IFRS Standards – A Strategic Initiative

Requirements for the Research Paper and the
Critiques
The Syllabus (in the Course Information folder) refers to a Research Paper. One research
paper and two critiques will be written by students individually.
The Research Paper:
A research paper should be constructed in Word. The paper should be 10-15 (doublespaced) pages long, excluding pages associated with title pages or
bibliography. In
other words the body of the paper should be 10-15 pages (1 inch margins – 12 pt. font –
Times New Roman or Arial). The paper should be documented using an APA (in-text
parenthethetical) documentation style. A paperback reference for APA would be nice to
have, although there are online sources of information about APA. I was put in a
strange situation recently when a student told me that (although the documentation
seemed to be flawed) their source came from a handout from a past class (which one?)
or some particular online source (where?). So, let me say that the best source of
information for documentation guidelines is:
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 5th edition, ISBN# 1-55798-791-2
OR – For FREE (!!) at:
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/
Please use one of the two resources above for additional information about the APA
Documentation style.
Additional guidelines about writing style, documentation, and guarding against plagiarism:
1. The first paper grade is based on length, number of sources, etc., and the second research
paper grade will focus more on content. Therefore, for grading purposes, more scrutiny will
come to documentation when the final research paper is submitted.
2. If large blocks of text are simply copied and intentionally included without appropriate
credit, then this would represent academic dishonesty if submitted in the final draft of the
paper.
3. If appropriate credit is not given for outside sources, then the resulting problem would either
be something minor or something major. If major, such as blocks, paragraphs or even pages
of text with missing citations, plagiarism can occur. On page 10 of the Graduate Catalog,
academic integrity is addressed, providing responsibilities for both students and faculty:
•It indicates that plagiarism is “Intentionally or knowingly presenting the work of
another as one’s own (i.e., without proper acknowledgment of the source). The sole
exception to the requirement of acknowledging sources is when the ideas, information,
etc., are common knowledge.”
•Students are ultimately responsible for understanding faculty members’ instructions for
assignments. If instructions are not clear, students must seek clarification from
professors.
•Students must understand the definitions of cheating, plagiarism, and other forms of
academic dishonesty.
•Students should familiarize themselves with the proper use of citations and quotations
in order to avoid submitting other people’s work as their own.
4. Although outside sources are required, sources should be mixed, and both the basic writing
and the mix of writing and sources for the final document should be unique to the individual
writing the paper. If the words of the author are used directly, then quotes should be used to
give credit, with a parenthetical citation. Avoid copying large blocks of text (more than a
sentence or two) verbatim. If necessary, (long) quotes over 40 words should be indented, but
used sparingly (no more than several times). Instead, borrow concepts or short quotes and
discuss these concepts in your own words to make them your own by paraphrasing. In short,
most (80% or more?) of your paper should be your own words and different from what others
have written verbatim. If the words of the author are paraphrased or even if an idea is
borrowed from them, then quotes are not necessary, but parenthetical credit should be given
to the author, in accordance with APA requirements.
The research paper should be attached to an email and sent to those responsible for
composing a critique of the research paper. The research paper should also be submitted
as an assignment (see Assignments, the Course Schedule for the due date, and the
Calendar for the due date as well). After the critiques are completed, send them to the
instructor and also sent to the individual who wrote the research paper. The author of
the research paper may make modifications to the research paper before it is submitted
in it’s final form to the instructor.
Research Paper Topic:
IFRS Standards – A Strategic Initiative.
Include in your discussion some or all of the following (in addition to other
subtopics you might include):
1. Reasons for the creation and emergence of IFRS standards within the
context of previous successes and failures of standard setting