Grade by Grade
D. Topics in Computer Science · Topics in Computer Science: Sustainability, Emerging Research and Careers

Researching and Reporting on a Computer Science Topic

D2.3 D2.1 D2.2About 75 minutes
Learning goals
  • I can narrow a broad computer science area into a focused research question.
  • I can find, evaluate (CRAAP test) and cite reliable sources.
  • I can choose a suitable format (website, presentation or video) and plan and structure my report.
  • I can produce and present a clear, accurate report on an area of computer science research.

Words to know

research question
A focused question your report will answer, narrow enough to cover well.
primary / secondary source
A primary source is original (a research paper, data, an interview with a researcher); a secondary source reports on others' work (a news article, an encyclopedia).
CRAAP test
A checklist for evaluating sources: Currency, Relevance, Authority, Accuracy, Purpose.
citation
A short note in your work showing where an idea or fact came from, matched to a full entry in a reference list.
plagiarism
Presenting someone else's words or ideas as your own without credit.
storyboard
A sketch of each scene or slide in order, with notes, used to plan a video or presentation.

Your turn to be the expert

In the last six lessons you toured cryptography and security, AI and data mining, robotics and computer vision, parallel and distributed computing, GIS and HCI, and interdisciplinary research. The curriculum asks you to choose one area and report on it using an appropriate format, such as a website, presentation software or a video. This lesson walks through how to do that well. Plan to spend several days on the project after this lesson.

Step 1: From a topic to a question

A topic like "AI" is far too big. A good research question is focused, interesting, and answerable with the sources you can find. Narrow it in stages:

  1. Area: artificial intelligence.
  2. Sub-area: computer vision.
  3. Application: detecting wildfires.
  4. Question: How is computer vision used to detect wildfires early, how well does it work, and what are its limits?
Worked example

Example 1: Narrowing a topic

Narrow "cryptography" into a focused research question.

  1. Area: cryptography.
  2. Sub-area: public-key cryptography.
  3. Issue: future quantum computers could break today's public-key methods.
  4. Question: What is post-quantum cryptography, why is it needed, and how are organizations preparing to switch to it?
  5. Check: Is it answerable? Yes: standards bodies, universities and security agencies publish explanations. Is it narrow enough for a 5-minute video? Yes.

What is post-quantum cryptography, why is it needed, and how are organizations preparing to switch to it?

Step 2: Find and evaluate sources

Good places to look for computer science research:

  • Universities and research institutes (news pages often explain research in plain language).
  • Government and standards bodies (for example national science agencies and standards organizations).
  • Reputable science news and magazines.
  • Encyclopedias for background, then follow their references to better sources.

Use at least one primary source if you can (a researcher's own page, a report, an interview) and several secondary sources. Check every source with the CRAAP test. Be especially careful with sources that are trying to sell a product.

CCurrencyIs it recentenough?RRelevanceDoes it answermy question?AAuthorityWho wrote it? Arethey an expert?AAccuracyIs it supportedby evidence?PPurposeInform, sell,persuade?
The CRAAP test: five questions to ask about every source before you trust it.

Step 3: Take notes and cite

  • Write notes in your own words, with the source beside each note.
  • Put exact quotations in quotation marks.
  • Keep a reference list as you go. Your teacher will tell you which style to use; APA is common in science and technology. An APA-style reference for a report looks like this:

International Energy Agency. (2025). Energy and AI. https://www.iea.org/reports/energy-and-ai

  • If you use an AI tool, follow your teacher's rules: say how you used it, check every fact it gives against a reliable source, and never present its writing as your own. Copying words or ideas without credit is plagiarism.

Step 4: Choose a format and structure

A strong research report, in any format, usually covers:

  1. Hook and question: why should the audience care?
  2. Background: the key ideas, explained simply, with one clear example or demonstration (a short Python demo is great).
  3. Current research: what researchers are working on now, and who (include Canadian researchers or organizations where you can).
  4. Impact: benefits, risks and ethical issues.
  5. Future: what might change in the next 10 years.
  6. References.
FormatStrengthsWatch out for
WebsiteLinks, images, can be read at the reader's paceLong walls of text; accessibility (alt text, headings, contrast)
Presentation (slides)Clear structure; easy to present liveToo many words per slide; reading slides aloud
VideoEngaging; can show demos and interviewsTakes the longest; needs a script and captions
Choosing a format.

For a video, write the script first and check its length. People usually speak about 150 words a minute, so a 3-minute video needs about 450 words.

script = """Wildfires burn millions of hectares in Canada in a bad year.
Cameras and satellites can now spot smoke early.
Computer vision models learn what smoke looks like from labelled images.
But fog, dust and clouds can fool them, so people still check every alert."""
words = len(script.split())
seconds = words / 150 * 60 # about 150 spoken words per minute
print("Words:", words)
print("Speaking time:", round(seconds), "seconds")

Planning a video: a narration script's length predicts its running time. Output (one line each): Words: 44 / Speaking time: 18 seconds

day 0day 2day 4day 6day 8day 10day 12Choose topic and questionFind and evaluate sourcesTake notes, build outlineMake the productTest with a viewer, revisePresent and submitOverlapping bars: you can start looking for sources before the question is final.
A sample 12-day plan for a research report, drawn as a Gantt chart (the same tool you use for software projects in the unit Software Development).
Just for fun

Why did the research report break up with the random website?

It said, "I need someone with references."

Hands-on activity

Research report project

You need: a computer with internet access, and presentation, website or video software (free browser-based tools are fine).

  1. Choose one research area from Lessons 6 to 11 (or another your teacher approves) and write a focused research question.
  2. Find at least five sources, including at least one primary source. Fill in a CRAAP table for each.
  3. Make a 12-day (or shorter) Gantt chart like the one above.
  4. Build your report as a website, slide presentation or video (3 to 5 minutes), using the six-part structure. Include at least one diagram you made yourself and, if you can, a short working Python demo.
  5. Show it to a family member. Ask: what was clearest? what was confusing? Revise.
  6. Submit with a complete reference list.

What to look for (success criteria): a focused question that is clearly answered; accurate explanations; current research described with sources; benefits and risks discussed; a clear, accessible format (headings, captions, readable text); correct citations.

Your turn

1

Why is "Robots" a poor research question? Rewrite it as a good one.

2

What does each letter of the CRAAP test stand for?

3

Give an example of a primary source and a secondary source on AI research.

4

A script has 600 words. About how long will the video be?

5

Name the three formats the curriculum gives as examples for a research report.

6

What should you do before using a fact that an AI chatbot gave you?

More practice: warm-up

1

What is plagiarism?

2

What goes at the end of every research report?

3

What is a storyboard?

4

Why are captions important in a video?

5

Name one good place to find explanations of computer science research.

More practice: on your own

1

Apply the CRAAP test to a company blog post titled "Why our AI camera is the best wildfire detector". What concerns do you have?

2

Narrow "parallel computing" into a research question.

3

In the video-script program, how many words would you need for a 3-minute video, and how would you change the code to print minutes instead of seconds?

4

Write a strong opening hook for a report on bioinformatics.

5

Why is it a good idea to include a short working demo in a computer science report?

Challenge

1

Write a Python program that stores a reference list as a list of strings and prints it in alphabetical order, numbered from 1. Show the output for three references starting with "Smith", "Ahmed" and "Nguyen".

2

Two sources disagree: one says a wildfire camera system detects 95% of fires, the other says 60%. Describe how you would handle this in your report.

3

Design a 6-slide presentation outline for the question "What is post-quantum cryptography and why is it needed?" Give a title and one key point per slide.

Check your understanding

Quiz

1.

Which is the best research question?

2.

In the CRAAP test, "Authority" asks:

3.

About how many words should a 2-minute video script have?

4.

Which is a primary source?

5.

Which practice avoids plagiarism?

6.

A Gantt chart in a research project shows:

For parents and teachers

Big idea: Expectation D2.3 asks students to report on an area of computer science research using an appropriate format (website, presentation software or video). This lesson pulls together D2.1 and D2.2 and teaches the research process.

How to help: Be the test audience. Ask your teen to explain their research question in one sentence before they start. During the project, check that each fact has a source and that the plan (Gantt chart) is realistic. If they use AI tools, make sure they follow the teacher's rules and check facts.

Common difficulties:

  • Topics that are too broad.
  • Copying wording from sources; insist on notes in their own words.
  • Leaving references to the end; keep them as you go.
  • Slides or web pages with too much text.