Information Literacy ~ Level 1-3
Information Synthesis ~ Level 1
In the Honors First Year Experience class, we explored what it meant to be an ethical researcher throughout the entire process of identifying a question, finding accurate sources of data, and accurately reporting our findings. Through discussions where citing the course material was expected and a final synthesis essay regarding research, my literacy regarding information expanded.
This class allowed me to expand upon my use of concept maps to organize my ideas and identify connections between information or sources (Literacy & Synthesis Level 1). This strategy allowed me to fully visualize information that would support my work as well as what may not be as important. From the concept map I was able to focus my research into secondary sources available through online journals and databases as well as printed books with key terms and goals of the information I wanted to explore.
In the essay below, I synthesized discussions from classmates and class readings to identify why research is important and what it is. For this particular assignment, the question was "What is research to you?" and using the aforementioned sources I was able to take ideas from the readings and insights from classmates to make research a personal concept (Literacy Level 3) that can benefit my career as a teacher where I have the professional responsibility to be a life-long learner. Research is a process of collecting data from multiple resources, asking how it relates to the world around us, drawing connections, and drawing conclusions.
Lastly, this class aided me in exploring what ethical research looks like. Ethical research is not simply citing the sources used in a project, but also reporting all findings and not only the information that supports a hypothesis or fits with a preconceived conclusion of logic. Ethical research is imperative to keep developments moving forward and not exploring the same question multiple times because the original researcher did not like the results from their search. In the essay, I discussed the importance of critical thinking skills when analyzing sources as well as the responsibility of the researcher to accurately represent the data they collect to keep developments moving in the forward direction(Literacy Level 2).
FYEX Research Essay
Information Synthesis ~ Level 1
In the Honors First Year Experience class, we explored what it meant to be an ethical researcher throughout the entire process of identifying a question, finding accurate sources of data, and accurately reporting our findings. Through discussions where citing the course material was expected and a final synthesis essay regarding research, my literacy regarding information expanded.
This class allowed me to expand upon my use of concept maps to organize my ideas and identify connections between information or sources (Literacy & Synthesis Level 1). This strategy allowed me to fully visualize information that would support my work as well as what may not be as important. From the concept map I was able to focus my research into secondary sources available through online journals and databases as well as printed books with key terms and goals of the information I wanted to explore.
In the essay below, I synthesized discussions from classmates and class readings to identify why research is important and what it is. For this particular assignment, the question was "What is research to you?" and using the aforementioned sources I was able to take ideas from the readings and insights from classmates to make research a personal concept (Literacy Level 3) that can benefit my career as a teacher where I have the professional responsibility to be a life-long learner. Research is a process of collecting data from multiple resources, asking how it relates to the world around us, drawing connections, and drawing conclusions.
Lastly, this class aided me in exploring what ethical research looks like. Ethical research is not simply citing the sources used in a project, but also reporting all findings and not only the information that supports a hypothesis or fits with a preconceived conclusion of logic. Ethical research is imperative to keep developments moving forward and not exploring the same question multiple times because the original researcher did not like the results from their search. In the essay, I discussed the importance of critical thinking skills when analyzing sources as well as the responsibility of the researcher to accurately represent the data they collect to keep developments moving in the forward direction(Literacy Level 2).
FYEX Research Essay