[nabs-l] ENC 1102 Class, Research Paper Assignment

[Helga Schreiber]

Hi all, 
I just wanted to tell you that for my ENC 1102 class, I’m doing an assignment called “Assignment for Research Plan and Bibliography” The first part of the assignment is to answer 8 questions regarding my topic in order to write my research plan before writing my draft of my research paper. Remember when I told you before that my topic for my research paper is “Exists Discrimination Against Visually Impaired College Students?” I actually turned in the first draft of this assignment, on Monday July 1st, but the final draft is due on Monday July 8. In fact, I asked my professor after class last Monday, if I could send her my answers of my 8 questions, in order for to provide me with some comments about them, and I actually did so. In one of the questions she suggested if I could give testimonies from other students in order to make my argument that I’m making strong. Here are actually the 8 questions I need to answer for my research plan, and underneath each questions are my answers with her comments. 
Part I: The Research Plan [no word count specified; answer the questions in as much detail as you can]  



Your research plan will address the following the issues: 



1)      What is your research question? Explain why your question is appropriate for the length and complexity of the final research project. 

       Does discrimination against visually impaired college students exist? This question is appropriate for my final research project because I believe that discrimination occurs frequently in many places in our country and all around the world for visually impaired college students. Discrimination exists for all disabled students, but I will focus specifically on visually impaired college students due to the fact that they are frequently not provided with the necessary accommodations, such as braille materials and technological support. Moreover, they are sometimes rejected by sighted individuals, like administrators, educators, and fellow students. When considering how many issues visually impaired college students face, this topic becomes very complex and requires a great deal of explanation. 



Comments on question 1: It seems like you’ve come to a conclusion about the fact that visually impaired students are discriminated against. I think a better way to frame this issue would be to say that you’ve experienced discrimination and you’d like to find out if what you’ve experienced is common—if discrimination against the visually impaired in college exists more widely than just your experience.  

2)      Why are you writing about this question or issue? What makes it important to write about this issue now? What interests you in this issue?  [Think about kairos—making an argument at an opportune time.] 

       The reason I’m writing about this issue is because I believe visually impaired students and sighted students must have the same opportunities and rights in order to accomplish their goals. This issue is significant now because there is better technological support and human resources, like Disability Support Services for these students than in the past that are not being well utilized.  Because I have firsthand experiences regarding this issue, I am interested in advocating for better understanding of the visually impaired students’ needs and learning methods.

Comments on question 2: looks good. 

3)      Do you have a personal connection to this issue? Could you use this connection or experience as evidence or an emotional appeal in your essay? 

       I have a personal connection with this issue because I’m a visually impaired student who is not receiving enough technological support from Disability Support Services. For instance, the first way I learned to study was with braille; however, this method is not being given to me in an adequate manner for books, class notes, tests and others materials even though this is known by the Administration and Disability Support Services. I can use this difficult experience as an emotional appeal to strengthen my argument. 

Comments on question 3:  Remember not to rely too heavily on just your experience when you write the paper; your experiences are important, but you need a lot more evidence to create a convincing argument. 

4)      What is your working thesis? [A working thesis is your tentative answer to your research question. You can always change it as your research evolves.] Do you need to use any qualifiers with your thesis to ensure a general audience would be likely to accept it? 

       Discrimination against visually impaired college students truly exists due to a lack of technological support and rejection by sighted individuals, who do not thoroughly understand the challenges and accommodations of these students.

Comments on question 4: You might want to add a qualifier to this thesis. Also, do you really think that all visually impaired students are discriminated against? Just because PBSC isn’t doing a good enough job for you doesn’t mean that other colleges and universities aren’t much better at addressing the needs of visually impaired students.  You need to carefully consider this point of view. 

5)      What sort of claim does your working thesis make? Is it one of fact, definition, evaluation, causality, or proposal? 

       The sort of claim that my working thesis is based upon is one of evaluations about situations in which visually impaired students have been affected by discrimination.

Comments on question 5: Your question in number one seems to indicate that this would be an argument of fact. 

6)      What sort of evidence are you basing your thesis on? What are you reasons for reaching this conclusion? 

       I’m basing my thesis on references of legal cases, personal experiences and written articles about rights and laws that affect the disabled persons. I think that everyone has equal opportunities as stated in the Constitution of the United States and this extends into the college environment.

Comments on question 6: Looks good. 

7)      What assumptions are you making that allow you to connect your working thesis with your reasons/evidence? Will an audience of general readers likely accept the connection you’ve made between your evidence and your thesis? [Basically, what is your warrant?] 

       I make the assumption that administrators, support services and students alike are not necessarily knowledgeable about the rights and laws that institutions are required to follow. This is the source for many conflicts between students and institutions when trying to provide services for their needs. 

Comment on 7: I think you’re also assuming that other students have experienced what you’ve experienced. Also, as noted above, you assume that all students regardless of disability status deserve the same access to educational materials and effective teaching methods. 

8)      What sort of evidence do you need? What information will you be looking for when you conduct your research? [Basically, what do you still need to know?] 

       I probably would need to know statistics, percentages, numbers of cases solved, (or to be solved,) and also how they are getting solved.

Comment on 8: I think you really need to take a look at how widespread this problem is. It might be tough to find percentages, but testimony from other students could be really important to your argument. 



Here are actually the questions with my answers. I was just wondering, would it be possible for you to tell me what do you think of the questions,  my answers, and my professor’s comments? Also, I just would like to ask you, could you tell me some of your testimonies regarding the issue of discrimination, and if you have experience it before during your college years and even now in college right now, in order to use them as evidence in my research paper? I will really appreciate it. And if you could provide me with some specific information, like for instance, the name of the college or Univercity, and in what State is located that will be great! as well. Thank you so much for listening to me and God bless!



Sincerelly, Helga Schreiber