WORLD HISTORYNATIONAL HISTORY DAY PAPER MR. SCHUMACHER

For your project this semester you will write a research paper for National History Day.

Due dates: Topic – Due 14/15February 2008 (Day 4)

10 points

You must submit a paragraph stating what your topic is and what you hope to prove in your research. This must be typed.

Annotated Bibliography – Due 11/12 March 2008 (Day 2)

15 points

You must turn in an annotated bibliography for you paper. This must include at least five resources, three of them of different types (books, articles, encyclopedias, etc.) No websites are acceptable at this point. Be sure to separate primary and secondary sources. This bibliography must be annotated so that I know why it is a significant resource. This must be typed. One error will disqualify your bibliography from any credit. See example below.

Outline – Due19/20 March 2008 (Day 3)

15 points

A detailed outline must be turned in. In this outline, you must clearly write out your thesis. In addition, you must include all topic sentences that explain your supporting point. This must be typed. See example below.

Rough Draft—Due 7/8 April 2008 (Day 1)

10 points

You must bring your rough draft to class to participate in peer-editing.

The Paper – Due15/16 April 2008 (Day 2)

50 points

See paper specifics below.

Paper Specifics, you need:

  1. A cover sheet of plain paper with only the title of the paper, your name and your period centered on it.
  2. A sheet of blank paper between your cover sheet and the first page.
  3. Staple this together at home before you come to school. I will deduct points from your paper if you attempt to staple it in my room the day it is due.
  4. The paper must be at least four full pages typed, 10 to 12 point, in either Times New Roman or Courier New fonts. Double space the paper and leave a one-inch margin.
  5. You must have an introductory paragraph with very general sentences leading to your thesis. This thesis is your main point – “what are you going to prove?” In addition, you should attempt to illustrate how you are going to prove your point – “how are you going to prove it?” This should resemble an inverted pyramid.
  6. Paragraphs that start with a topic sentence and are at least five sentences long.
  7. Within the body, you need citations that follow the Turabian format.
  8. A concluding paragraph starting with a restatement of your thesis and subsequent sentences leading the reader out of your paper. This should resemble a pyramid.
  9. A bibliography page. See above example. At least five (5) resources need to be listed three (3) of them of different types.
  10. Write your paper formally. Do not use first or second person only third person is appropriate.
  11. See Rules for Writers.
  12. Sample Outline:
  1. Introduction

A. A general sentence leading reader into your paper

B. A more specific sentence leading to the thesis (your point in writing the paper)

C. Thesis in complete sentence form here

  1. 1st supportive point

A. A topic sentence that will dictate what this paragraph will be about

1. Subsequent sentence

a. supporting facts

b. supporting facts

2. Subsequent sentence

  1. 2nd supportive point

A. A topic sentence that will dictate what this paragraph will be about.

  1. Subsequent sentence
  2. supporting facts
  3. etc.

2. Subsequent sentence

3. Subsequent sentence

  1. 3rd supportive point
  1. Subsequent sentence
  2. etc.
  1. etc.
  2. etc.
  3. Conclusion
  4. Restatement of your Thesis in complete sentence form here
  5. A more general statement of the significance of you point
  6. A very general sentence leading the reader out of your paper possibly commenting on your topic relevance to the United States.

Sample Bibliography:

Arrange primary sources first than secondary sources second. Then arrange alphabetically by author’s last name (or by title if no author).

For a book:

Author’s last name, first name, Title (always put in italics the title of a book), publisher, city published in, year, page number(s). Always indent as in the example. Always end with a period.

Every source is followed by an annotation. The annotation explains why the source is important. Annotations are indented this way.

For a magazine article:

Author’s last name, first name, “article title” (always put the title of an article in quotes), the title of the magazine (always put in italics), volume #, month, year, page number(s). Always indent as in the example. Always end with a period.

Every source is followed by an annotation. The annotation explains why the source is important. Annotations are indented this way.

For a reference book:

Author’s last name, first name, Title of the reference book (always put in italics the title of a book), publisher, city published in, year, volume #, page number(s). Always indent as in the example. Always end with a period.

Every source is followed by an annotation. The annotation explains why the source is important. Annotations are indented this way.

For software:

Title (always put in italics), author (if given), publisher, city published in, year. (get as much as you can from the title screen) Always indent as in the example. Always end with a period.

Every source is followed by an annotation. The annotation explains why the source is important. Annotations are indented this way.

When you are not sure you should always check the Turabian rather than loose points for doing this incorrectly.

Also see:

RULES FOR WRITERS

1. Verbs HAS to agree with their subjects.

2. Prepositions are not words to end sentences with.

3. And don't start a sentence with a conjunction.

4. It is wrong to ever split an infinitive.

5 Avoid clichés like the plague. (They're old hat.)

6. Also, always avoid annoying alliteration.

7. Be more or less specific.

8. Parenthetical remarks (however relevant) are (usually) unnecessary.

9. Also too, never, ever use repetitive redundancies.

10. No sentence fragments.

11. Contractions aren't necessary and shouldn't be used.

12. Foreign words and phrases are not apropos.

13. Do not be redundant; do not use more words than necessary; it's highly superfluous.

14. One should NEVER generalize.

15. Comparisons are as bad as clichés.

16. Don't use no double, negatives.

17. Eschew ampersands & abbreviations, etc.

18. Oneword sentences? Eliminate.

19. Analogies in writing are like feathers on a snake.

20. The passive voice is to be ignored.

21. Eliminate commas, that are, not necessary. Parenthetical words however should be enclosed in commas.

22. Never use a big word when substituting a diminutive one would suffice.

23. Kill all exclamation points!!!

24. Use words correctly, irregardless of how others use them.

25. Understatement is always the absolute best way to put forth earthshaking ideas.

26. Use the apostrophe in it's proper place and omit it when its not needed.

27. Eliminate quotations. As Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "I hate quotations. Tell me what you

know."

28. If you've heard it once, you've heard it a thousand times: Resist hyperbole; not one writer in a million can use it correctly.

29. Puns are for children, not groan readers.

30. Go around the barn at high noon to avoid colloquialisms.

31. Even IF a mixed metaphor sings, it should be derailed.

32. Who needs rhetorical questions?

33. Exaggeration is a billion times worse than understatement.

34. Avoid "buzzwords"; such integrated transitional scenarios complicate simplistic matters.

And finally...

35. Proofread carefully to see if you any words out.

Conflict & Compromise in [American] History

The theme Conflict and Compromise in History is complex and asks students to view history through multiple perspectives. In some cases, the conflicts existed without compromise. In others, compromise was reached before major conflicts ensued. In the end some conflicts were averted with compromises, like treaties. However, more often, events in history reflect both conflict and compromise. Students may choose to focus on a conflict or a compromise, but if the topic includes one as well as the other, the student needs to address both sides of the theme.

To understand the historical importance of their topics, students must ask questions of time and place, cause and effect, change over time, and impact and significance. They must ask not only when did events happen, but why did they happen? What factors contributed to their development? What was the lasting influence in history? How did this topic change the course of events? What effect did the event have on the community, society, nation and world?

There are hundreds of topics related to World War II. The war effort at home and abroad provides rich research possibilities that students might investigate. For example, students might analyze FDR’s lend-lease policy as a compromise that enabled him to help the allies without actually entering the war. Or a student may wish to investigate how African American troops were compromised in segregated units and the conflict they felt serving their country abroad while suffering discrimination and segregation at home. Or a study might examine the conflict over women in the military and the conflicts and compromises to which they were subjected as they tried to serve their country.

Students might be interested in examining the conflicts that led to wars or the compromises that ended the conflicts. A paper might be written on the Treaty of Versailles at the end of World War I. What conflicts existed among its creators? Was the treaty a series of compromises? Did the treaty lead to World War II? Or students might create a performance that analyzes the conflicts and compromises among the Allied leaders at Yalta or Tehran.

Battles fought in wartime seem like the ultimate conflicts. Whether students choose to study a battle from World War II, the Crimean War, the Six Day War, or from any other war, they should be careful to ask questions about the significance of the battle and the overall conflict involved. Which political conflict does the battle represent? How have strategies used by the contenders involved compromises to terrain, troop morale, supply lines or civilian pressures? How was the battle a significant event in the war?

Efforts at conflict resolution and the promotion of peace make very interesting topics for study. Why was the United Nations created and what role has it played in resolving international conflicts? Have United Nations peace-keeping missions been successful? Why or why not? Explain the ongoing problem of the resolution of disputes in the Middle East. Has outside intervention been successful in establishing peace in the area? What role has religion played in the conflicts? Has economics played a role in the inability to reach resolution or compromise?

Religious history is rich in conflicts and compromises. Conflicts have occurred between differing sects of the same religion and between people of different religious faiths. Often religious conflicts have been closely tied to or been instigated by political conflicts, or the clash of scientific or secular ideas and religious doctrines. How did the conflicts in the Reformation result in a permanent split between Protestants and Catholics? Did Galileo or the Church compromise over his scientific discoveries? What happened to the divine right of French kings or the belief in the divinity of the Japanese emperor?

Economic growth and change often involve conflicts. A student might write a paper on the reaction of Greek city-states to the growing trade empire of Athens or the conflicts over Mediterranean trade routes that led some nations to seek alternative passage to the Indies. A student could create a project that examines how workers and employers compromised their conflicts over wages and working conditions or produce a media presentation about the conflict between western farmers and eastern railroad companies in the late nineteenth century.

The theme lends itself to a number of topics related to the history of the Constitution since its ratification: conflicts that led to incorporating the Bill of Rights; conflicts and compromises over constitutional guarantees of civil liberties during wartime; and new interpretations to meet the needs of industrial growth. Convention delegates had conflicts over how states should be represented in a national government and what powers states should retain or entrust to the national government.

Students who are interested in cultural history might want to examine what happened to native customs and values when western countries imposed their rule in Africa, America and Asia or on the Pacific Islands. Did natives resist and/or accommodate to new practices? Anti-colonial movements often led to conflicts, but also to compromises after World War II. Students might develop a web site presentation that examines the anti-colonial efforts that led to United States involvement in Vietnam.

Some of the most harsh and agonizing conflicts in history encompass social conflict and compromise. Have the roles of women and minorities in American society changed as a result of conflicts over ideas? What kind of conflicts and compromises resulted when women and minorities asserted their civil rights? How has the status of women and minorities changed in other societies? A paper might be researched that analyzes the conflict over Reconstruction and its impact on the rise of the Ku Klux Klan; a performance might be created that examines the conflicts and compromises faced by immigrants as they attempted to settle a new land; or a documentary might be produced that interprets the tension between Irish immigrants and African Americans that resulted in the New York City draft riot of 1863.

Whatever topics are chosen, students should be careful to place their topics into historical perspective, examine the significance of their topics in history and show development over time. Studies should include an investigation into available primary and secondary research, as well as an analysis of the material, and thus should clearly explain the relationship of the topic to the theme, Conflict and Compromise in History. Then, students may develop papers, performances, exhibits, web sites and documentary presentations and projects for entry into National History Day competitions.

Suggested Topics

The following list provides examples of topics [tailored to this American history class] related to this year's theme. The list is not inclusive: rather it provides a starting point for students and teachers to brainstorm ideas for National History Day topics. Students should keep in mind that many excellent research topics can be found by investigating their own local history. Choosing one of the topics below will not increase or decrease a student's chance of doing well at a National History Day contest.

Religious Conflict & Compromise

Religious history is rich in conflicts and compromises. Conflicts may be sectarian and communal in nature or may arise because of political or secular clashes. Sectarian conflicts occur between differing sects of the same religion, for example, between Protestants and Catholics or between Puritans and Anglicans. Communal conflicts take place between people of different religious faiths, for example, between Muslims and Jews. Often religious conflicts have been closely tied to or have been instigated by political conflicts or the clash of scientific or secular ideas with religious doctrine.

• Darwin v. Creationism: The Scopes Trial of 1926

• John Humphrey Noyes and the Oneida Community

Military/Wartime Conflict & Compromise

War seems like the ultimate conflict between nations (and sometimes within nations). Such hostilities are usually caused by political conflict, but sometimes they are influenced by religious, social or economic conflicts. Wartime policies have often caused conflicts and compromises on the home front as well as abroad. Students should remember that battles themselves only express conflict; they do not alone offer reasons for the antagonisms behind the battles. It is important for students to examine the battle within the larger context of the war in order to understand its significance.

• General Sherman’s War on Civilians

• Social Conflict During War: Japanese Interment

• Segregation of Troops: Conflicting Loyalty

• Women in the Military

• To Drop or Not to Drop: Truman and the Atomic Bomb

• After the War: Should Rosie Return to the Home?

Political Conflict & Compromise

Political conflict and compromise take place not only between nations but within nations as well. Conflict between nations often occurs over control of resources, territorial claims or diplomatic concerns and has sometimes resulted in military conflicts. Conflicts between nations have been settled by diplomatic negotiations and religious alliances and through outside parties like the United Nations, and sometimes they officially result in compromises called treaties. Political conflict within nations may be local or national in nature and often involve social, racial, ethnic or cultural conflict and compromise.