Name: ___CLASS SET____

AP English 4

Conceptual Inquiry Project

(CIP)
Resource Packet

Table of Contents Page 1

Introduction and Assignment Page 2-5
Scoring Guide for Non-Fiction RIP Page 6
Scoring Guide for Fiction RIP Page 7
Tips for Planning to Write a Research Paper Page 8
CIP Synthesis Essay Outline Scoring Rubric Page 9
CIP Synthesis Essay Scoring Rubric Page 10
SFA Library Online Resources Page 11

Conceptual Inquiry Project Resource Packet—2023

1
 The Great Ideas Conceptual Inquiry Project—2023

What will I be doing?

The Conceptual Inquiry Project is an independent reading and research project designed to foster the ideals of inquiry and
literary analysis. You will select/formulate a literary inquiry question designed to dig deeper into the style, themes, societal
impacts, etc. of one of the novels you have read this year. You will further your inquiry by reading self-selected fiction and
non-fiction works and will present your complex and expanded understanding of your concept in a comprehensive article for an
imaginary journal of thought accompanied by a cover that reveals an artistic connection to your concept.

What will I learn by doing this project?

● The project requires you to think in more complex ways and develop critical reading, thinking, and research
skills.
● The project fosters independence and intellectual excitement. You choose your course of study, and you
control the direction it will take.
● The project requires research skills to locate appropriate readings/articles for self-study.
● The project reinforces familiarity with MLA conventions.
● The project gives you the opportunity to synthesize ideas from many sources into one cohesive, clearly written,
and intellectually astute paper, a skill absolutely necessary in college.

RESEARCH
How much does this project count?
The process of creating this project by completing the research will be a portion of your 4th nine-weeks grades. The finished
product (an essay) will count as a level 3 on your 4th nine-weeks grade. In essence, this is a senior project. You should not
panic, nor should you take this lightly.

What will I Be Reading?

Below are the number and type of works you will, at the very least, need to reference in your paper. The reality for any
researcher, however, is that you must work through more sources than those you will eventually use in order to find the
works that provide the best fit with your theme. Synthesizing information from a variety of sources always entails a
constant process of figuring what works together and what does not. You may need to read or skim more selections than
are required to find those sources best suited to your purpose. You may work through an article only to discard it later for
something stronger. For grading purposes, however, you are responsible for the following:

Imaginative Literature: (at least 2 pieces)

● Major Work: You will choose one novel of literary merit from any of the novels you have read for this class
this year. This will be the cornerstone piece of your literary analysis.
● Additional fiction piece: This can be another novel, a poem, a short story, any work of fiction that supports
your inquiry.
Nonfiction Reading—Essays: (at least one piece)
● Consider works such as philosophical articles, literary criticism, historical documents, etc.

*Note: You must have a minimum of four total sources

You’ll also be able to access the other works you’ve read this year and in year’s past to contribute to your essay. You will not
have to provide this back-up research for all of those sources, but they will need to be included on your Work Cited page.
You can consider works we’ve studied this year such as All the Light we Cannot See, Brave New World, “Clothes,” “Harrison
Bergeron,” Macbeth, your 20th century novel selection, or your 19th Century novels selections as well as works of literary
merit you’ve read on your own or in your other classes. The idea is to pull from sources so that you have a thoughtful
response to the question you’ve posed.

Conceptual Inquiry Project Resource Packet—2023

2
How Will I Process and Analyze the Readings?
For your novel—
● Novel Snapshot: You will begin to discover overarching thematic ideas in your novel by completing a
graphic organizer intended to map an overview of your work in preparation for writing a thematic essay.

For each mandated research source—(one fiction, one non-fiction) (remember you will have at least one additional source
that does not have a RIP)
See Resource Packet for Scoring Rubrics.
1. Highlight and Annotate when assigned to do so on the original source: Demonstrate active reading by
highlighting key passages (such as theme-related passages) and annotating with your comments,
questions, observations, and connections to your other resources. The marginal notes should track the
flow of the writer’s argument and thought process for the nonfiction pieces or the narrative elements of
the short stories.
2. Create a Research Inquiry Pages: (RIP)
● MLA Citation
● Name and short biography of the author (Include any outside source(s) on the Works Cited page.)
● Abstract that includes the general/guiding idea(s) present in the piece. In other words, in a
sentence or two, what is the writer arguing or asserting?
● Three Excerpts and Explications: Choose three excerpts—direct quotations from the text of the
article, or short story. Explain the excerpt by discussing what role that excerpt plays as a part of
the whole article. In other words, discuss your understanding of the excerpt as a reflection of the
writer’s overall thoughts. Additionally, explain the excerpt’s connection(s) to your concept and
sources you have utilized. You should be making thorough and thoughtful connections to
previous sources as your research continues.
● Questions or comments that still linger or have “popped up” based on the reading and/or its
connection to your concept.

WRITING
What kind of essay will I write?
You will write a professional-style, inquiry article for Contemporary Thought—a magazine devoted to trends in art,
literature, and philosophy in our world—exploring the complexities of your inquiry question as it exists in theory and as it
plays out in the novel, short stories, literary criticism and essays you’ve read.

What will my inquiry question be?

● How does this novel represent or subvert the expectations of the time period in which it was written?
● How is the author’s depiction of gender within the novel reflective of society at the time of publication?
● How is the author’s depiction of race within the novel reflective of society at the time of publication?
● Comparative literature: How do two separate pieces of literature tackle the same topic/theme?
● How does the author’s use of a particular stylistic element or elements impact the overall meaning of the text?
● How does this novel fit within its genre? What genre characteristics does it include or subvert? What is its historical
significance to its genre?
● Student Choice: You can draft your own inquiry question and submit to your teacher for approval

On what criteria will my essay be judged? See Resource Packet for Rubric
Your understanding of, and insight into, your inquiry question AND the works of literature you’ve used to illustrate your
understanding.
● Complexity and clarity of your thesis or focus
● Clarity and organization of the final draft of your writing
● Adequate support, elaboration, and exploration of individual ideas
● Synthesis from sources into a cohesive paper
● Clear and appropriate language resulting in fluent, readable prose
● MLA citations/conventions that are correctly formatted
● Willingness to be daring in thought or word; signs of inventiveness
● Grammatical and mechanical accuracy

Conceptual Inquiry Project Resource Packet—2023

3
What assignments will I do to prepare for this essay?
● Draft a working thesis statement.
● Create a working outline of your paper.
● Complete a typed draft.
● Complete a Works Cited page in correct MLA format, revising your bibliography as necessary. This should
be a working document throughout your research so that you are not left creating it at the end.

How can I organize a long paper?

One size does not fit all. Your organization has to support what you want to say, NOT squeeze what you want to say into
some predetermined organizational pattern. Which is a long-winded way of saying, I don’t know. However, here are some
guidelines:

Outline
Have you ever made an outline AFTER you’ve written the paper because the teacher required one but the one you scribbled
didn’t make sense anymore? Your outline is a way of organizing your thoughts before writing, but those thoughts will
inevitably change as you write. Writing is thinking. It’s magical what happens when you write and your brain insists on order,
on finding pattern and meaning. But that doesn’t mean an outline is busywork. An outline forces you to categorize,
subdivide, group like with like, and contrast with the different. No matter how far your final paper wanders from this map,
the thinking you do to create it is helpful in organizing your materials and your thoughts about them. Honor the process.

Introduction
Your first paragraph can describe your inquiry question and ground it in the context of the novel/time period.
You must lead into a thesis statement that does two things:
● makes an argument about your inquiry question (this is where you’re giving an answer to the question you’ve
posed).
● previews the organization of the paper.

Body Sections
You will need to have a clear organizational structure to your paper. Think about how you can logically connect ideas from
your different sources to support an answer to your inquiry question. Paragraphs can contain a single idea, expand on the
idea in the previous paragraph in a different manner, or contradict the previous paragraph in some way. Regardless, each
paragraph should begin with a sentence that clearly states the point that paragraph is making. The rest of the paragraph
supports that point, though it very well may further subdivide the main point of the paragraph. You should end paragraphs
by either bringing the reader back to the purpose of the paragraph—NOT by repeating but by finding a different path to the
same idea—or you may pave the way into the next paragraph, preparing the reader for what is coming. Either way, the
paragraph has a finished, complete feel.

Transitions
For clarity’s sake, you need to use transitions as a roadmap for your reading, whether you’re introducing a similar idea or a
contrary one, warning the reader of sharp turns ahead. Transitions are most frequently single words, but at the end and
beginning of a paragraph, you frequently need more to close off one idea and set up the next. In such cases, a phrase or a
whole sentence can serve as a transition.

Coherence
Coherence is the logical glue that runs through your paper, the connections from section to section, paragraph to paragraph,
sentence to sentence. Each leads logically to the next. The reader is never thrown off base by a sentence disconnected to
the ideas in the previous sentence. You do not digress into side issue unrelated to the topic of discussion. You exercise
discipline in your writing by staying on track, making each paragraph communicate a single point and all sentences in service
to that point.

Conclusion
So many times, we write perfunctory, boring conclusions. What a waste of an ending! Here is where rhetoric can soar, the
artist can flourish, and the thinker can be profound! Why is your question significant and why does your research matter?
Here is your last opportunity to finalize your points to the reader and validate your research.

Conceptual Inquiry Project Resource Packet—2023

4
How long is this paper?
A 6-8 page essay that is typed, double-spaced, 12-point font, with 1” margins. Your last name, hyphen, and page number
should appear in the upper right hand corners of all pages excluding the first. Your thesis should be in bold formatting.
Include 1-2 block quotations, but no more.

How many quotations do I need?

It’s difficult to say, but a ballpark is 3-5 for each body paragraph. Remember you have at least four sources to incorporate
through direct quotations and/or paraphrases. Don’t focus on the number so much as what support you need to best
communicate your points.

Long Quotations
You must incorporate one block quotation, but have no more than two. The rest should be blended quotations or
paraphrases.

What about all the MLA stuff?

Internal Citations
You will need to cite all sources, both directly quoted and paraphrased, in the body of your paper using correct MLA format.

Works Cited
You will create an MLA Works Cited page listing all works referred to in your paper. If the idea is not yours, you must give
credit to the source. This page is not included in the page count of your essay

What about plagiarism?

This would be a difficult paper to plagiarize by taking someone else’s work because the work is individual to your inquiry
question and selection of literary and nonfiction choices. However, this is an easy paper to accidentally plagiarize if you are
not very careful about citing the information you find in other sources. Please be mindful that you cite ALL of the sources
that you use. The use of any degree of AI to craft any component of this assignment is considered plagiarism and will be
dealt with similarly to the use of any other online sources without correct citation. A plagiarized paper in any form or
portion will receive a zero in accordance to Austin High’s plagiarism policy. If you have any questions, please see your
teacher!

When is all of this due??? There’s so much to do!

To earn an extra 5 points on your Learning Tasks Average (an L3 grade!), submit your CIP by Friday, 5.12 for all classes!
The FINAL deadline for CIP submission is Monday, 5.15/Tuesday, 5.16 by 11:59 pm.

There will be due dates all along the way and while this is a challenging project, if you keep up as we go, that will be
sufficient time. You will be submitted many small pieces like your RIPs through BLEND. Stay on top of all the pieces.

What happens if my paper is late?

There will be a 10% deduction for every day your paper is late. If your paper is more than 3 days late, I will not accept it
unless there is a REAL, DOCUMENTED CIRCUMSTANCE.

As always, please email or remind for issues or concerns.

Conceptual Inquiry Project Resource Packet—2023

5
 Name: __________________________________ Period: _____Main Novel : ________________________________

Inquiry Question: ___________________________________________________________________________

Scoring Guide for Non-Fiction Source Research Inquiry Page

Score Characteristics
□ MLA Citation for text correctly formatted
□ Biography of author gives relevant information and taken from a credible source
□ Abstract accurately addresses guiding ideas and explanation of how author develops or
95-100 supports the thesis in chronological order
□ Thoughtful choice of apt quotations that reveal insight into the meaning of the text
□ Thorough, insightful discussion of the excerpt; explores many levels of relevance or
makes a particularly sophisticated connection
□ Questions are thoughtful and extend thoughts about the text
□ MLA Citation included but contains minor error in formatting
□ Biography of author included and taken from a relevant source
□ Abstract addresses the guiding ideas and explains how the author develops/ supports thesis.
85
□ Appropriate choice of quotations that reveal an understanding of the text
□ Adequate explication of quotation’s significance; may explore only one level of
significance or may not fully extend thoughts on significance to the argument created
by the author
□ Questions are valid and applicable to texts and extend thoughts about the text(s)
□ MLA Citation is included but contains errors.
□ Biography of the author included but may contain irrelevant information or is taken from a
questionable source
□ Abstract is included and may address some aspect of the guiding ideas of the work.
75
□ Choice of quotations may seem perfunctory or inappropriate; quotations may not
demonstrate understanding of text
□ Explication attempted discussion but may be undeveloped
□ Explication may be occasionally unclear or may contain minor inaccuracies or
misreading
□ Questions have flaws or are not particularly relevant to extended thought about text(s)
□ MLA Citation is missing
□ Biography is missing or taken from an unacceptable source
0-65 □ Abstract is missing or inaccurately reflects the guiding ideas of the work
□ Quotations or explications missing
□ Explications are unclear or fail to demonstrate even a basic understanding of the text
□ Explications contain frequent and serious inaccuracies
□ Questions are missing or irrelevant to deeper thinking about the text(s)
SCORE: ______________

Name: ____________________________________ Period: _____ Score: _______ AP English IV

Title of Main Novel__________________________________

Title of Fictional Work: __________________________________________Author: _________________________

Conceptual Inquiry Project Resource Packet—2023

6
Inquiry Question for your Research: __________________________________________________________________

Scoring Guide for Fictional Source Research Inquiry Page

Score Characteristics
□ MLA Citation for text correctly formatted
□ Bio of author gives relevant information and taken from a credible source
□ Abstract accurately addresses guiding idea/summary of the work
95-100
□ Thoughtful choice of apt quotations that reveal insight into the meaning of the text
(4)
□ Thorough, insightful discussion of the excerpt and the part it plays in the work as a whole
□ Thorough, insightful connections to novel; explores many levels of relevance or makes a
particularly sophisticated connection
□ Questions are thoughtful and extend thoughts about the text(s)
□ MLA Citation included but contains minor error in formatting
□ Bio of author included and taken from a relevant source
□ Abstract addresses the guiding idea/summary of the work.
□ Appropriate choice of quotations that reveal a basic understanding of the text
85
□ Adequate discussion of quotation’s significance and connection to novel; may explore only one
(3)
level of significance or may not fully extend thoughts on significance to the argument created by
the author
□ One choice of quotation or one explanation may lack insight or thoroughness
□ Questions are valid and applicable to texts and extend thoughts about the text(s)
□ .MLA Citation is included but contains errors.
□ Bio of the author included but may contain irrelevant information or is taken from a questionable source
□ Abstract is included and may address some aspect of the guiding idea/summary of the work.
□ Choice of quotations may seem perfunctory or inappropriate; quotations may not demonstrate
75 understanding of text
(2) □ Attempted discussion of significance and/or connection to novel
□ Discussion may fail to fully develop ideas
□ Discussion may be occasionally unclear
□ Discussion may contain minor inaccuracies or misreading
□ Questions have flaws or are not particularly relevant to extended thought about the text(s)
□ MLA Citation is missing
□ Bio is missing or taken from an unacceptable source
□ Abstract is missing or inaccurately reflects the guiding idea/summary of the work
□ Quotations or explanations missing
0-65
□ Explanations only briefly attempted; explanations undeveloped
(0-1) □ Choice of quotations or explanations may be unclear and may fail to demonstrate even a basic
understanding of the text
□ Explanations contain frequent and serious inaccuracies
□ Questions are missing or irrelevant to deeper thinking about the text(s)

Conceptual Inquiry Project Resource Packet—2023

7
 Tips for Planning to Write a Research Paper

Writing an essay of any type requires the same skills of organization and planning, but since this
research paper is particularly large and its focus is somewhat different, you might need to consider a
few things.

Argumentation and Inquiry

Because you’re dealing with a broad topic and the ideas of many other thinkers, you won’t be writing
the same kind of argument that you normally write in literary analysis papers. You’re not trying to
“win” an argument or to prove one point throughout a paper. Instead, your “argument” is an inquiry:
you are exploring an issue, learning about the history of thought on that issue, discussing its
complexities, and using different works to support your inquiry.

Organizing Your Research

This step depends on your topic, sources, and personality, but I’ll tell you how I would go about
organizing my paper. What follows is not meant to restrict your ideas or style; these are only
suggestions.

● Lay out all of your sources and skim over your thematic comments about each.
● List all of the different ideas about and aspects of your inquiry question that come up in
the sources.
● Try to arrange these ideas or aspects into categories.
o Group the ideas based on what they reveal about your inquiry question.
o You might also group ideas from broadest to narrowest or vice-versa
o You can group ideas by historical progression
o You can also match up or sequence opposing or divergent views
o You might also group all of your sources and ideas around your novel

Drafting the Paper

At this point, you should be able to start filling in your paragraphs. You might skip the introduction until
after you write the body; sometimes that’s easier. Hopefully you’ll be able to use some of your analysis
from the RIPs in this essay as well.

Conceptual Inquiry Project Resource Packet—2023

8
Name: ___________________ Period: ________ Due: __________________
Novel: _________________________________________
Guiding Question: _______________________________________________________________

Outline Rubric for the Conceptual Inquiry Paper

An “A” outline can be characterized by:
● A clear, complex, sophisticated thesis or focus
● Organization of an argument/inquiry that is clear and logically sequenced
throughout the essay
● Research that is synthesized from all sources
● Resources that are clearly connected and obviously strong, appropriate choices
A “B” outline can be characterized by:
● A clear, sophisticated thesis or focus
● Organization of argument/inquiry that is clear and logically sequenced
● Research that is synthesized from most sources
● Resources that are connected and appropriate choices
● Adequate support, elaboration, and exploration of individual ideas
A “C” outline can be characterized by:
● A thesis or focus which may need to be improved by making it arguable or be
more specific
● Organization of argument/inquiry that may lack logical sequence or may be
unclear in areas
● Research synthesized from fewer sources
● Resources that may not seem clearly connected or may seem like weak choices
● Lacking support for, elaboration of, and exploration of ideas/claims.
A failing outline can be characterized by:
● An unclear thesis or focus
● Illogical organization of argument/inquiry and is distracting in its lack of
organization as it is difficult to follow the argument/inquiry
● Research synthesized from very few sources or specific sources are too heavily
relied on for creation of argument.
● Resources that are not connected and are weak choices for the argument/inquiry
concept
● Little or no support for, elaboration of, and exploration of ideas/claims.

Conceptual Inquiry Project Resource Packet—2023

9
 Conceptual Inquiry Thought Paper—Essay Rubric

An “A” essay can be characterized by:

● A clear, complex, and sophisticated thesis or focus
● Organization of an argument/inquiry that is clear and logically sequenced throughout the essay
● Research that is synthesized from almost all sources into a cohesive, intellectually astute paper
● Resources that are clearly connected and obviously strong, appropriate choices for
argument/inquiry concept
● Adequate support, elaboration, and exploration of individual ideas
● MLA citations/conventions that are formatted correctly
● Grammatical and mechanical accuracy

A “B” essay can be characterized by:

● A clear, sophisticated thesis or focus
● Organization of argument/inquiry that is clear and logically sequenced in most of the essay
● Research that is synthesized from most sources into a generally cohesive paper
● Resources that are connected and appropriate choices for argument/inquiry concept
● Adequate support, elaboration, and exploration of individual ideas
● MLA citations/conventions correctly formatted, for the most part
● Grammatical and mechanical accuracy, for the most part

A “C” essay can be characterized by:

● A clear thesis or focus
● Organization of argument/inquiry that may lack logical sequence or may be unclear in areas
● Research synthesized from fewer sources
● Resources that may not seem clearly connected or may seem like weak choices for the
argument/inquiry concept
● Little or lacking support for, elaboration of, and exploration of ideas/claims.
● MLA citations/conventions that are formatted incorrectly
● Grammatical and mechanical errors that are distracting and numerous

A failing essay can be characterized by:

● An unclear thesis or focus
● Organization of argument/inquiry that lacks logical sequence and is distracting in its lack of
organization as it is difficult to follow the argument/inquiry
● Research synthesized from very few sources or specific sources are too heavily relied on for
creation of argument.
● Resources that are not connected and are weak choices for the argument/inquiry concept
● Little or no support for, elaboration of, and exploration of ideas/claims.
● MLA citations/conventions that are formatted incorrectly
● Grammatical and mechanical errors that are distracting and numerous

Conceptual Inquiry Project Resource Packet—2023

10
 SFA Library Online Resources

To access our school’s online resources, open the MackinVIA app in the AISD Portal (portal.austinisd.org).

In MackinVIA, select Digital Resources from the left-hand menu.

You will find Encyclopedias, for basic reference information.

And you will find a variety of Databases, for academic articles and publications. Choose a
database according to the field of study, or use general databases that cover a broad range of
topics, like these:

Specific databases you might consider according to your topic include:

Literary criticism: Literary Sources, Literature Resource Center, LitFinder, Scribner Writers
Online, Twayne’s Authors Online
Medical: Consumer Health Complete, Health & Wellness Resource Center, Natural &
Alternative Treatments
Environmental: GreenFILE, Environmental Studies
Education: ERIC
Sciences: Psychology & Behavior Sciences, Science (Gale in context), Science Online, Today’s
Science
And there are others as well!

Use filters or the Advanced Search tools to limit your results to certain descriptors and to
full-text documents.

Save articles directly into your Google Drive in most databases. Each database will create a
separate folder in your Drive. For some databases, you may need to download a PDF and move it
to your Drive.

You can capture a citation using the Cite tool in each database, or even find it provided at the
end of the article; it should also be included in any downloads you save.

If you have trouble or questions, your library staff are here to help you!

Conceptual Inquiry Project Resource Packet—2023

11