Competency 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.

WHEN MAN first saw the Camel, he was so frightened at his vast size that he ran away. After a time, perceiving the meekness and gentleness of the beast's temper, he summoned courage enough to approach him. Soon afterwards, observing that he was an animal altogether deficient in spirit, he assumed such boldness as to put a bridle in his mouth, and to let a child drive him.
Aesop

The work of research is like how the man in the story overcame his dread of a camel. He spends time to find out what this animal is and tries to identify the animal's characteristics and temper. During this course of getting to know the camel, the man certainly collects the information that he has about it. He then evaluates and synthesizes them before he decides that the camel is safe and useful for his work.

The goal of any research is to arrive at a certain truth with factual information. To do this work, researcher has to retrieve information, evaluate them and synthesize them before forming a clear decision. It is more like a journey from the unknown to the known. To help patrons complete the journey successfully and arrive at his/her destination with the shortest time possible, librarians and information professionals need to know certain research methods and research findings scientifically. Commonly when a person begins any research, he/she has a very good idea what to look for. In this case, he/she might want to enter the subject or the key word subject, and the computer catalog will provide a list of results for him/her to choose from. If he/she knows the exact title of a book or name of an author, the search would provide the exact information. From my own experience of searching, after receiving these information, I still have to evaluate each result whether it is relevant to my project, and then synthesize it with others into a cohesive collection before I decide to use them.

Nowadays with the advance of Internet technology, more people conduct their research online. According to William A. Katz, there are three basic types of search at a computer terminal. "The first is to enter a few words in the search engine box, primarily for the familiar ready-reference type or one or two-source quest. The second is the search or research query. One may use the search engine box, but considerably more than entering keywords in necessary. The third, and by far the most efficient method, is to have the URL, i.e., the address of the Web page or site. This is familiar to looking up a book by a precise author's name or title." (Katz, p. 58-59) Whether searching from a library's catalog or online, researchers always have to choose from numerous results. This task can be very time consuming. Each result should be evaluated for its credibility, relevance and suitability. Librarians and information professionals need to know these skills in order to assist patrons effectively.

In relation to this competency, I did several assignments during my years of studying for the Master of Library and Information Science. One of them was the Internet Scavenger Hunt for LIBR 210 (Reference & Information Services). The purpose of this assignment is to search online for the answers to 20 questions regarding 20 different topics. For each question, I had to report (a) the URL of the answer and (b) a brief summary description of the answer to the question that will demonstrate that I had actually found the answer. In some cases I had to provide a specific piece of information. To complete this assignment, I used Internet-based resource such as search engines, web sites, online discussion groups, blogs, etc. As I reflect upon this assignment, I remember that it was quite time consuming, but it was really fun. Most of these questions inquire about very rare information which we do not normally hear about. For example, the first question wants to know about an ice cream flavor named after Dilbert, the comic strip character, who makes it, and if they are still making it. I began to search for the information by using the search engine with the key words Dilbert ice cream. This attempt provided me 13,600 results. I skimmed through really fast each result to look for any relevant information and clicked on it to find out if the materials are really fitting. Another fun question wants to find out how many books are translated into Arabic each year, and the answer needs to come from or cite an official international source published in 2002 or 2003. For this question, I used search engine again with key words like Arabic book, translation to Arabic, books translated into Arabic every year. It took for ever to find the right answer for this question, and I was quite appalled at myself that I was able to find it. One last example that I want to include here is the question 7 which inquire about the text of the letter written to the young Ted Turner by his father when he learned that Ted had decided to pursue a classics major in college. At the time I had no idea who Ted Turner was and why he had to be part of the assignment. I spent a long time to search for the text of the letter, and I was able to find it. The educational trick about this assignment is that the more difficult the search was, the more I learn about searching. If I was not able to find it one way, I had to try a different way. Sometimes I spent hours without any success. However the success was not in the result, but it was in the process of finding.

My next assignment , "The Average Citizen with Government Departments and Agencies," for LIBR 211 (Government Information Sources) has much to do with how to search for information of the three branches of the United States Government: the Executive Branch, the Legislative Branch, and the Judicial Branch. The purpose of this assignment is to get to know sources which provide information about these three branches, so that in the future it will become handy when asked to help average citizens to learn about the United States Government. The importance here is to cater to average citizens simple and easy information. In other words, this is not a scholarly research. To proceed I enter US Government in the search engine, and there are 72,000,000 results which are overwhelmingly numerous. What I need is simple information which is fitting for high school education level. So I found Ben's Guide to US Government for Kids, which teaches kids from kindergarten through 12th grade about the Federal Government. This website has different grade levels, and it even has a level for teachers and parents. Another website that I think it is also very informative is students.gov - Student Gateway to the U.S. Government , which is an interagency cooperative effort that provides students and their families with a gateway to Federal government information and services. I bookmarked this website for my future use because it provides many various important resources for students at all levels. LIBR 211 was truly a wonderful class that has opened my mind to a vast information about the United States Government and equiped me with adequate research skills for future service.

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