Academic Research (Blog Post 3) (Groups 1 & 3)
You are now entering your 5th week of college, and in this class, at least, you have been knee/hip deep in research. You have learned the proper way to conduct research on the library’s website, how to determine the credibility of a source, and how to cite in APA format (for many of you this is new). Now you have read a chapter in An Insider’s Guide to Academic Writing that addresses the topic of research as well. Discuss, in this blog post, how you see yourself using the knowledge you’ve obtained thus far throughout your academic career here at Longwood. What type of research do you see yourself involved in? What do you feel you are still lacking when it comes to research? Do you feel more comfortable using your research to back up your own ideas? Are you confident in choosing and identifying primary and secondary sources? Are you confident in your ability to paraphrase sources without plagiarizing?
Clearly you do not have to answer all of these questions, but these are just some ideas to get you thinking about the possibilities of research that you might want to conduct while you are here at Longwood. Again, 300-500 words for the post.
In my fifth week here, I’ve already foreseen the benefits of research. Especially being that I am a psychology major, which leads to lots of research, that I know will benefit me in the long run. Psychology is constantly changing, so I have to make sure my sources are as up to date as possible, relevant, and reliable. Finding the correct information and citing it properly has definitely been something I’ve enjoyed building.
The type of research that interests me the most would have to be behavior studies. I have always been fascinated by how people think, react, and respond in their environments or controlled environments. Research like this often means finding studies directly based on behavior, in my case at least. Working on this assignment has definitely helped me grasp the idea of those needed skills.
Though I have learned a lot more, I know I still struggle in some areas. I think my biggest issue at the moment is probably fully comprehending the whole idea in my sources, while still meshing it all together. Depending on the introduction or abstract, there can be a lot of ideas to try to piece together as one. So at times I do have to put in more time to digest it, to really get to the main point I want to convey. This is something I want to improve on.
However, I do feel more comfortable using research to backup my own ideas. Learning how the evidence can make my points better, though I am still working it out. Identifying primary and secondary sources ca still be a little tricky for me, but it really just depends on the situation.
I probably feel most confident in paraphrasing. Putting the information into my own words and not taking credit is pretty good for me. I think this part is good because it definitely shows my understanding of what I am reading. As a whole, I think I am progressing way more from the beginning, but I know there is definitely room for improvement.