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Designing Research Assignments

Clear learning outcomes for library-based research

More Assignment Ideas

Alternatives to Research Papers Compiled by Kathy Labadorf, University of Connecticut Libraries.

Alternatives to Traditional Research Papers Compiled by Jennifer Dorner; Cody Hennessy, UC Berkeley Libraries.

Alternatives to Research Papers

This list scratches the surface of how to integrate research into courses without papers.

      Appropriate for 100-level courses:

  • Have students compile an annotated bibliography on a particular topic and justify why they selected each item.
  • Have students review and comment on each others' bibliographies.
  • Have students compare and contrast the treatment of a topic using scholarly, popular, and trade sources.
  • Have students create an introductory guide or pathfinder on a topic

       Appropriate for 200-level courses:

  • Have students write a critique on an article and provide supporting documentation for their argument.
  • Have students examine the literature of a particular discipline in order to determine how information is compiled, disseminated, and evaluated. Have students discuss how credibility is constructed in a particular field.
  • Have students find reviews of a book or article from the time it was published. Have students critique the scholarly impact of the work using the reviews and modern articles that build upon the author's ideas.
  • Have students conduct oral histories and use primary and scholarly sources to provide a framework for context and analysis.
  • Have students create a timeline in order to trace key moments in a scholarly conversation or in a scholar's career.