No abstract

This chapter uses findings from a mixed-methods study of undergraduates’ research experiences in a developmental writing course at a small, private university to suggest that writing bad research questions is a necessary part of the research process and that students can learn valuable lessons from the struggle to pose effective questions if given the necessary support. It offers a set of rubrics that can be used to evaluate the debatability, researchability, and feasibility of students’ research questions to help students turn failed research questions into successful ones.

In keeping with its title, Shelley and Metz’s Geography of Trafficking provides an introduction to trafficking through the lens of place by focusing on how geographical features, from natural landscapes to imposed borders, contribute to trafficking.

American Women Speak provides brief biographies and oratorical samples for American women notable for their use of the spoken word from the 1630s through the present. Aside from brief front and back matter, including a subject guide and chronology, the book consists entirely of biographical sketches of the women along with, for most of the women, examples of their oratory. The examples include excerpts from and the full text of speeches, testimonies, and interviews. They cover a wide range of progressive topics, including women’s rights, environmentalism, pacifism, and gun control. Only two of the included women are activists for conservative causes.