The expository section - Designing your topic (Part II)

By Debbie Harris, Contributor

LAST WEEK, you practised the Pre-writing Strategies In your brainstorming activity you may have arrived at something looking like the following:

THEME: TOURISM IN JAMAICA

* beaches
* foreigners
* craft
* United States of America
* hotels
* harassment
* crime and violence pose a problem
* entertainment
* reggae/dancehall music
* Jamaican food
* Ocho Rios/Montego Bay/Negril
* illegal drugs(narcotics)

When you have exhausted the list of all ideas that you thought of, you must examine this list and note any common trends or patterns; highlight these and write a statement in which you use words and phrases from the list. For example, the topic: The extent to which crime and violence affect the development of tourism in Jamaica, was created out of this brainstorming list. You can try this activity several times.

Once you have decided on a topic, you are ready to search for data relating to your topic. However, before we go on with the research, ensure that your topic has the following characteristics:

It should ask about the relationship between two or more variables. (For example, within this topic 'The Impact of Incest on Student Performance in Jamaican Schools', there are three variables: impact of incest; student performance and Jamaican schools. You will need to provide definitions for each of these variables and this can be done through a review of related literature.

* It should be stated in the form of a question, either direct or implied.

* It should be testable, that is, you should be able to collect data to answer the question asked.

* It should not be about a moral or ethical position. For example, 'Is lying a bad thing to do under all circumstances?' This is not an appropriate topic.

With topic in hand you are ready to identify the sources of data and collect the data. This involves the selection and use of data collection tools appropriate to the nature of the problem being investigated. You must summarise the data collected from various sources and be sure to identify each source.

You can begin evaluating a book or an article for instance, even before you have the physical item in hand. Appraise a source by first examining the bibliographic citation. This is the written description of a book, journal article, essay or some other published material that appears in a catalogue or index. Bibliographic citations characteristically have three main components: author, title and publication information. These components can help you determine the usefulness of this source for your research. If you are using a website, examine the home page carefully. Learning how to determine the relevance and authority of a given resource for your research is one of the core skills of the research process.

In your initial appraisal ask yourself the following questions:

AUTHOR

* What are the author's credentials/institutional affiliation?
* Is the book or article written on a topic in the author's area of expertise?
* Have you seen the author's name cited in other sources or bibliographies?
* Is the author associated with a reputable institution or organisation?

DATE OF PUBLICATION:

* When was the source published?
* Is the source current or out-of-date for your topic?

EDITION OR REVISION:

* Is this a first edition of this publication or not?
* If you are using a web source, do the pages indicate revision dates?

PUBLISHER:

* Is the source published by a university press? If so, the information is likely to be scholarly.

TITLE OF JOURNAL:

* Is this a popular or scholarly journal? This distinction is important because it indicates different levels of complexity in conveying ideas.

Having made an initial appraisal, you should now examine the body of the source, that is, you need to analyse the contents. Read the preface to determine the author's intentions for the book. Scan the table of contents and the index to get a broad overview of the material it covers. In analysing the contents of the source, ask the following questions:

INTENDED AUDIENCE:

* What type of audience is the author addressing?

* Is the publication aimed at a general or specialised audience?

* Is the source too elementary, too technical, too advanced, or just right for your needs?

OBJECTIVE REASONING:

n Is the information covered fact, opinion, or propaganda? It is not always easy to separate fact from opinion. Facts can usually be verified; opinions, though they may be based on factual information, evolve from the interpretation of facts. Skilled writers can make you think their interpretations are facts.

* Does the information appear to be valid and well-researched, or is it questionable and unsupported by evidenced?

* Are the ideas and arguments advanced more or less in line with other works you have read on the same topic?

* Is the author's point of view objective and impartial?

* Is the language free of emotion-arousing words and bias?

COVERAGE:

* Does the work update other sources, substantiate other materials you have read, or add new information? You should explore enough sources to obtain a variety of viewpoints.

* Is the material primary or secondary in nature? Primary sources are the raw material of the research process. Secondary sources are based on primary sources. Choose both when you have the opportunity.

WRITING STYLE:

* Is the publication organised logically?
* Are the main points clearly presented?
* Do you find the text easy to read, or is it stilted or choppy?
* Is the author's argument repetitive?

In answering these questions you are addressing some of the tasks involved in the Evaluation of Information Gathered - the Expository section of The Portfolio. You should now be able to tackle this research.

For more information on how to critically analyse sources go to the following:

URL: <http://www.library.cornell.edu/okuref/research/skill26.htm>