Research Questions
A student wants to research pollution. Her question is: "What is pollution?" Which revision makes this the BEST research question?
A) What are all the types of pollution in the world?
B) How does air pollution in urban areas affect the respiratory health of children?
C) Is pollution bad for the environment?
D) Why is pollution a problem?
B — Specific, focused, and researchable. A is still too broad; C and D are biased/vague and cannot be answered with evidence.
A student is researching teen mental health. Which source is MOST credible for academic research?
A) A peer-reviewed article from the Journal of Adolescent Health
B) A blog post by an anonymous writer titled "Social Media Ruined My Teen"
C) A YouTube video with 2 million views about anxiety
D) A social media post from a school counselor
A — Peer-reviewed journal articles are vetted by experts in the field, making them the most credible source type for academic research.
A student searches for information about the effects of sleep deprivation. She types all of the following into a search engine. Which is the BEST search query?
A) sleep
B) sleep is bad for teenagers what happens
C) "sleep deprivation" AND "academic performance" teenagers
D) all the effects of not sleeping enough for students in high school
C — Uses quotation marks for exact phrases and a Boolean AND operator to connect two specific concepts. A is too vague; B and D are conversational, not search-optimized.
A student copies three sentences from a website directly into her paper and puts them in quotation marks, but does not include a citation. This is an example of:
A) Correct use of a direct quote
B) Plagiarism, because the source is not credited
C) Paraphrasing, which does not need a citation
D) Summarizing, which is always acceptable without a citation
B — Quotation marks alone are not enough. A citation crediting the source is required. Using someone's words without credit is plagiarism.
A student's paragraph is made up of four consecutive direct quotes from four different sources with no original sentences. According to W.1.A.b, what is the PRIMARY problem?
A) She used too many different sources throughout her essay
B) She did not integrate information selectively or maintain the flow of ideas
C) She cited too many page numbers
D) Direct quotes are not allowed in research papers
B — W.1.A.b requires selectively integrating information to maintain flow. A string of quotes with no student analysis or transitions does not constitute integrated writing.
A student is researching "the effects of video games." After finding sources, she realizes most information is specifically about violent video games and aggression. What should she do?
A) Abandon the topic and start over
B) Broaden her question to include all screen time
C) Narrow her question to focus on violent video games and aggression
D) Use only the sources that match her original broad question
C — Narrowing the inquiry to match the available evidence is the correct research move. She follows where the credible sources lead.
A student finds a website with helpful statistics about nutrition. The site ends in .com and was last updated in 2014. What are the TWO biggest credibility concerns?
A) The font is hard to read and the page has too many ads
B) .com sites are always unreliable and the page is too long
C) The site may have a commercial bias and the information is not current
D) The statistics are probably made up and the site has no pictures
C — .com sites may be commercially motivated (bias concern), and 2014 data may be outdated for a health topic where research evolves quickly.
A student uses the Boolean operator NOT in her search: "climate change NOT politics." What will this search do?
A) Find sources about climate change and politics that work together to prove the point
B) Find only sources about politics
C) Remove sources that mention politics from the climate change results
D) Search two separate topics at the same time
C — NOT excludes the term that follows it, narrowing results by removing unwanted content from the search.
A student reads an article, then rewrites the information entirely in her own words and sentence structure without citing the source. Is this plagiarism?
A) No, because she used her own words
B) No, because she did not copy anything directly from the source of the information
C) Yes, because the ideas still belong to the original author and require a citation
D) Yes, but only if the teacher can prove she read the article
C — Paraphrasing still requires a citation. Ideas, not just words, belong to the original author. Failing to cite a paraphrase is plagiarism.
Which sentence BEST demonstrates integrating a source while maintaining the flow of ideas?
A) "Teen depression is rising. 'Depression affects 1 in 5 teenagers.' This is a big problem that needs to be addressed sooner rather than later."
B) "The CDC reports that depression now affects 1 in 5 teenagers, a rate that has doubled since 2010 (CDC, 2023)."
C) "According to a source, depression is common in teens."
D) "I found an article that said depression is rising among teens."
B — Smoothly introduces the source with context, integrates the evidence, adds a specific detail, and includes a citation. A is choppy; C and D are vague.
A student writes this research question: "Shouldn't the government do more to stop climate change?" What is the PRIMARY problem with this question for academic research?
A) It is too narrow
B) It has too many possible sources
C) It cannot be researched online
D) It is a loaded question that assumes an answer
D — "Shouldn't" embeds a bias/assumption into the question. A strong research question is neutral and open-ended.
A student finds two sources: (A) a 2023 CDC report on youth tobacco use, and (B) a 2023 article from a tobacco company's website about the same topic. What is the MAIN reason Source A is more credible than Source B?
A) Source A is longer and has more statistics
B) Source B is a primary source and primary sources are less reliable
C) Source A uses harder vocabulary
D) Source A is from a government agency with no financial interest in the outcome
D — The CDC is a neutral government authority. The tobacco company has a financial conflict of interest, which compromises objectivity.
Why is searching a database like EBSCO or Google Scholar BETTER than a general Google search for academic research?
A) Databases have more colorful websites
B) Google searches cost money for academic papers
C) General searches only return government websites that may or may not be relevant
D) Databases filter results to include peer-reviewed and scholarly sources
D — Academic databases are designed to surface vetted, scholarly content. General searches return all websites regardless of credibility.
Which of the following citations includes the information MOST necessary for an MLA works cited entry for a website?
B) The government said teens are less healthy.
C) Health data about teens from the government. Accessed May 2023.
D) "Teen Obesity Rates." healthdata.gov. Accessed March 2024.
D — Includes title of the page, website name, and access date. MLA entries for websites require author (if available), page title, site name, publisher, date, URL, and access date.
A student has five sources but uses Source A seven times and the other four sources only once each. What does this reveal about her research?
A) Source A is clearly the best source, so this is correct
B) Using one source repeatedly shows thorough research
C) She integrated her sources selectively, which is the goal of writing any essay in high school
D) She is over-relying on one source instead of drawing from multiple relevant, credible sources
D— W.1.A.b requires gathering information from MULTIPLE sources. Over-reliance on one source undermines the breadth and credibility of the research.
After conducting initial research, a student finds almost no credible sources on her specific topic. According to W.1.A.a, what is the BEST next step?
A) Use the few sources she found, even if they are not credible
B) Submit the paper without enough sources
C) Broaden her inquiry to find more relevant, credible sources
D) Change her topic entirely without trying to adjust the question
C — W.1.A.a specifically requires narrowing OR broadening inquiry when appropriate. Broadening is the correct adjustment when sources are insufficient.
Which of the following BEST describes an authoritative source?
A) A source written by a recognized expert with verifiable credentials
B) A source that is very long and detailed
C) A source that agrees with the student's thesis
D) A source that has been on the internet for many years and many websites
A — Authority comes from verifiable expertise or institutional credibility, not length, age, or agreement with the researcher's position.
A student finds 15 sources on her topic. According to W.1.A.b, how should she decide which ones to USE in her paper?
A) Use all 15 so her paper looks well-researched
B) Use only the most recently published ones regardless of the content each contains
C) Assess the usefulness of each — does it directly address her research question and meet credibility criteria?
D) Use whichever sources are easiest to read
C — W.1.A.b requires assessing usefulness of each source in answering the specific research question, not just collecting sources.
A student writes: "Research shows that teens who sleep less perform worse academically." She does not name a source. According to W.1.A.b, what standard is she violating?
A) She must use a direct quote, not a paraphrase
B) She must follow a standard format for citation and credit her source
C) She cannot use information about teenagers in a research paper
D) She must include the URL inside the sentence
B — W.1.A.b requires following a standard citation format. Any information drawn from a source — direct quote, paraphrase, or summary — must be cited.
A student wants to include this fact in her paper: "The average American produces 4.9 pounds of trash per day." She has already used a direct quote earlier in the paragraph. What should she do?
A) Use another direct quote and add quotation marks to show it is a direct quote
B) Leave the fact out since she already used a quote
C) Paraphrase the information and add a citation to maintain flow
D) Summarize the entire source again
C — Paraphrasing integrates evidence more naturally than stacking quotes, helps maintain flow, and still requires a citation — exactly what W.1.A.b calls for.
A student's teacher assigns the topic "World War II." The student develops her own focused question: "How did propaganda posters influence American public support for World War II?" Why is a self-generated, narrowed question like this BETTER than the broad assigned topic?
A) It is easier to find sources for broad topics
B) It allows the student to focus her research and find more relevant, specific sources
C) Self-generated questions do not require citations
D) Narrow questions require fewer sources, so it makes it easier for her to do the research
B — A focused, self-generated question directs the research, makes sources easier to evaluate for relevance, and produces a stronger, more specific paper.
A student ranks her sources from most to least credible: (1) peer-reviewed journal, (2) .gov health report, (3) newspaper article from a major outlet, (4) personal blog. Her teacher says the ranking is correct but asks her to explain why the newspaper ranks ABOVE the blog. What is the BEST explanation?
A) Newspapers cost money to read, so they must be more reliable than most other sources of information
B) Newspapers have professional editors and fact-checkers; blogs typically have no editorial review
C) Blogs are always written anonymously, while newspapers never are
D) Newspapers are longer than blogs
B — Editorial oversight and professional fact-checking distinguish reputable news outlets from self-published blogs, regardless of authorship.
A student searches "poverty" and gets 500 million results. She then searches "childhood poverty AND academic achievement AND urban schools." How does the second search better reflect W.1.A.b skills?
A) It uses longer words, which makes sources more credible
B) It reduces results that are given, so she has fewer possible sources to read and choose from
C) It guarantees the sources will be peer-reviewed
D) It uses advanced search techniques to locate more relevant, specific sources efficiently
D — W.1.A.b specifically requires using advanced searches effectively to gather relevant information. The second query targets the exact intersection the research question requires.
Read this student sentence: "According to the American Psychological Association (2022), 'excessive screen time is linked to increased rates of anxiety and depression in adolescents' (p. 14)." Which statement BEST evaluates this citation practice?
A) It correctly identifies the source, uses quotation marks, and includes a page number
B) It is incorrect because direct quotes cannot be used in research papers
C) It is plagiarism because the student did not paraphrase
D) It is incorrect because the year should appear at the end of the citation
A — The student names the source (APA), uses quotation marks around the direct quote, and includes a page number — all required elements of a properly formatted in-text citation.
Read this passage: "Many studies have explored teenage screen time. Smith (2021) found increased anxiety. Jones (2022) found sleep disruption. The CDC (2023) noted declining grades. Johnson (2020) reported reduced physical activity. These findings are concerning." What revision would BEST improve the integration of sources?
A) Remove three of the four sources to avoid repetition
B) Add quotation marks around each finding, then explain why they were chosen and provide a personal connection to your response
C) Connect the evidence with transitions and add student analysis explaining what the pattern of findings means
D) Move all the citations to a footnote at the bottom of each page of the research paper
C — The sources are listed but not synthesized. Strong integration requires transitions between pieces of evidence and student analysis that explains the significance of the combined findings.