16 October 2026, 11:38 AM
A research paper presents an original question, reviews what is already known, and answers the question using evidence gathered by a stated method.
Broken down, it looks like this:
The introduction works best when it starts from a real question rather than a broad topic. Social media and teenagers is a topic. How daily time on short video apps relates to sleep among high school students is a question, and it tells you what sources to look for and when you are finished.
The literature section is where many students summarise one source per paragraph. Markers usually want synthesis instead: grouping studies by what they found, where they agree, where they disagree, and what nobody has looked at yet. That last part sets up why your question is worth asking.
Methods should explain how you gathered and analysed evidence clearly enough that someone else could repeat it. For a survey or lab project that means sample size, materials and procedure. For a library based paper it can mean which databases and keywords you used and how you chose what to include.
Results report what you found and stop there. Discussion is where you explain what the findings mean, whether they answer the question, how they compare with earlier studies and where the limits are. When interpretation slips into the results, or new data appears in the discussion, the paper becomes harder to follow and easier to mark down.
On sourcing, keep a running reference list from day one and confirm every study exists and says what you think it says before citing it.
The takeaway:
Broken down, it looks like this:
- Introduction - The question and why it matters
- Literature - What is already known
- Methods - How evidence was gathered
- Results - What you found, no opinions
- Discussion - What it means and does not
The introduction works best when it starts from a real question rather than a broad topic. Social media and teenagers is a topic. How daily time on short video apps relates to sleep among high school students is a question, and it tells you what sources to look for and when you are finished.
The literature section is where many students summarise one source per paragraph. Markers usually want synthesis instead: grouping studies by what they found, where they agree, where they disagree, and what nobody has looked at yet. That last part sets up why your question is worth asking.
Methods should explain how you gathered and analysed evidence clearly enough that someone else could repeat it. For a survey or lab project that means sample size, materials and procedure. For a library based paper it can mean which databases and keywords you used and how you chose what to include.
Results report what you found and stop there. Discussion is where you explain what the findings mean, whether they answer the question, how they compare with earlier studies and where the limits are. When interpretation slips into the results, or new data appears in the discussion, the paper becomes harder to follow and easier to mark down.
On sourcing, keep a running reference list from day one and confirm every study exists and says what you think it says before citing it.
The takeaway:
- Keep results and discussion apart. That is where marks go missing.
- CollegeEssay.org explains research paper structure and sourcing in more detail if anyone wants the longer version.
- Has anyone here been through this recently? Curious what actually made the difference.