In an earlier post, I gave an overview of the researching process and some tips for coaching students through it. Upon reflection, I thought I might share my favorite researching analogy. It's been extraordinarily helpful in my tutoring sessions! Even if you're not a tutor or teacher (maybe you're a student?), I hope this analogy helps you think through the researching process in a new way.
Sometimes I go in not knowing what I'm looking for, and I find the "perfect" thing without even trying. Most of the time, though, that's not the way it works for me. Shopping, especially if you care about your wallet like I do, takes work! Having a purpose Sometimes I go shopping with the goal of buying at least one new pair of jeans. Or, maybe I'm going to a special event, like a wedding. Having an objective for my shopping helps me narrow done my search, and (in the long run) helps me save time! I won't really look through the purses, shoes, or hats (for example) if I know those things don't help me with my objective. Research is like this, too. There is a lot of information out there, so if you can narrow down your topic and make a list of keywords that are going to be the most helpful, then you can mix and match those keywords to, hopefully, find what you're looking for without wasting your time or getting sucked into a rabbit hole of information that isn't going to be helpful for your project. Choose really good research questions (you know, questions you don't know the answer to) because this will keep your research be more authentic and engaging. Research is meant to be a process: a process of discovery and learning! Trying on possibilities Again, if you're like me, I don't buy the first pair of jeans I come across. I look at the prices and sizes and often pick out 3-5 I'm interested in and try them on. I usually only like one of those 3-5 (if I'm lucky). If I don't like what I tried on, I go back out and find some other options. I try on clothes until I find (literally!) the "perfect fit." It's good to be openminded because I've tried on things that would "work" with my objective, but I don't know how it will look on me, you know? I try it on anyway, and, sometimes, wow! It's comfortable, affordable, and looks great on me, and end up buying it. This, too, is like research. Even though you might be required to have three sources, you never want to grab the first thing you find. Maybe it will work out, but you don't know that. Shop around. "Try on" articles, books, videos, interviews, etc. Narrow down your search as much as possible, but then try them out. Read the summaries (abstracts), find the thesis or results section and see if you like it. You may end up reading things you don't use, and that's okay! Give yourself the freedom to be picky and find the best sources for you and your writing project. Once you've found the sources you want to "take home," or use in your paper, spend time with it. Read it. Read it again. Circle and look up words you don't know. Highlight the main ideas, etc. This will save you time when you finally get down to writing that first draft of your research paper. Knowing where to go
When I'm going shopping with an objective in mind, I usually have a few favorite stores. Of course, I'm open to going to the one that "just opened up" or the one I know is having a "big sale" this weekend. Most of the time, though, I go where I had success in the past or I know carries my size. I would never go to a store where I received bad customer service or overcharged me. Same in research. Most of the time we Google stuff. I wonder where the nearest bank is. Ask Google. Oh, no, my toaster broke and I need to know how to fix it. Ask Google. It's natural for students to start with Google, but I'm here to tell you that Google is NOT a good place to start for academic research. Why?
A lot of school library databases even have a trustworthy citation generators. Even if they don't, they always provide you with the information you need so you can confidently know where it came from and cite it accurately. As long as you're providing quotes and signal phrases, there's no need to be worried about plagiarism! Some advice for writing tutors When I'm tutoring students that are working on research, I always talk about time management. Research, when done well, takes time. The more sources you need, the more time you'll want to allot yourself. Oftentimes, students just want to "get started" on the essay. But without having done research, how do you know what you want to say? Even if it's argumentative and you think you know which side your want to take, you need to be informed. On both sides of the argument. Heck, when you do research, you might decide that you want to take the opposite side. (It happens! And it's okay.) Some students are (maybe) able to produce a possible thesis and introduction, but most need to be informed on their subject before doing that. I touched on this already, but it's worth mentioning again, I think: stress that research is a process. It's a journey! I'm positive a lot of writing coaches do this already, but alway be encouraging and help them see how this huge project can be taken in smaller bites. I love the researching process! It's one of my favorite aspects of being part of the academia community. If that's true for you, too, help students see your passion. It'll be contagious.
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