COMPETENCY L

“IN TENEBRIS LUX (In darkness light).”

L.
Understand the nature of research, research methods and research findings; retrieve, evaluate and synthesize scholarly and professional literature for informed decision-making by specific client groups.

      Library 285, Research Methods, introduced me to the fundamental principles of research. Librarians have an important role to play in every library. Keeping current on new information and technologies can prove challenging. A librarian has to be capable to searching and synthesizing information. There is an array of scholarly information present in the information world and most information needs to be evaluated for relevance and accuracy. Having the skills to create a research proposal on an unknown topic or an overly researched topic is important in helping a librarian improve library services and programs. Without research, it would be hard for the library field to continue to change and grow.
       Two types of sources can be used when doing research: primary and secondary. You hear primary sources often in English and History classes, when referring to a source of information. Primary sources represent first hand information created by the source you receive the information from, such as letters, journal entries of books. Secondary sources are articles and books that are based on the information and research from primary sources. Information professionals use both sources when doing research. There is value in both types of sources and when used together they can help support one another.
       Visiting the library and searching through books is a great way to create a foundation for a research paper or proposal. Facts can be taken from a primary source and elaborated on through research of secondary sources. Once the researcher has a question in mind secondary and primary sources can help answer the most difficult of questions.
      In Library 285 I had to create a research proposal with a group (Library 285 Proposal). My group and I chose to focus on webpage curriculum in High Schools. The proposal was created in multiple parts. A collection of journal articles related to our topic was found using numerous search strategies and materials. Once the articles were found we created a list of important criteria that we wanted to cover in the actual paper. Using this criteria we created a literature review using the articles that most accurately met our criteria. The literature review was included in the final proposal to give the reader an overview of the information that was available.
       The second part of the proposal included a background on the high school and how the curriculum was being presented to the students and the teachers. A purpose and rationale explained why the paper was being written. We felt that technology needed to be utilized in libraries in conjunction with the classroom. The method explained information on the participants as well as how the data would be collected. The overall proposal combined all of these areas to create a basis for a large research paper.


References

Library of Congress (2006). On These Walls. Retrieved July 20, 2011 from http://www.loc.gov/loc/walls/

Evidence: Libr 285: Research Proposal