Is the Research Paper Dead?
A recent article in the Chicago Tribune brought to light a growing American problem and put it’s finger on the cause – Many adults can’t research and write and overcrowded high-schools are to blame. According to the Tribune,
“Several Chicago-area high schools have dialed back the paper’s length requirements and instead emphasize the research process and weighing of sources, a critical skill in the digital era, teachers say. Others skip the extended assignment entirely in favor of shorter, intermittent papers, while some allow students to showcase their research with PowerPoint presentations and Web pages.”
The root of the problem rests in time and resources, not in relevancy. Teachers, particularly at the high school level, are overworked and have class sizes that are far to overwhelming to adequately grade and examine in-depth research papers. The Tribune article pointed out that while the 15 to 20 page senior high school research project use to be the norm, it is no longer bothered with in light of easier, less time-intense projects. The tragic result of this…
…students entering college without the skills or know-how to write a solid research paper. Furthermore, students are graduating without the writing skills, organizational aptitude or critical thinking tools to put together a cohesive report on a topic. The adult version of a research paper – the corporate newsletter or the company profile or the product investigation – is going to suffer and hence, so will the individual. Even before adult problems set in, college presents hardships students who did not receive proper instruction on research writing. According to Timothy Gilfoyle, chair of the history department at Loyola University, students enter college without the ability to write a paper over a few pages. Gilfoyle states points out that this taxes the college instructors too, as his history department professors have to spend their time and resources teaching students how to write and then they can write his required 15 page research paper to pass the class.
Results of 400 High School History Teachers Surveyed on the Importance of Research Papers
The argument has been made that the internet and interactive media may be making the traditional research paper antiquated. It is true that society is largely interactive and, especially for people under the age of 30, engagement in media and interactive reference material seems more relevant to them, according the Tribune article. Colleges and Universities are fighting a battle to hold the attention of students that are use to being entertained by interaction, even in the classroom setting. However, in a survey of 400 history professors by the Albert Shanker Institute regarding the relevancy of the research paper, 90% of them stated that they believe research papers to be a very important part of the educational experience in history classes. How many of those 400 actually assigned a paper over 12 pages? 6 out of 10 of them never assigned a research paper over 12 pages.
So is the research paper dead? Hardly. The future for the research paper is to combine interactive media and the traditional elements of research. Explicating will always be an important part of the learning process. What the study by the Skanker Institute illustrates, and the Chicago Tribune article backs up, is that high school teachers are over worked and do not have the time to engage students in the intricacies of research paper writing. Again, at the heart of the issue is funding for schools so that resources are not stretched and students are not the ones to suffer. The research paper is not dead; the educational system is sick and needing revival so that no one is left without the tools needed to advance in education or in their career.
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