Research Methodology Quiz

Grade 9 · English · Quiz

Test your knowledge of research processes, source evaluation, citation practices, and academic integrity.

Questions

1. Which of the following is the best example of a focused, arguable research question?

   1. What is social media?
   2. Is social media good or bad?
   3. How has Instagram's algorithm change in 2022 affected engagement rates for small business accounts?
   4. Social media has both advantages and disadvantages.
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   Answer: How has Instagram's algorithm change in 2022 affected engagement rates for small business accounts?

   A strong research question is specific, focused, and arguable. The third option names a specific platform, a specific change, a specific year, and a specific population.

2. A Wikipedia article about the French Revolution would be considered which type of source?

   1. A primary source because it contains links to original documents
   2. A peer-reviewed secondary source
   3. A secondary source that requires verification and citation of its own sources
   4. A government source
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   Answer: A secondary source that requires verification and citation of its own sources

   Wikipedia is a user-edited secondary source. It can be a useful starting point but should not be cited directly; instead, verify and cite its own primary/secondary sources.

3. When summarizing a source, you do not need to include a citation because you are only providing a brief overview.

   Show answer

   Answer: False

   Any use of another person's ideas—whether quoted, paraphrased, or summarized—requires a citation. Summaries are not exempt from this academic requirement.

4. In MLA format, where does the citation for a quoted or paraphrased source typically appear?

   1. Only in a footnote at the bottom of the page
   2. Only in the bibliography at the end of the paper
   3. In parentheses immediately following the quoted or paraphrased text AND in the Works Cited page
   4. In a header at the top of the page
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   Answer: In parentheses immediately following the quoted or paraphrased text AND in the Works Cited page

   MLA uses parenthetical in-text citations (author, page) immediately after borrowed material AND a full Works Cited page at the end of the paper. Both are required.

5. A website selling weight-loss supplements cites a study proving their product works. Which CRAAP criterion should you most carefully examine?

   1. Currency
   2. Relevance
   3. Purpose
   4. Authority
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   Answer: Purpose

   Purpose is the critical question here—the site's commercial motive (selling supplements) creates a strong bias that may compromise the reliability of the cited study.

6. Which of the following is a PRIMARY source for a paper on the Civil Rights Movement?

   1. A textbook chapter on the Civil Rights Movement
   2. A documentary film about Martin Luther King Jr.
   3. The original text of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
   4. A historian's analysis of the Birmingham Campaign
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   Answer: The original text of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

   The original legal text of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is a primary source—it is the firsthand document itself. Textbooks, documentaries, and analyses are secondary sources.

7. In academic writing, using another writer's exact words without quotation marks and without a citation is the most direct form of ______.

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   Answer: plagiarism

   Copying someone else's exact words without quotation marks or attribution is textual plagiarism—the clearest and most serious form of academic dishonesty.

8. Which strategy best helps avoid accidental plagiarism when taking research notes?

   1. Copy-pasting passages directly into notes and deleting the source URL
   2. Recording source information alongside each note and clearly marking direct quotes vs. your own words
   3. Waiting until you write the paper to look up source details
   4. Only using sources you can access for free online
   Show answer

   Answer: Recording source information alongside each note and clearly marking direct quotes vs. your own words

   Careful note-taking that records source details immediately and distinguishes your words from the original is the most reliable safeguard against accidental plagiarism.

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