Create research assignments with clear goals. The goal of the assignment should clearly relate to the course content. For example, in a criminal law course, asking the students to evaluate the use of capital punishment over time is clearly related to the course content. Asking the students to evaluate philosophical approaches to justice, which you may think is clearly related, may not be as clear to your students. Where necessary, explain the relationship of the assignment to the course content.
Create multiple research assignments requiring students to get to the point. Charles Cohen at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, for example, proposes the 50-word assignment. Rather than using one large research assignment, Cohen adopts multiple shorter assignments of 50 words or less. This approach allows for students to develop their research skills with feedback on each of the multiple assignments.
Provide clear guidelines for the research assignment, both orally and in writing. Effective practice is to put a "Do" and a "Do Not" section in the handout for the research assignment and to orally draw students' attention to those sections. A "Do" section might state "Research more than one point of view." A "Do Not" section might state "Rely upon nonacademic (not peer-reviewed) sources." Devote class time to explain these guidelines and to allow for questions.
Break larger research assignments into their component parts. For example, have the students hand in an outline containing a thesis statement and list of research sources. Another approach is to require an annotated bibliography of research sources. Some instructors even allow for the submission of a first draft. However you break up the assignment, teaching your students effective research skills means providing them with concrete feedback at each step. For example, if a student lists all media sources in an annotated bibliography, use the opportunity to explain the significance of peer-reviewed sources in research.