MUSIC RESEARCH PROJECT

DUE DATES ALONG THE WAY

Mon, October 19th
Fri, October 23rd
Mon, November 2nd
Wed, November 4th
Fri, November 20th
Mon, November 30th

Final pitch statement due

Zero draft due
3 page draft due
Prezi Mindmap draft due
Research Project Paper due
Start Prezi presentations

LENGTH
Approximately 6-8 DS pages in 12-point font, 1 margins
FORMAT
Use MLA style for the essay title, name/page number header, etc. Heres a link to a good online
source: http://bcs.bedfordstmartins.com/resdoc5e/RES5e_ch08_s1-0001.html#RES5e_ch08_p0011
IMPORTANT ASSIGNMENT LOGISTICS
Complete responses to this assignment will:
o address a dual audience: classmates and your older family members
o use a formal register
o integrate multiple multimedia elements (screenshots, short video clips, essay layout,
and the like) to create an electronic essay suitable for online posting
o have an appropriate title
o include a reflective note at the point of submission in Blackboard (cover letter)
o you may use footnotes for citations rather than parenthetical citations or stick with traditional
MLA parenthetical citations
o include a properly formatted Works Cited page
ASSIGNMENT OVERVIEW
In consultation with your classmates and me, youll identify a social, ethical, and/or legal issue
relating to the 21st century world of music and technology that interests you but about which
you do not yet have a firm view. Your research focus will need to be timely, analytical, and
debatable. As with the other assignments, youll receive detailed guidelines, sample topics, and
plenty of guidance as you select and narrow a research focus. Your goal for this project is both
to clarify your own point of view on the topic you selected and to give your readers new
information and insights to consider. The research project includes: a two-part pitch statement,
a proposal (including an annotated bibliography), a research-based essay, and an informal
presentation using Prezi.
SOME TOPIC IDEAS
In addition to the myriad topics weve touched on this semester and others explored in (e)tunes that
we werent able to get to, heres a great website that may give you some new ideas, perhaps even
issues you werent aware of before: http://getparticipants.com/music-research-essay-topics-the-top-
25-outstanding-ideas.html
http://blog.phdworks.org/2012/03/01/music-research-topics-top-ideas-and-prompts-for-your-
papers/

Not all of these will be as appropriate for this particular assignment as others, but well spend plenty
of time in class making sure everyone is on a good track topic-wise.
ASSIGNMENT PROCESS
1. Brainstorm music issues about which you havent already made up your mindtopics
that intrigue you, about which youd like to develop a stance but havent done so yet;
2. Do some blogging and other free-writing to brainstorm what youve already heard, read,
or thought about the topic that most interests you;
3. See what primary and secondary sources are available to support your research;
4. Work with your classmates and me to select a line of inquiry from which youll later
develop your research pitch;
5. Write a two-part research pitch to guide your exploration of this topic, something like
Id like to learn more about the science and ethics of stem cell research in order to take
an informed position on it or I want to find out what the various pros and cons are
around producing music through a record label versus independently.
6. Begin conducting preliminary research to help you narrow your focus;
7. Meet with me and your research team outside of class to talk strategy (required);
8. Write a 3-page mini-rough draft;
9. Make a multimedia Prezi mindmap of your research so far;
10. Get input from your research team;
11. Finish writing your research essay;
12. Present your research findings to the class
DRAWING RESEARCH-BASED CONCLUSIONS
An analytical conclusion by its very definition is a matter of opinionbut its a wellsupported opinion. As with the Rhetorical Analysis, if your conclusion isnt analytical, you
havent successfully completed the assignment. Types of analytical conclusions include
(but arent limited to) the following:
whereas one school of thought comes down on X side of this issue, on further
investigation, Y side has a stronger case;
though it would be easy to dismiss X as not being a real problem, it needs to be taken
seriously because of Y;
after thorough investigation, it seems clear that the consequences of X are Y;
while multiple factors have contributed to X problem, Y is the most serious and needs to
be dealt with;
while each reader is of course entitled to his/her own opinion, if we could all come
together on X, Y could happen;
even though some would have us believe that this is an either/or choice, the most
reasonable way to respond to X is actually a blend of the values held by Y and Z;
why even if theres no way you would ever change your position on X, it behooves you
to understand Y position because of Z.
EVALUATION CRITERIA
Strong responses to this assignment will:
address issues that are timely (kairos) and about which your members of your audience,
regardless of where theyre coming from, will be able to find some point of agreement
(stasis)
demonstrate the ability to carefully and critically present a timely issue related to music
foreground your own analysis and independent thinking generally while making good use of
secondary source material, including at least four secondary sources

 present just enough context about your issue so your audience knows where youre coming
from
take into account multiple points of view
arrive at a clear, well-supported analytical conclusion about which other reasonable people
might disagree
display an awareness of and consideration for audience
effectively use multimedia elements to support points being made
display effective stylestrong introduction and conclusion paragraphs, smooth transitions,
logical organization, etc
smoothly move from point to point
format stylishly and effectively for online presentation
demonstrate professional editing skills (grammar, usage, & mechanics)
correctly use MLA citation footnotes (optional) and Works Cited page (including your own
photos, etc.)
SKILLS WELL WORK ON IN THIS ASSIGNMENT MODULE
The following list of skillsin order of prioritycombines both assignment-specific and more general
skills youve asked us to work on as a class:
1. how to use writing to arrive at a better understanding of a timely issue;
2. how to narrow and refine a research focus;
3. how to best appeal to a particular audience at a particular point in time;
4. how to identify and build upon points of agreement;
5. how to conduct secondary research and make use of it without overwhelming your own ideas.