Internet Research and Personal Reflection on the 15th of June '12

On the 15th of June, I continued researching on the Internet about how to journal. I found out that a good research journal should be neat, organized, can be read, critical, summarize the lesson learned, integrates examples with explanations and analysis, includes objective and subjective dimensions, personal thoughts/opinion/impression/response, and not bias. I also found out that I only have a few of the skills that are needed to create a good research journal and they are: critical thinking, good English skill (understandable grammar, sentence structure, spelling, vocab, etc.), deep reflective skill, and good research skill. I am missing out two things and they are the skills on being organized, and neat. Another thing I found out is that the most compatible software for me to use for this project is MacJournal. The things that I am still not really sure about are if all of the things that should be included in a research journal should be included in each journal entry and when to write a journal entry. I have checked a sample of research journal in which its entry is written daily but doesn't include all of the things that should be included in a research journal in each journal entry and it seems that not in every entry the author did a research. From this sample of research journal I can conclude that in a research journal, you don’t have to research everyday and write with the same guidelines everyday but your thoughts about your research have to develop and be written everyday. Even so, I have to verify this conclusion to another source and I think I'm going to go ask an English teacher for help with this one. One thing that I am really confused about is where to keep my research notes.

Internet Research on the 14th of June '12

On the 14th of June, I continued researching on the Internet about how to journal. I found out that a research journal is not a place to write down notes when researching however it can briefly summarize the research in the beginning of the entry. I also found out that in a research journal entry, these things should be included: (1) thoughts, ideas, impressions, feelings, comments towards the lesson learned, (2) summary of the lesson learned, (3) date, (4) time taken, (5) references (including keywords used, libraries visited, call number of books, etc.), (6) research aims/question, (7) questions/critical analysis, (8) connections (reflect on lesson, answer the questions of how the research applies to you, why is it important to you, making connections between what you know or hope to gain with what you just learned), and (9) difficulties experienced. Another thing I learned is that a research journal should be written in a paragraph format. There are some things that I'm not sure of from this research though. I am not really sure if the summary of source consulted (e.g. discussions/conference with supervisor), topic/subject headings, evaluation if the lesson is helpful on answering my research question, and plan on how to research should be included in the journal entry. It's because some resources say it should be included but some others say a different thing. Also, I am not really sure whether an entry should be written everyday including the day I don't research with the same guidelines (includes thoughts, ideas, impressions, feelings and comments towards the lesson, summary of the lesson, etc.) or just when I do my research which might not be everyday but in a routine. One thing that I am confused about is where to put my research notes. Every website says different things about where to put this.

Internet and Dictionary Research on the 13th of June '12

On the 13th of June '12, I did a research on my first guiding question: How to journal? I started by researching about what a journal is. What I found out is that a journal can be a periodical (e.g. magazines, newspapers) of a specific topic, daily newspaper, a daily record of transactions, a daybook or a personal daily record of experiences, occurrences, ideas, observations, or reflection. I also found out that a journal is different from a diary because it includes a reflection and that the writer should be aware of the differences between the objective and subjective dimensions. Another thing I found out during the research is that a journal for research is called a research journal. I am not quite sure about the purpose of a research journal though. Some sources say that it is a record of notes from research and a discussion of them but some others say that it is only a discussion of the information obtained and the research notes should be put in a research log. Another thing I'm not really sure about is what specific elements should be included in a research journal. Some sources say that there should be a section on where the sources are reflected on and a plan on how to do the research but some other say different things. One thing that I need to research more about is on the arrangement/format of a research journal.

Journal on Appendix 9 - 1st of June 2012

Today the 9th graders practiced on doing appendix 9. The things I am sure about when doing this practice are first, on filling out the first step of the worksheet, second, on using the tables for step 4, and third, on using the outline for step 4. The things that I am not sure about are on the kinds of information I am looking for and if my goal is fixed for the real thing. The only thing I have no clue about is on deciding what research topics I am going to use for my personal Appendix 9.