Student Profile with Introduction
PROFILE
Analee Bracero, 26
Criminal Justice Major, Ocean County College
When Analee was looking into colleges, she found that Ocean County College in New Jersey had everything she wanted: an affordable community college that also offers online courses, off-campus sites, transfer opportunities, and a variety of student clubs. The college also has a good library system that allows her to conduct research and write papers while on campus.
Analee grew up in a small town in Puerto Rico where she attended high school, completed a certificate program in medical office billing and coding, and then worked for a few years. When she decided that she wanted to change careers, she realized a degree in criminal justice was just what she needed. “I intend to join a law enforcement agency,” she says. “My goal is to join the FBI as a behavior analyst.”
“Start researching the topic you will be writing about as soon as possible.”
Now, while working about twenty-five hours a week at an after-school program, Analee has had to develop a number of strategies to help her write well-researched papers that are very different from those she wrote in high school. “In high school, they didn’t emphasize how important it was to include your opinions,” she says. “In college, they want you to research your work, cite as many sources as you can, and think about your topic and form opinions. It is very different for me.” She tells us that her best strategy is to start early and prepare to write, rewrite, and edit the same material a few times before handing it in for a grade. “Start researching the topic you will be writing about as soon as possible,” she advises. “Every day, look for more data and take additional notes. That way you can prevent procrastination and reduce your stress when it’s time to put the research together on the paper.”
Analee does most of her research online, where information is at her fingertips. She is careful about checking the validity of material she finds on the Web, especially on sites like Wikipedia. “I use Wikipedia and other online encyclopedias to start learning about a topic,” she explains, “but I rely on other sources for writing my paper and carefully check any information I pull from the Web to ensure accuracy.” She can access the databases she needs from her laptop or at the library.
8.1Information Literacy
8.2Choosing, Narrowing, and Researching a Topic
8.3Using the Library
8.4Evaluating Sources
8.5Synthesizing Information
As Analee’s story illustrates, developing the skills to locate and use information will increase your ability to keep up with what is going on in the world; participate in activities that interest you; and succeed in college, career, and community. The research skills you learn and use as a student will serve you well as a successful professional. That is true for whatever career you choose. Whether you’re a student of nursing, criminal justice, or business, one of your main tasks in college is to manage information. In a few years, as a nurse, probation officer, or accountant, one of your main tasks will be the same: to manage and present information for your employers and clients. All colleges and many companies provide libraries for this purpose.
But finding information and using it involve more than operating a computer or browsing the stacks. To make sense of the enormous amount of information at your fingertips in a reasonable amount of time, you’ll need to develop a few key research and information literacy skills.