Project 5: Research Poster

Effective communication involves much more than only writing, and researchers often share their work with other researchers and communities using other forms of media. One common method for presenting research is the Research Poster, which provides an overview of a research study.

For your project, you will work together with you group to develop a poster on the topic/issue you researched during the semester. Your poster should include the various perspectives and opinions that people have on the issue, as well as important or interesting findings from your individual Primary Research Reports. Your poster might even call the audience to some kind of action.

These posters are often presented at “Poster Sessions,” during which researchers display their posters to a wider audience. For our class Poster Session, you will display your posters during the scheduled final exam. We will invite guests from NC State—other teachers, IEP instructors, friends, etc.—and you will stand beside your posters and discuss your findings with our guests.

Project Rubric | Sample Project

Audience

Your audience for this poster will be other students, instructors, teachers, and guests. They may be somewhat familiar with the topic/issue, but likely not as much as you will be having completed your semester’s research.

Method of Delivery

You can design the poster creatively, although you should follow the general format for academic Research Posters that we discuss and analyze in class. Generally, posters include:

  • Context: Overview of background information, secondary sources, and other important context to help the audience understand the topic/issue and the research you present.
  • Key Research Question(s) and Findings: Highlights from your research survey results, including interpretation of the results. Graphs are the preferred visuals, not tables.
  • Discussion/Analysis: Suggestions for implications, solutions, or future steps—based on your secondary and primary research—that others could take regarding the issue/topic.
  • References: Include References page for all the sources you cite. You might consider using footnotes instead of in-text APA citations.

Additional Information

  • Cite at least FOUR peer-reviewed articles (ideally from your group’s Annotated Bibliography).
  • This project is worth 15% of the final course grade.
Targeted Course Objectives
  • develop an understanding of texts as arguments generated for particular purposes, audiences, and rhetorical contexts
  • learn to develop original arguments for a range of academic purposes
  • practice critically evaluating your own and others’ work and collaborating effectively with other writers throughout the writing process
  • practice and refine technical skills in areas such as grammar, mechanics, and source documentation