Advice for Writing the IRR

The IRR, the individual research report, part 1 of PT1. This is often the introduction to AP Seminar and can be the most daunting to introductory AP Seminar students. However, in this guide, I will help break-down this assessment. Once you understand a few key components in writing a stellar IRR, the IRR eventually starts to write itself.

First and foremost, read through the rubric provided by the college board:

https://secure-media.collegeboard.org/ap/pdf/ap18-sg-seminar-pt1.pdf

Now let's break down this rubric:

R1: Synthesize multiple perspectives by describing how the sources are similar, different, or similar to an extent. By doing so, you are creating a more complex argument that shows the maturity of a scholar. (X would agree with Y in that ...., but not in that .....) (X would further amplify Y's point that... by stating that ...)

R2: This is the row for the purposeful use of sources. There are several ways you can articulate the use of sources within your IRR, but never directly say "this source is used to clarify an argument." Try to imbed these words through your analysis though.

These potential purposeful uses of a source are:

- introduce an argument or claim

- contrast ideas or arguments

- provide evidence for an argument

- define a concept, illustrate a concept, or clarify a statement

- provide an example

- qualify/amplify a point

Here is an example: Consequently, Scholar X's point further amplifies Scholar Y's point

R3: This row also regards purposeful use of sources, but also relates to attributed tags. Specifically, after citing a source, make sure to say the author's credibility. For instance, X, a professor of economics at Harvard, claims that... Also, make sure that the dates on the sources are relevant, so no sources from 1950 unless there is an absolute, justifiable need to do so.

R4: Continue to add multiple scholars, who think differently about a topic. Make sure that you have scholars that bring a unique perspective or contrast another's argument. You never want an IRR with only scholars that only agree with each other. Not only is it boring, but it also creates a range of perspectives.

R5: Make sure you have in-line citations and a bibliography at the end. You can find all rules for in-text and bibliography on the Purdue Owl website. Usually, in-text citations follow the order (author names, year published). Make sure to get citations for the bibliography directly from the source, if provided in APA. Else, read through Owl Purdue.

R6: Probably the easiest row to get, in my opinion. All you need to do is maintain a scholarly tone, without any colloquial language. Additionally, make sure to fix all grammar mistakes. If needed, make sure to define complicated jargon, applicable to the topic of research, for the reader. Additionally, make sure to remove all contractions, as they are a sign of informal writing.

If you take anything out of this guide, it is that the IRR IS NOT AN ARGUMENT. I repeat, if you attempt to make an argument, you are not answering the task correctly. (i.e. your score es no Bueno)

With that said, let's start to look at the process of creating IRR:

1. Choose a research question with your teammates. (Pro tip: choose teammates that you know will be put to put in the effort, not your friends.) This research question should be researchable, complex, and relevant. By researchable, I mean that you should be able to find a variety of articles that help support your argument on online, scholarly journal libraries such as Jstor or Ebsco. By complex, I mean that I mean that several scholars have differing perspectives on the issue. For instance, consider the question: What policies can the government enact to lower poverty rates? Some scholars might suggest increasing the minimum wage, creating more employee benefits, and provide the poor better educational opportunities. This will be important later on! By relevant, I mean that it is a current issue today in a specific country or globally. As much as I would like to research on the militaristic implications of alien warfare on human civilization or the continuing impacts of the second great awakening on American civilization today, these are not relevant questions! On that note, please don't choose a research question with no practical implications: What shape is the Earth. There is no tension or significance in the question (Pro tip: you should be able to answer the question "Why is my research question important to answer in modern society/who is affected?"). Additionally, don't choose "that" research question that everyone chooses (i.e. Rohingya crisis/plastics in the ocean. Its been done at least a 100 times.)

2. Now that you have a research question, split the question into different lenses. Each person should choose one lens. Also, make sure that all the lenses are applicable. Don't make someone do artistic for plastics in the ocean. They will get stuck and this will hurt when they come back for the TMP. On that note, make sure that the topics covered in each lens don't overlap. Communicate with each other and try not to have too much overlap in sources.

3. Also, identify a few sources before you finalize your RQ and check the dates. If they are generally too old (i.e. 20th century), consider changing or refining your RQ.

4. Once you have created a potential question, the next step is to conduct research. I would highly suggest making an Annotated Bibliography to arrange your sources, probably between 10-12 other than your stimulus sources. While conducting research, make sure to write down the main idea, quotes you want to use, attributive tags, and how you plan to use this research in your IRR for each article. Trust me, it will be helpful later. If you find that all the researchers are saying the exact same thing, try to redevelop your question, as it has proven to not be complex enough.

5. Once you have completed the research stage, you can now proceed to make an outline for your research paper. Make sure that you don't make an argument - that would be an IWA.Try to identify some sub-claims that the authors talk about and group your sources into these sub-claims. If there are too many or too few sources for a sub claim, consider redefining these categories.

6. Now, you can move onto writing the IRR! Remember, the maximum word count is 1320, so be careful and be concise.

The first paragraph should set the context of the issue. Seek to create tension or significance, introduce the people affected, explain the significance with statistics, and introduce the research question. Finally, create a thesis statement that states the sub-claims that you will analyze throughout the IRR. This will help structure your argument. The intro should be about 250 words.

Now, you can begin each of your body paragraphs! Each body should be around 300 words. First, you want to have an introductory statement introducing the main topic of the paragraph. Then, you are essentially aiming to introduce numerous perspectives on the sub claim that you have made above. Between each of these perspectives, you want to either explain the connection with other sources, similarities/differences/nuances, or explain their purposeful use. Try to also get the source "talking" to each other (i.e. X would counter Y's claim, stating that [Y's claim], disproving X's claim that [X's claim] is actually ). This not only indicates a mature writer but will help increase your score by proving to the AP reader that you are able to connect sources, rather than summarizing what other people say(a book report). Continue to introduce perspectives and assess their validity by comparing their perspectives with other scholars that may further amplify their point or contrast.

***look at R2 for the purposeful use information***

With the paragraphs done, make a possible solution paragraph. Do not attempt to make your entire IRR supporting this solution, however. This should be a final concluding remark. Essentially you want to introduce a potential solution and explain the solution thoroughly. Then, explain the potential benefit of this solution. Follow up with a direct counter that explains the ineffectiveness of the solution. Finally, create a closing remark for the entire IRR, which incorporates the sub-claims.

Finally, include your Bibliography and you should be done with this task. Congratulations!

Additional Tips: Do not stack sources next to each other without analysis or commentary. This will look like a book report on the main ideas of the claims made by different authors. Remove words such as "it" "is" "that." These words often point to an immature/underdeveloped writer.

With that said, this should be all you need to score highly on the IRR. Follow these steps and the IRR won't seem that complicated anymore.

Happy studying and Good Luck!