret Ridge
Research Paper Topics

If you are doing it right, research is a tedious and time-consuming process. This job will be more pleasant for you if you can get interested in your topic.  My first suggestion is to Try to find something that interests you in your major or field of study. What are your occupational prospects? What is innovative or controversial in your field?   Talk to one of your professors in your field or browse through a textbook or professional journal for ideas.

Try to combine this paper with some assignment for another class. You may not be able to use the same version of the paper, but you may be able to use the same research. Remember that the approach for this class must be argumentative, not informative. If you think this idea might work for you, be sure that you gain your other instructor's approval. Perhaps something you learn in another class may suggest an interesting area of exploration.   Think about class discussions that have sparked your interest.

As a last resort, pay attention to the news. Look through a weekly newsmagazine like Time or Newsweek. Pay particular attention to current social problems. What are some of the things about our society or the world in general that worry you?  Remember, it will be much easier to work on your paper if you genuinely care about the topic.  You will be reading, thinking, and writing about this topic for the entire semester.  Make sure you can live with your choice.

Further suggestions - These topics are very general.  They are meant to stimulate your thinking about possibilities.  You may have to narrow or broaden your scope.  Please keep in mind that you are not required to choose from this list.  I much prefer that you come up with your own topic.  But if you are really desperate, you may find it helpful to know that other students have written successful papers on these topics.

Education

  • mainstreaming in the public schools
  • bilingual education
  • charter schools
  • racism on the college campus
  • Year Round schools
  • IQ Testing - biased or useful?
  • Mandatory competency tests
  • security guards in public schools
  • home schooling
  • alternative ways of funding public schools

    • Social Problems
  • homelessness
  • access to medical care
  • welfare to work programs
  • violence in our society
  • illegal immigrants
  • mandatory military and/or community service
  • homosexual rights
  • women in the military
  • increasing disparity between rich and poor
  • illiteracy and TV
  • prison reform
  • suicide (teen or geriatric)
  • stem cell research
  • airport security
  • disposal of toxic waste
  • childhood immunization
  • environmental issues(very broad; try something specific like environmental impact of ski resorts)
  • geoengineering
  • religious cults
  • inter-racial adoption/ international adoption
  • daycare for working mothers
  • equal opportunity for women in athletics
  • police brutality
  • antibiotic resistant germs
  • depletion of ground water
  • pollution and/or drying up of major world rivers
  • Mad cow disease
  • Cell phones and brain cancer
  • The "malling" of America

    • Political Issues
  • Effectiveness of United Nations
  • Domestic terrorism
  • Amnesty International
  • Intervention of US government in foreign countries
  • World hunger
  • Removal of toxic materials on military installations
  • Cuban refugees
  • Importing products created by child labor
  • Native American rights
  • Slavery in the Sudan
  • Nuclear weapons in Third World countries
  • tax reform
  • crisis in the Middle East

    •  

     

    Business Topics
    White collar crime
    whistleblowing in industry
    foreign investment in US economy
    European Common Market and impact on US economy
    Safety and children's toys
    worker motivation and declining productivity
    industy's effect on Third World nations

    You may not choose broad, over-done topics like abortion, capital punishment, euthanasia, gun control, saving the rain forest, animal testing, legalization of marijuana

    Remember, I must approve your topic before you get too far into your work.

    You might also wish to scan the material on these links.  All contain good lists
    of possible controversial topics that would be suitable for a paper in our
    class. Many of these sites also have good authoritative source links that
    provide information relative to the topic.  The two links that are starred
    seem especially good. ( Before making your final choice of topic,
    however, remember to check the topics to avoid).

        * 1.   http://www.researchpaper.com/directory.html     (good list of
    topics , but full text of articles  appears to be by subscription only)

           2.  http://4controversies.4anything.com/

       3.  http://www.webactive.com/webactive/directory/topic-index.html  (full
    texts of articles are free and  some appear to be authoritative)

    *  4.  http://www.publicagenda.org/                (very good list of
    current controversial issues/seems to have several authoritative links)

    5.  http://www.intellectualcapital.com/

    For more suggestions, click here.

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