<p>I'm a Japanese student and I spent many years studying in China before I came back to Japan for high school. Anyway both countries I've lived have very different ways of submitting homework from US, and I'm really worried about my academic score in campus. So could anybody tell me what a good paper should be? And how can I achieve it?</p>
<p>Google “what makes a good research paper” and you’ll find plenty of information. Also, your professors will be a great source of information. Explain your background and ask for examples of the kinds of work he/she expects. American universities have a lot of support services, including tutors, which will help you. </p>
<p>There is no such thing as a good academic paper. There is a good psychology paper, a good history paper, a good literature paper, and so on. It would be good to study examples of excellent papers written for the discipline in which you are required to write a paper.</p>
<p>And to make things more complicated, you will probably be required to take 1-2 English Composition courses, and the instructors there will have their own expectations.</p>
<p>“There is no such thing as a good academic paper.” LOL. All good academic writing, particularly on the undergraduate level, follows the same general principles of a clearly stated purpose, organization, clarity, sourcing and originality. </p>
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<p>Having been a writing professor for 22 years, I sort of know that. I also know that you will find very different expectations from discipline to discipline. The sciences, for example, prefer a much more to-the-point style than, say, literary studies, where subtlety is more appreciated. What counts as evidence in the various disciplines also varies widely. Some disciplines require an abstract; some don’t.</p>
<p>I regularly teach my writing students that many of the things they learn about “good writing” in our textbook will be utterly out of place in a business or technical report. This is nothing to LOL about.</p>
<p>It is when you make a blanket statement of that kind.ESPECIALLY if you’re a writing professor and answering a question posed by someone who’s native language is not English.By the way, my career is writing business and technical reports, among other communication pieces. And I stand by my advice that a clearly stated purpose, organization, clarity, sourcing and originality must be present in the kind of writing I do - and the kind of writing you teach. </p>
<p>@kashiko: you must have practiced writing very short essays for the TOEFL and the SAT/ACT, right? Plus you’ve already written college admission essays. So, you can write :).
You’ll have a few “reaction papers” or “response papers” like this.
The big “research paper” will be introduced through a course that you’ll have to take very seriously, especially re: sources, plagiarism, format of quotes and sources. If possible, take English for Academic Purpose before you take the “Academic writing” class.
Before you turn in ANY paper, show it to someone in the Writing Center - their job is to read over your paper and give you pointers as to what you should improve.
Go to office hours every week (or every other week) with examples of your work, questions you have about the assignements, etc, and ask questions. (prepare your questions ahead of time).</p>
<p>When you are choosing which college/university to attend, pay careful attention to the composition courses that are required for your degree program, and other ones that are offered at that institution. Even if you are not required to take any ESL courses by your college/university, you should speak with that department about their writing courses. Usually they offer specialized sections for international students who have concerns just like yours.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>Thanks for all the replies!!! I think I’m still weak at logic and organization (more precisely, I still not accommodate myself to western thinking ways…) so I should find some good examples, and yes I will definitely ask my university about the ESL courses. Thanks for suggestions! You’re all very kind people!</p>