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Introduction

          

        I am Ruhani Rabbi from Bangladesh. This is my 3rd trimester in Foundation Studies Program. I took Information Literacy in this trimester. This is my reflection blog for information literacy class. The previous lecturer of this subject had resigned from her job after first week of our trimester.  So there were no class for Information Literacy until week 5. After that the management decided to distribute the subject between our two lecturer Azamuddin AB Rahman and  Nur Khairunnisha Zainalpic. We started our class in week 6 again. Miss Khairunnisha described the course to us.  She gave us a brief explanation on our all assignment under this course. Writing blog is one of them. She told us to write the according to the topic of the subject. She divided the whole course into 5 topics. I am going to describe my personal reflection regarding these topics.


                                                 

                              Topics:

Topic 1: Big 6.

Topic 2: Information Resources.

Topic 3: Search Strategies and Search Tools.

Topic 4: APA/ Citation

Topic 5: Synthesis







      Before starting describing my reflection topic by topic I would like to say something about Information literacy. It is an agenda of solving problems. It is a Transnational process in which the leaner needs to find, understand, evaluate and use information in various forms to create for personal, social or global purposes. It talks about library literacy, computer literacy, media literacy, research literacy, internet literacy and critical thinking literacy.

Topic 1: Big 6



Big 6 is the steps to follow to solve any problem by using information literacy. There are six steps of Big 6. A brief explanation of the steps are below.
Step 1: Task definition
In this step we should define our problem then think about the requirements to solve the problems. In this step to know the problem we asked what, why, when, how the problem happen.
Step 2: Information seeking strategies
This step is for determine the range of source and prioritize the source. We can get information from diferent source like online source, print source and others.
Step 3: Location and Access
After prioritizing the source we need to find the location of the source. We should ask ourselves from where we can get valuable and appropriate information.
Step 4: Information Use
To use the information we should engaged with the information. In various way we can engaged with information like touch, hear, view, and read. Then we should extract the information.
Step 5: Synthesis
When we will extract information it will not be well organized. So in this step we should organize the information and then present it.
Step 6: Evaluation process

After synthesizing we need to judge our product as well as process. If there in any wrong then we have to go back to the first step and start again. This is the evaluation steps.

                In my conclusion I can say that during this topic  we have learnt clearly about the Big 6 process. Our lecturer elaborate the every single point of this process. At first I was totally unknown about this process but after the clear definition of the point form our lecturer I totally comprehended about this topic. From my point of view Big 6 is process which is continue in six steps in purpose of helping anyone to solve problems or make decision by using information. During the class our respectable lecturer asked us several questions to make sure that we understand this lesson.


        Topic 2: Information resources

   Under this topic we have learnt about three types of information resources.
  
               a).       Primary sources 
                  b)  Secondary sources
                      c)  Tertiary sources

            a)  Primary sources:
Primary sources are first-hand, authoritative accounts of an event, topic, or historical time period. They are typically produced at the time of the event by a person who experienced it, but can also be made later on in the form of personal memoirs or oral histories. Anything that contains original information on a topic is considered a primary source.


During this topic we have learned about the primary sources of information. After having this class as far as I came to know about the primary source that ‘a primary source is an original object or document' and it is also called as the first hand information. A researcher can get the original or actual information by the primary sources because a primary sources generally write by the witnessed or experienced person. There are so many databases which are considered as a primary source of information such as diaries, journals, speeches, audio or video recordings and so on. Autobiography is also included as a primary sources because it is written by a person about his/her own life. After teaching this lesson our lecturer asked us several question which was related with this topic.
b) Secondary sources
A secondary source of information is one that was created later by someone who did not experience first-hand or participate in the events or conditions you’re researching. For the purposes of a historical research project, secondary sources are generally scholarly books and articles. Also included would be reference sources like encyclopedias
               



 At first our lecturer gave us the brief definition of secondary sources and to be continuing he introduced us with the different example of secondary sources. From his meaningful interpretation I got the priceless suggestion about the secondary sources. During this class as far as I came to know about the secondary sources that 'a secondary sources is written something about the primary sources'. It is actually a second hand information. The great example of secondary sources are history books, textbooks, encyclopedias and so on.


c) Tertiary sources

Tertiary sources generally provide an overview or summary of a topic, and may contain both primary and secondary sources. The information is displayed as entirely factual, and does not include analysis or critique.




Tertiary sources can also be collections of primary and secondary sources, such as databases, bibliographies and directories.

        Topic 3: Search Strategies and Search Tools.

By using search tools finding information within short time is search strategies. Different types of search strategies are available to help to get information. In this course we have learnt about 5 types of search strategies.


                                                  i.            Brainstorming for Search Terms

                        ii.            Boolean Searching

                                iii.            Truncation

                                                 iv.            Wildcard

                                                                                                                           v.            Phrase Searching
  



Brainstorming for Search Terms

When should we use keywords, subject headings, phrases, single words for our searching it’s Brainstorming. Keywords usually give you more resources. Subject headings can be one word, two or more words, a phrase, a city, a country, a person, etc. There are different subject heading like Library Subject Headings, Science Subject Headings, Thesaurus of Psychological Index Terms. 


Boolean Searching

 It is a combining terms such as AND, OR, and NOT used in building a search statement or in putting several sets together. It has operator’s words that connect a search that may add or subtract a concept to our search. It is the most common and basic search strategy. It allows us to expand a search by using OR or limit a search by using the word AND.

Truncation

Truncation is using a wildcard at the end of a root word to search multiple variations of that root word. It expands the search to locate all words beginning with the same root.

       Example: teen* will return teen, teens, teenage, teenager, etc.


Wildcard

A wildcard is a special character, such as an asterisk (*), question mark (?), or pound sign (#), that replaces one or more letters in a word. It is used in the middle of a word to match usually known variants of a term. A wildcard usually represents a single character,
              Example: wom?n will return woman, women, and womyn.

Phrase Searching

Phrase searching is when we use a string of words (instead of a single word) to search with.
           For example if we want to get information about Information Literacy, there are two ways to write they are as follows:
“information literacy" or
(information literacy)  for searching. 

Search Tools

•      Search Engines
•      Meta-search Engines
•      Subject Directories
•      Information Gateways
•      Specialist Databases

          The main search tools are the INTERNET, Databases and Library catalogs.
           A Library Catalog is a file cabinet having separate cards with bibliographic information about definite items in the Library. The OPAC, is the most popular one which provides details about the book, audio-visuals and other materials found in the Library’
            The INTERNET is not only an operative source of information but also it is very easy to get in all over the world. This week was about all about explanation of these system. In class our respected madam described about new system of AiU library. The system was unknown to me before but she explained it very nicely, after finishing that specific class I understood something about search tools.
         Information gateways provides a central access point to internet for many internet sites that cover popular news and information resources. It includes internet catalogs, subject directories, virtual libraries and gateways. It specializes in resources on a particular field. Example: ELDIS: The gateway to development information http://www.eldis.org/
        Subject directories is a collection of links to a larger number of internet resources organized by topic area. Example: Infomine(http://infomine.ucr.edu/). There is also the specialized databases that are also known as the invisible web. It includes statistics, schedules, maps, figures. but now we can find it on most of search engines. It provides a reliable and up-to-date information. Some examples are the bibliographic database, google scholar, commercial database, etc.

Topic 4: APA/Citation



APA stands for American Psychological Association.  This is a professional organization, one of many that rely on constantly up-to-date research, presented mostly in journals and at conferences. In 1928, psychologists and anthropologists developed the APA style to resolve academic disputes that occurred not because of different ideas, but because of different ways to present the same knowledge. The style they developed has been applied to many journals and newsletters as well as books, in a variety of disciplines: Psychology, Sociology, Education, and Nursing, but also Geography, Composition, and Business – any field where the newest information is most essential.

We use APA style in different activities among them most important uses are below:
v Term papers
v Research Reports
v Empirical Studies
v Literature Reviews
v Theoretical Articles
v Methodology
v Case Study
References List

Reference list is the list of using source in any writing. All of the sources what I have cited in my assignment must appear in the reference list, which is placed at the end of report before the appendices. The purpose of a reference list is provide appropriate details to enable the reader of my report to locate and verify the sources I have used. It is important therefore that I provide full and accurate information for each source I have cited.
The most important and compulsory element of a reference list are:

                                                                                                                              I.            author names or names
                                                                                                                                         II.            publication date
                                                                                                                                      III.            title of the work
                                                                                                                                     IV.            Publication data

  For writing reference list we need to follow some rules

RULES FOR AUTHORS

a)       Start with family name for authors which have family names, follow with coma and initials for other part of the names
b)      For names without family names, cite as they are known.
c)       If two authors, use ampersand (&) before the last author. Use coma after each family name and in between each author after initials.
d)      More than six authors, use et al. for the seventh or more

RULES FOR TITLE

a)  Capitalize only the first alphabet of the first word or names in title and subtitle.
b)   Capitalize each alphabet in each word in the Title of journal except for preposition.
 c)  Underline, bold or italic the Title of books and the Title of Journal


During this topic we also learnt about summarizing, paraphrasing, quoting.

Summarizing

Instead of using many direct quotations in an essay, it is better to paraphrase and summarize sources whenever possible by using own words. No need to use quotation marks. State only the most important idea or fact. And finally use as few words as possible. These are rules of summarizing.

Paraphrasing

Paraphrasing involves putting a passage from source material into our own words. Paraphrases are usually shorter than, but may be the same length as the original passage. Paraphrases take a more focused segment of the source and condense it slightly.
Some important point we should maintain for paraphrasing:

                                                                                                                                    I.            Use our own words.
                                                                                                     II.            Keep all the details of the original.
                                                                                                              III.            Cite the source and the date.
                                                                                                          IV.            Do NOT use quotation marks



Quoting

Quoting is using the author's words exactly. We should put quotation marks only for short quotations. If quotation has more than 40 words do not use quotation marks. Indent quotations of more than 40 words. Then have to write the year of publication in parentheses after the writer’s name and the page number at the end of the quotation, OR the writer's name, year of publication, page number in parentheses at the end of the quotation. Putting a period AFTER the parentheses not before is important.


This is all about topic four we have learnt.

  

Topic 5: Synthesis

This topic was about synthesis and the way of solving a mystery or we can say giving reader a new understanding. This is our last topic for our blog assignment. Alhamdulillah we have done our course properly although there were few problem in the beginning.
We the definition of synthesis. According to the Ellin Keene “Synthesis is about organizing the different pieces to create a beautiful mosaic, a meaning, a beauty, greater than the sum of each shiny piece.”

Summarizing and synthesizing are not same. There are few clear difference between this two terms.
Summarizing vs. Synthesizing

             Summarizing is identifying key points and organizing thoughts, a listing of the parts. Summarizing usually occurs at the end.

            Synthesizing is the creation of a whole.  It goes on throughout the process of reading—not just at the end.  It is bringing together different ideas and facts and weaving them together into a tapestry, something much larger than all the threads. 
               
During this topic we also taught about learning strategies. The list is given below:

Written response to literature
    - Charting thinking records
    - Post-it notes
    - Double entry journals
    - Letters to other readers and writers
    - Quick write
    - Timelines

Oral responses

    - Four way share
    - Think-pair-share
    - Book clubs
       - Strategy study groups 



     At last but not the least, I would like to give special thanks to our both lecturers for their outstanding teaching activities. Honestly I would like to say that the way of teaching quality was awesome. In   Miss Khairunnisha class time, I never feel boring because she always teach us with a lot of entertainment. I really like her teaching way and her caring to her students.  She is one of the best teacher in my life, I have ever seen. I wish, if it is possible, I will be her students again.






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