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The process covers how students select presidents, plan schedules, and build focused inquiry using 15 structured questions spanning background, character, careers, achievements, philosophy, major crises, impact, relationships, and historical influence. The article also shows how students stay engaged through recitations that turn research into organized, persuasive writing.",{"@graph":69,"@context":122},[70,84,105],{"@type":71,"itemListElement":72},"BreadcrumbList",[73,77,79,82],{"item":74,"name":75,"@type":76,"position":8},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":78,"name":9,"@type":76,"position":14},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/",{"item":80,"name":20,"@type":76,"position":81},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/exam/",3,{"item":83,"name":65,"@type":76,"position":19},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/a-closer-look-at-meaningful-work-editors-interview-richard-luther-on-ap-us-history-research-papers/592395/",{"url":83,"name":65,"@type":85,"image":86,"author":91,"headline":65,"publisher":94,"fileFormat":97,"inLanguage":63,"description":67,"dateModified":98,"datePublished":99,"encodingFormat":97,"isAccessibleForFree":100,"interactionStatistic":101},"DigitalDocument",{"url":87,"@type":88,"width":89,"height":90},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/a-closer-look-at-meaningful-work-editors-interview-richard-luther-on-ap-us-history-research-papers/592395.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":92,"@type":93},"McGucket","Person",{"url":74,"name":95,"@type":96},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-11-05","2026-10-15",true,{"@type":102,"interactionType":103,"userInteractionCount":14},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":104},"ViewAction",{"@type":106,"mainEntity":107},"FAQPage",[108,114,118],{"name":109,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":111},"What is the core assignment in Richard Luther’s AP U.S. History course?","Question",{"text":112,"@type":113},"Each student writes one major research paper on an American president, typically 25–27 pages excluding the bibliography, as a yearlong project.","Answer",{"name":115,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":116},"How do students choose their president topic?",{"text":117,"@type":113},"After a March introduction to the course and goals, students attend a June meeting, compile lists of their top five presidents, and then are assigned at random from those lists without duplication across sections.",{"name":119,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":120},"What method helps students structure their research throughout the year?",{"text":121,"@type":113},"Luther provides 15 specific questions/topics to address about the president, breaking the work into manageable parts and creating a strategy for writing the research paper.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":83,"og:type":124,"og:title":65,"og:site_name":95,"og:description":67},"article",{"robots":126,"canonical":83},"index,follow",{"doc_id":128,"site_id":62},592395,1793136906,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":131},{"doc_id":128,"user_id":132,"nickname":92,"user_avatar":133,"doc_module":4,"category_id":19,"category_name":20,"doc_title":65,"doc_description":67,"doc_content":134,"file_id":135,"file_url":136,"file_type":137,"file_size":138,"view_count":14,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":8,"is_downloadable":8,"audit_status":8,"page_count":24,"language":139,"language_code":63,"site_id":62,"html_lang":63,"table_of_contents":140,"faqs":141,"seo_title":142,"seo_description":67,"update_tm":143,"read_time":144,"preview_page_count":4},1236954412713,"https://us-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_29158cc5080c5b710cf443261637dec0","A Closer Look at Meaningful Work  \nAs Will Fitzhugh makes clear in his article (which begins on page 32), educators tend to agree that writing history research papers is an important learning experience for students. It compels them to think deeply about a topic, conduct detailed research, formulate an argument, and organize their thoughts into a coherent and persuasive piece of writing.  \nOf course, none of this would be possible without the dedicated teachers who guide students through the months of work needed to research and write a serious paper. One such teacher is Richard Luther of Tenafly High School in Tenafly, New Jersey. A 40-year veteran teacher who is retiring this year, Luther (at right) always assigns his Advanced Placement (AP)  \nU.S. History students an extensive research paper and integrates their research into their coursework and preparation for theAP exam.  \nFor teachers interested in learning how they, too, can challenge students with such an assignment and better prepare them for college-level work, American Educator asked Luther to explain how he guides students through the research and writing process. And, to show both the fruits of Luther’s process and the high-quality writing in the Concord Review, we have reprinted roughly half of “Young Hickory: The Life and Presidency of James Knox Polk,” which Rachel Waltman wrote for Luther during the 2009–2010 school year and which appeared in the Spring 2011 issue of the Concord Review.  \n–EDITORS  \nEditors: You’ve spent the past 40 years guiding students through the difficult tasks of researching and writing a historical essay. No doubt you’ve honed your methods over time, and other teachers will benefit from learning about your process. Let’s start with your basic requirements.  \nRichard Luther: In AP U.S. History, each student writes one major research paper on an American president. The paper, which must be between 25 and 27 pages, excluding bibliography, is a yearlong project. I actually discuss the paper with students during their sophomore year before they begin the course junior year. Ata March meeting after school, I meet with all students interested in taking AP U.S. History. I explain the goals, expectations, and requirements for the course, includingthe research paper. I then tell the students that there is a June meeting where they will all receive their textbooks and course assignments. At this meeting, they will also  \nselect a president for their research paper. Between the March and June meetings, the students have to come up with a list of the top five presidents they would like to research. Several students do some quick reads concerning presidents before this meeting. By June, the master schedule for each section of AP U.S. History is complete, and I obtain student rosters from the guidance department so I know which students are in which section. At the June meeting, I select students at random from each list, and they announce their choices. Students in each section of AP U.S. History must pick a different president; we don’t duplicate. While a few students may be upset at first because they don’t get to research their top choice, by the end they would not have wanted to research another president.  \nEditors: Many students find writing an extensive research paper overwhelming at first. How do you help them structure their research?  \nRichard Luther: I give them the following 15 questions/topics to address about their president. This not only breaks the research project into manageable chunks, it also ensures that students will not overlook an important facet of the presidency and helps them spread the work over the year. And, this gives students a strategy for writing research papers that they can use throughout college.  \n1. Summary of family background and childhood. How does this influence him later as president?  \n2. Description of character and personality. Explain how these attributes help or hurt his presidency.  \n3. Nongovernment","cbCaisPoAPBk7ysZ","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaisPoAPBk7ysZ","pdf",370110,"English","# A Closer Look at Meaningful Work\n## AP U.S. History research paper requirements and timeline\n## The 15-question framework for studying a president\n## Using recitations to maintain focus","[{\"question\":\"What is the core assignment in Richard Luther’s AP U.S. History course?\",\"answer\":\"Each student writes one major research paper on an American president, typically 25–27 pages excluding the bibliography, as a yearlong project.\"},{\"question\":\"How do students choose their president topic?\",\"answer\":\"After a March introduction to the course and goals, students attend a June meeting, compile lists of their top five presidents, and then are assigned at random from those lists without duplication across sections.\"},{\"question\":\"What method helps students structure their research throughout the year?\",\"answer\":\"Luther provides 15 specific questions/topics to address about the president, breaking the work into manageable parts and creating a strategy for writing the research paper.\"}]","A Closer Look at Meaningful Work - Editors Interview Richard Luther on AP U.S. History Research Papers | PDF",1792074491,13]