Research How-To
There are many different models to explain how people do research. One
of the most universally accepted, and most relevant to 21st Century
research and thinking is called "Berry Picking."
What is Berry Picking?
Berry Picking is a metaphor for how people research in the 21st
Century. When picking through a field of berries, there's just so many
of them from which to choose, and you have to choose what you like most.
When you find a good one, it often is growing near other ripe berries,
and that way leads you to more of what you're seeking.
Similarly, when doing 21st Century research, the problem is not typically finding information, it's evaluating it and selecting it. Information has become so abundant, but most of what's available is not of high quality. From this point of view, the key questions have evolved. No longer is the only relevant question, "How do I find information?"
Similarly, when doing 21st Century research, the problem is not typically finding information, it's evaluating it and selecting it. Information has become so abundant, but most of what's available is not of high quality. From this point of view, the key questions have evolved. No longer is the only relevant question, "How do I find information?"
Other important questions requiring attention include:
1. How do I choose a research topic that interests me? Or how can I fine-tune my assigned topic to be something about which I can excited?
2. How do I know useful information from what is incorrect, misleading or just plain useless?
3. Why do I need to cite sources? And why does the quality of those sources matter?
4. How do I use multiple types of media and sources to best track down relevant and high quality information?
5. What is the point of writing a research paper? Outside of pleasing my teachers, for what are these skills used and why is it relevant in life?
1. How do I choose a research topic that interests me? Or how can I fine-tune my assigned topic to be something about which I can excited?
2. How do I know useful information from what is incorrect, misleading or just plain useless?
3. Why do I need to cite sources? And why does the quality of those sources matter?
4. How do I use multiple types of media and sources to best track down relevant and high quality information?
5. What is the point of writing a research paper? Outside of pleasing my teachers, for what are these skills used and why is it relevant in life?
|
References: Bates, Marcia J. "Berrypicking." Theories of Information Behavior. By Karen E. Fisher, Sanda Erdelez, and Lynne McKechnie. Medford, NJ: Published for the American Society for Information Science and Technology by Information Today, 2005. 58-62. Print. |