Developing a Research Question — Practice · Grade 11 English

Chapter: Research & Source-Based Writing

What this practice covers

By the end of Developing a Research Question you should be able to:

11 questions, multiple choice and written answer, each with a worked explanation.

Vocabulary used: research question, arguable, scope, line of inquiry, working thesis.

Problem 1

Which of these is the strongest RESEARCH question — arguable and appropriately scoped?
  1. What year was the printing press invented?
  2. What is a printing press?
  3. To what extent did the printing press cause the Reformation, rather than only accelerating changes already under way?
  4. Tell me about the printing press.
Answer and explanation

To what extent did the printing press cause the Reformation, rather than only accelerating changes already under way?

Only this option is both arguable (informed people could disagree about how much the press caused) and scoped to a specific, researchable relationship; the others are factual, definitional, or not even questions.

Problem 2

Explain the difference between an arguable research question and a merely factual one, and why a sustained research project needs the arguable kind.
Answer and explanation

A factual question has one correct answer you can simply look up, like a date or a definition, while an arguable question stays open to more than one reasonable answer, so informed people could disagree. A research project needs an arguable question because there must be something genuine to investigate, weigh, and defend — a factual question is answered and finished in a single sentence.

Problem 3

A student's question, 'How does social media affect mental health?' turns up thousands of conflicting studies spanning every platform, age group, and outcome. What is the BEST next step?
  1. Narrow the scope to a specific platform, population, and measurable outcome.
  2. Keep the question exactly as broad as it is and try to cover everything briefly.
  3. Pick the single study that agrees with the student's hunch and ignore the rest.
  4. Abandon the project, since the topic is hopeless.
Answer and explanation

Narrow the scope to a specific platform, population, and measurable outcome.

When a question is too broad to manage, the fix is to narrow its scope with specifics — one platform, one group, one outcome — not to abandon it or cherry-pick a single agreeable source.

Problem 4

Take the broad topic 'artificial intelligence' and write one focused, arguable research question.
Answer and explanation

Answers vary; accept any specific, debatable question, such as, 'Should schools be allowed to use AI systems to grade student essays, given concerns about fairness and bias?' The question must name a specific relationship and stay open to more than one reasonable answer.

Problem 5

Why is a 'working thesis' described as working?
  1. Because it is the final claim you must defend no matter what the evidence later shows.
  2. Because it is a provisional answer you expect to refine, or even reverse, as evidence accumulates.
  3. Because you may only write it during class work time.
  4. Because a research paper must always be about jobs or the economy.
Answer and explanation

Because it is a provisional answer you expect to refine, or even reverse, as evidence accumulates.

A working thesis is provisional — earned from evidence and revised as research continues — not a fixed position chosen in advance and defended against the facts.

Problem 6

Narrow the inquiry without presuming bias. Give a detail and explain its relevance.
Answer and explanation

Ask how the mural program represents a named worker’s role compared with the archive records. Analyze what each source includes, its purpose, and omissions; visitor comments may show responses but not the full audience.

Use the criteria to compare your reasoning, not to copy the model’s wording. A supported alternative interpretation may earn full credit.

Response criteria

  • Make an accurate, focused claim or revision.
  • Use a relevant detail or a clearly explained language choice.
  • Explain the relationship and recognize a relevant limit.

Problem 7

A learner writes: “Why are all public displays misleading?” Explain the problem and produce a better response.
Answer and explanation

The question assumes a universal answer. Specify a display and ask how excerpt selection affects the representation of speakers.

Use the criteria to compare your reasoning, not to copy the model’s wording. A supported alternative interpretation may earn full credit.

Response criteria

  • Make an accurate, focused claim or revision.
  • Use a relevant detail or a clearly explained language choice.
  • Explain the relationship and recognize a relevant limit.

Problem 8

Compare what you must inspect in these two cases. What can transfer, and what must be checked again?
Answer and explanation

Turn a broad topic into a question with a manageable place, time, population, and purpose. A question should require inquiry rather than assume its answer. The method transfers, but the particular detail, scope, and context must be read again. Ask how the mural program represents a named worker’s role compared with the archive records. Analyze what each source includes, its purpose, and omissions; visitor comments may show responses but not the full audience.

Use the criteria to compare your reasoning, not to copy the model’s wording. A supported alternative interpretation may earn full credit.

Response criteria

  • Make an accurate, focused claim or revision.
  • Use a relevant detail or a clearly explained language choice.
  • Explain the relationship and recognize a relevant limit.

Problem 9

Using an assigned reading or one exercise source, write a developed response applying developing a research question. Aim for 260–380 words; name the reading or reproduce the sentence you revise.
Answer and explanation

Ask whether a twice-weekly later opening at this school attracted enough use to justify its staffing cost during the trial. Compare the attendance log and budget, then interview staff about supervision limits. A complete response supplies context, a focused claim, a brief supporting detail, explanation, and a relevant qualification. Do not simply repeat this model.

Use the criteria to compare your reasoning, not to copy the model’s wording. A supported alternative interpretation may earn full credit.

Response criteria

  • Make an accurate, focused claim or revision.
  • Use a relevant detail or a clearly explained language choice.
  • Explain the relationship and recognize a relevant limit.

Problem 10

Write two specific feedback comments on a response to this unit: one on accuracy or meaning and one on evidence or language. Then state a revision priority.
Answer and explanation

Check whether the response explains turn a broad topic into a question with a manageable place, time, population, and purpose. a question should require inquiry rather than assume its answer. Ask for a relevant detail and the reason it supports the conclusion. Prioritize the mistaken assumption shown here: “Why are all public displays misleading?”

Use the criteria to compare your reasoning, not to copy the model’s wording. A supported alternative interpretation may earn full credit.

Response criteria

  • Make an accurate, focused claim or revision.
  • Use a relevant detail or a clearly explained language choice.
  • Explain the relationship and recognize a relevant limit.

Problem 11

Choose a fresh sentence or detail from the assigned selection. Explain how this unit’s method applies, and identify one uncertainty or limitation.
Answer and explanation

The museum memo values welcome, the historian demands agency, and the donor asks for precise attribution. An evidence panel can answer part of each concern, but favorable appearance ratings do not establish historical accuracy. The response must supply its own precise detail and explain it; copying the model without fresh evidence is insufficient.

Use the criteria to compare your reasoning, not to copy the model’s wording. A supported alternative interpretation may earn full credit.

Response criteria

  • Make an accurate, focused claim or revision.
  • Use a relevant detail or a clearly explained language choice.
  • Explain the relationship and recognize a relevant limit.

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