Transcript Choosing an essay topic

Choosing an essay topic
• Your main objective should be to end up with a topic
that is neither too broad nor too narrow for the
purposes of your assignment.
• Before finalizing your choice, make sure that sufficient
material is available on the topic.
• If your topic is a controversial one, consider the need
for material representing either a neutral overview of
the topic, or enough material on each major viewpoint
to achieve a balance.
• Remember that even in an opinion piece, material
from the "other side" can be used to strengthen your
own thesis.
• If your topic is a longstanding issue, make sure
that current information is available if this is
required for the assignment.
• While historical information is important, having
both is usually preferable for a well-rounded
presentation.
• Finally, make sure your topic choice appeals to
your own interests as much as possible, as this
will increase your enthusiasm for thorough
research and high quality results.
Fine Tuning Your Topic
• If your topic is too broad...
• Try narrowing it down by selecting one aspect
of the topic; you could concentrate on groups
involved, or areas of the world affected, or
time periods covered.
• A search on your topic using a library catalog
or other online database can yield titles or key
words representing possible subtopics to
narrow your focus.
If your topic is too narrow
• Think about how your topic affects things and
people or places associated with it.
• How does your topic affect you? What are some
broader implications? Historical effects? New
innovations, controversies, or laws?
• Topics that have been in the public eye for a
significant time period are generally easier to
broaden.
• If a topic is very new, you may not be able to find
very much printed information on it.
• As with narrowing a topic, a library or online
search can provide other terms that might
help to broaden your approach.
• A graphic organizer, such as a concept web,
can be a big help in "branching out" from a
central idea to possible parallel topics and will
help you organize your ideas.
Research Topics
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Fair Trade vs Free Trade
NAFTA (failure or success)
Wal-Mart
Global Warming-Fact or Fiction?
Drug Trade
Sex Trade
Black Market
Globalization
Recession (Great Depression vs Recession)
Canada’s Global Market
See handout for more options