Jenaantonelli’s Weblog

Evaluating sources is about choosing the good sources from the bad. Initial appraisal aids in the process of analyzing sources. When looking at the author, the writer must question the authors credentials-whats his education, is this written in his expertise, has he published any thing else, his intentions for writing this, and so on.1 It is also important to look and evaluate other items such as the date of publication, edition, publisher and title. Important questions to consider are when it was published, is it current or out of date, is the publisher credible, is this edition recent or revised, and if it is a popular or scholarly journal.1 The next step is to analyze the content. This includes looking at the bibliography, intended audience, objective reasoning and writing style.2  Another important factor is looking at the reviews of this work.1

1. Michael Engle and Tony Cosgrave, “Critically Analyzing Information Sources,” Cornell University Library,  http://www.library.cornell.edu/olinuris/ref/research/skill26.htm (accessed February 11, 2010).

2. Online Library Learning Center, “Evaluating Sources,” University System of Georgia, http://www.usg.edu/galileo/skills/unit0 (accessed February 11, 2010).
Engle, Michael and Cosgrave, Tony. “Critically Analyzing Information Sources.” Cornell University Library. http://www.library.cornell.edu/olinuris/ref/research/skill26.htm (accessed February 11, 2010).

Online Library Learning Center. “Evaluating Sources.” University System of Georgia. http://www.usg.edu/galileo/skills/unit09/ (accessed February 11, 2010). 

 I think the most important thing about evaluating sources is the questioning. It is important to question and find the answers to exactly who is writing this piece of work and if its credible. Its easy to find sources but many of them are not credible. I learned about evaluating sources a couple years ago in my history class and we looked at credible and non credible sources and it is pretty interesting. So I already knew a bit about this.

To make life easier for myself, for all the articles we had to look up for this class, I always choose one affiliated with a university. That way, I dont have to evaluate as intensely as I would another source since universities are usually always credible. So for most of these, I used university websites. But for genres of writing in Blog #3 I used a website written by a Ph D in pyschology at a Canadian University. That  in itself seems credible, but I still did research on this dude. I actually found his CV and it seems he attended good schools and has changed schools a lot for teaching and changed a lot of positions. That could mean hes well rounded and has experience. He also has a lot of professional affiliations and awards. Hes written over several books and scholarly articles, online publications  and  magazine articles. Overall he seems pretty succesful. The only thing I didnt like about his online source was the fact that he had no bibliography. This could be because this is comming from his own personal experience as a teacher, but I know bibliographies are important. Still, I would say this is a credible source to use.

I will be using Chicago style.

         Researchers must put information forth, and in doing so they must tell where that information comes from. This is called citation. Reasons for citation are giving credit, allow accuracy of facts, help readers connect with other research in the field and to help followup on the extended research.1 There are certain times when information should be cited. These are when the writer quotes the exact words, when ideas are paraphrased and when any idea or data is used when consulting the source.1  There are many ways to cite the information and different styles use different information. In Chicago, there are numerous amounts of sources the reader can consult. So what does a writer typically look for? Well here are a few items: who wrote, edited, or translated the text, what data identified the text (including the title, volume, edition, page numbers and URL), who published the text and when and where. 1    In addition, there are specific details like spaces, periods, commas and parenthesis to be used properly. For chicago, the two styles that can be used are notes-bibliography style and parenthetical citations. Notes-bibliography is when a superscript is placed after the information cited in the footnotes (at the bottom of the page) and endnotes (at the end of the paper).1  Reference style, instead of the superscript, cites the information with the authors name, date, and page numbers at the end in parenthesis and at the end of the paper in a reference list. 1  Thing to keep in mind are using the most recent source, writing down relevant information like page numbers and a bibliography rough draft.1

1.Kate Turbain, A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Thesis, and Dissertations, 7th ed.(Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2007), 133-137.

Two styles that are used in Chicago correspond to different paths. The Notes-Bibliography system is geared toward literature, history and the arts while Author date system is for the sciences.2 Citing through either style helps prevent plagiarism. Notes Bibliography uses footnotes, endnotes and superscript numbers in which bibliographies are arranged in alphabetical order.2 Important elements of citation are properly formatting the authors names, editions, volumes, publication information and punctuation.2 It is important to not only know the source a writer is citing but also to identify and cite it properly as there are numerous variations such as books, books with more than one author, editions, editors, periodicals, web sources, podcasts, film and television sources, interviews, lectures and presentations.2

2. Karen Schiller, Steve Gooch and Allen Brizee, “Chicago Manual Style,” Purdue University Online Writing Lab, http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/717/01/ (accessed February 8, 2010).

Karen Schiller, Steve Gooch and Allen Brizee. “Chicago Manual Style.” Purdue Universtiy Online Writing Lab. http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/717/01/ (accessed February 8, 2010).

Turbain, Kate. A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2007.

I think the most important information out of both articles is exactly how to cite the information. Its complex and not something to remember. So its good to have a source laying by to tell you how to to cite it. Things like, when to cite and how to prepare for citing are things I feel like I already know. But Ill always need to refer to my manual when I actually do have to cite something. The only thing I went back and changed was blog entry 3. I used MLA because Im so used to it, but I changed it to Chicago because thats what i will be using. Im not really confused about anything, but annoyed with citation. I know its necessary but its so time consuming and it takes me so much longer when I have to cite. Its annoying.

This summary is from the writing lab website @ Purdue university:

Research writing includes the process of research, analyzing, evaluation of sources, and thinking critically. It also includes evidence both from second hand and first hand. The goal of the paper is to learn more about the subject both for the writer and the audience. It is not a regurgitation of information, but an investigation to meet a unique perspective. This can be accomplished either through argumentative or analytical research. In an argumentative paper, the writer is clear on the stance he/she takes and provides evidence to support and also tries to persuade. On the other hand, analytical research writing begins by asking a question in which, through out the paper, the writer takes a stance based on his/her research. 

Baker, Jack Raymond and Brizee, Allen. “Genre and the Research Paper.” OWL Purdue Online Writing Lab. http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/658/02/ (accessed January 8, 2010).

This is a summary on research proposal:

Proposals to research are just as important and can make or break the paper. The goal of the paper is to provide substanstial work ethnic and ability based on the researched evidence. They should also be able to answer the question of what, why, how. According to Wong, This paper focuses on proposal writing rather than on the development of research ideas (Research Proposal).  Also, it should include a title, an abstract (summary), introduction, literature review, methods, results, and discussion. 

Wong, Paul T.P. “How to Write a Research Proposal.” Trinity Western University. http://www.meaning.ca/archives/archive/art_how_to_write_P_Wong.htm (accessed January 8, 2010).

Im in the process of pulling my ideas together. I would like to combine Native Americans, plants, and animals. The relationship between them. Maybe a concise history and the relationship they have now and how that affects them.

The following excerpt is my summerization from a book found online entitled, “10 Steps in Writing the Research Paper” by Roberta Markman 6th edition:

Through investigation of information and facts, the method of research begins. A thesis is stated with actual facts, found by the researcher, to back it up. The thesis outlines the mood and theme of the paper. Researchers will find a topic, find evidence of that topic, and thus express all of this through the research paper. Information can be gathered by either second hand (through others’ work) or through the researcher’s own personal observation. Through research and research writing, the writer becomes familiar with the disciplines of writing: analyzation, observation, creativity, evaluation. The research paper is a valuable piece of work that establishes the hard work and mental power of the writer.

In my own words, I would have to say that research writing is the process of putting investigation and evidence into words on a paper. While creative writing is limitless and comes solely from the persons own personal thoughts, research writing incorporates peices of evidence, found by others or the writer herself/himself. Through research writing, creativity can be explored by under the rules of evidence and citation. They can incorporate creativity and academic research at the same time. Maybe this is why it is so highly held in academics. It seems though, our creativity in research writing is often shut out because students are forced to write a for a topic not chosen by them. Thank God we can choose our topics in this class. I would define a research writer as some one who does just this. But it doesnt have to be as formal. As we discussed in class, texting and looking up movie times can be a form of research writing. Research questions are developped through the writers mind, or it is given. As i just mentioned, research papers students write are often the product of teacher’s choice. However, I have had a few other classes which allow me to choose my own topic.

I would describe my research philosophy as still learning. But here is what I think so far. I think too many students are used to such defineing limits and borders, so much so that when creativity is presented, they are unsure and ask repeatedly, “well what can i do” and sometimes are lost and cannot think. I rememeber comming into Marlen’s 101 freshman year, and when he said the sky was the limit, my brain went blank. Im sure it still happens in 202. The freedom we have to write in this class is a great opportunity to explore our own minds and have a peek into others. I value this a lot. So my research philosophy would be creativity combined with effective research and correct citation. My purpose is to open the mind and try to overcome all the trial and errors, and find the successes. If the mind is never opened, one cannot see the bad of course, but the good is neither visible. Its all about balance. But we have to explore ourselves and others.

 I chose this to represent research writing because I said creativity and intellectual research combined. In this image, he has one half of him with eyes closes and imagination running wild. In the other half, he has his eyes open to observation. This combines what I believe to be research writing.