My Research Process

When I conduct research, I usually start with too broad of a topic. I recently did a report on the effects of cyberbullying on students, and how we can help the students cope. When I started my research, I went to the library and entered Cyberbullying into the catalogue. Our library system has several libraries throughout the city. There were not any books on Cyberbullying at that library, but there were several at other libraries within the system. I put as many books on the topic on hold, and then went to the computer.

The internet has an overload of information, so I was expecting the vast amount of information available. First, I opened up Google Scholar, and typed in Cyberbullying. For several hours, I went through the articles until I found some that were interesting. At that point, I started cutting my topic down to one more specific. With all the information I found on the effects of cyberbullying, I chose to discuss the effects, and how to help students suffering from cyberbullying.

The next step I took was to go back to the library. The five books I reserved were in, and the library has several databases that I could go through for resources. Unfortunately, the databases did not have much on my topic. The most I could find there was definitions. I chose not to use those, and took the books home to go through them.

For the next few days, I went through the books, and took notes on anything I wanted to use. When I was in high school, my English teacher had us write quotes out on note cards, and their citing on the back, so we would have it available when we write the paper. I still use this old school method for researching from books. By the time I got through the books, I had two dozen note cards to use. I had quite a bit of information, but I needed more sources for the paper.

At this point, I was ready to go to the Ashford School Library. I typed in my revised topic, and got several scholarly resources I found several articles to work with, and decided I had enough information to work with. When I write a research paper, I usually create my reference page first. The reference page is the most important part because it is where I cite the work I used from other people. Finally, I write the paper.

My research process is a combination of modern and old school skills. I use it for every academic paper I have written so far, and it has always worked for me. I also feel it is important that all students should know these skills.  As a teacher and a future librarian, I plan on teaching the all of my students to use note cards and Google Scholar. Google Scholar is a great way to find reliable sources. The note cards are a great way to organize research material. This saves time when it comes to writing time.