French Colonial Legacies: Developing Your Research Topic

• Start with a topic that interests you.
• Get Background Information
• Notes keywords, names, places, organizations
• Develop you research question
• Is your research question too broad or narrow ( some prelimary searching/reading will help you determine this)
• Develop a thesis statement

For example,

Topic keywords: French Alergerian war

Your Research Question/Interest might be: What is the lasting impact of the French Algerian War in contemporary France and Algeria?

Thesis Statement:

In 2012, both France and Algeria celebrated the ceasefire ending the French Algerian War. Today,  traces of the war remain in both countries with unresolved problems such as discrimination and mistrust.