Research Paper: Description: 1. Write an original research paper on either the five books of Wisdom Literature or the five books of Major Prophets. This paper must include the following: a. authorship; b. date of writing; c. to whom the books were written; d. occasion for the writing; e. setting for the books; f. purpose of the books; g. major themes of the books; h. any distinctive of the books. Page Requirement: 2. The content for each literature book/major prophet must be between one and two pages. Therefore, the total content of the paper must be between five and ten pages. If the paper is less or more than the minimum/maximum requirement, the grade will be deducted. Resource Requirement: 3. There must be a minimum of ten resources. Of these, at least five sources must be credible Bible commentaries. Students who choose to use online resources must select sources that are appropriate for academic research. One other source must be a Bible dictionary. The student is not allowed to use introductory material from a study Bible or class notes as sources. It is strongly suggested that the student use resources from the bibliography listed in this syllabus. Turnitin: 4. Before the paper will be accepted, it must be submitted through Blackboard, using the turn-it-in feature. Grading Criteria: 5. The grade for this assignment will be based on the criteria identified in this syllabus. Writing Style: 6. Clarity of writing style is important. Check you grammar and your spelling. (For Pete’s sake, use a spelling checker!) 7. Your paragraphs should deal with one theme or topic. When you introduce a new thought, start a new paragraph. Every paragraph should contribute to your outline, which (supposedly) supports your thesis as represented in your title. 8. Your sentences should be straightforward and complete. A college student should be able to avoid run-on sentences, etc. 9. Avoid the use of first person singular in this research paper. Quotation Style: 10. Do not quote someone merely to gain a footnote. 11. If you summarize or paraphrase a source, you must footnote that source. 12. A source should be quoted ifand only ifin your opinion (a) the reader needs to hear the way that the source said it, or (b) a paraphrase or summary is not adequate for your purposes. 13. Short, direct prose quotations should be incorporated into the text of the paper and enclosed in double quotation marks: One small step for man; one giant leap for mankind. 14. A prose quotation that runs to four or more lines of text in a paper should be set off from the text, single-spaced and indented in its entirety four spaces from the left marginal line with no quotation marks at beginning or end. Writing Style: 15. The student may use any of the following writing styles: APA, MLA, or Turabian. Bibliography: 16. Each paper must have a bibliography. For the form of the bibliography consult the bibliography in this syllabus. 17. You will be able to find some acceptable resources in electronic format. I encourage you to take full advantage of computer software packages that include the best resources. But remember, you are after the best tools, not simply the most convenient. You need to be much more cautious about Internet resources. This is a rapidly changing environment and it has not traditionally represented the best in biblical scholarship. While the Internet is certainly convenient, you do not always know whether you are getting reliable information. I recommend that you stick with works by respected authors.
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