Topic 5: Synthesis

In this topic we learn what is synthesis and how the details solve a mystery, or how they bring characters (and readers) to a new understanding. This is the last topic that we have learnt in our information literacy class and this topic also interesting to learn easily. our lecturer explained to us very well about synthesis .

What is 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.”

-Organize information from multiple sources .
-Present the information.

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.  

                  

Learning Strategies

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  

Topic 4: APA/Citation

In reality,if i say my own opinion about this topic is really difficult for memorizing or leaning. But, i have found so many new interesting things which i will able to use in my future life. However, our lecturer explained to us about it and done some exercise in lab class. Now i am totally clear about it.

What is APA Style, and Why Use It?

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.

 APA styled is used for

•Term papers

•Research Reports

•Empirical Studies

•Literature Reviews

•Theoretical Articles

•Methodology

•Case Study

References List

 •Reference contains the following components:

 •- author names or names

 •-publication date

 •-title of the work

 •Publication data

Sawyer, C., McCarty, P., & Parkin, G. F. (1994).     Chemistry for environmental engineering.   (4th ed.).  New York : McGraw-Hill.

Documenting Authors

•One Author:
Koch Jr., R. T. (2004).•Two Authors:Stewart, T., & Biffle, G. (1999).
•Three to Six AuthorsWells, H. G., Lovecraft, H. P., Potter, H. J., Rowling, J. K., & Kirk, J. T. (2005).
•More than Six AuthorsSmith, M., Flanagan, F., Judd, A., Burstyn, E., Bullock, S., Knight, S., et al. (2002).

•Same author?  List by Year.  Same year? Alphabetize by source title and add a letter to the year (1984a).

RULES FOR AUTHORS

 a)   Start with family name for authors which have family names, follow with coma and initial for other part of the names.

                 Eg:  Tan, B. T.

                 Means, G. P.

                 Puthucheary, M.

 b)  For names without family names, cite as they are known.

                Eg:  Osman Hamzah

                Nik Ismail Nik Ishak

 c)  If two authors, use ampersand (&) before the last author. Use coma after each family name and in between each author after initials.

               Eg:  Sawyer, C., & Parkin, G. F.

d)  More than six authors, use et al. for the seventh or more   author   names.

           Eg:  Lofland, L. , Moore, M.H., Estrich. S, McGillis, D.,   Spelman, W., Parker, K. ,et al.

RULES FOR TITLE

 a)  Capitalize only the first alphabet of the first word or names in title and subtitle.

b) Underline, bold or italic the Title of books and the Title of Journal.

c)  Capitalize each alphabet in each word in the Title of journal except for preposition.

Topic 3: Search Strategies

From this topic, i have learnt how to use AND,OR,NOT. I have learnt also about truncation and wildcards, and phrase searching. Now i would like to write reflection about it.

Boolean operators determine what terms should and should not be present in records that are retrieved.  Using Boolean terms makes your search more precise by retrieving results more relevant to your topic.

• AND retrieves documents containing both terms

• Zinc AND colds

• OR retrieves documents containing either term

• teenagers OR adolescents OR children

• NOT excludes documents containing the specified term

 • Harriet Tubman NOT juvenile.

Truncation and Wildcards

•Truncation and wildcards broaden your search capabilities by allowing you to retrieve multiple spellings of a root word or word stem, such as singular and plural forms.

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

•A wildcard is a special character, such as an asterisk (*), question mark (?), or pound sign (#), that replaces one or more letters in a word. Truncation is using a wildcard at the end of a root word to search multiple variations of that root word. Check a database's help section to identify what symbol is used for a wildcard.

•Example: wom?n will return woman, women, and womyn.

Phrase searching:

Phrase searching is when you use a string of words (instead of a single word) to search with.

    Some databases will use the inverted commas and others the brackets. Look at the "Help" function of each database to see what you should use for that particular database.

     Not all databases allow phrase searching. Look at the "Help" function of the database to find out.

Topic 2: Information Resources 

From this topic i have learnt about primary sources, secondary sources, tertiary sources. we also learnt what is the primary, secondary sources and Tertiary sources and what is deference between them. Now i m going to write a reflect about them.

primary sources:

A primary source is a document or physical object which was written or created during the time under study. These sources were present during an experience or time period and offer an inside view of a particular event. Some types of primary sources include:

Original Documents (excerpts or translations acceptable): Diaries, speeches, manuscripts, letters, interviews, news film footage, autobiographies, and official records.

Creative Workers: Poetry, drama, novels, music, art.

Relics Or Artifacts: Pottery, furniture, clothing, buildings.

Examples of primary sources include:

• Diary of Anne Frank - Experiences of a Jewish family during WWII
• The Constitution of Canada - Canadian History.
• A journal article reporting NEW research or findings.
• Weavings and pottery - Native American history.
• Plato's Republic - Women in Ancient Greece.

 Secondary Source:

A secondary source interprets and analyzes primary sources. These sources are one or more steps removed from the event. Secondary sources may have pictures, quotes or graphics of primary sources in them. Some types of secondary sources include:

PUBLICATIONS: Textbooks, magazine articles, histories, criticisms, commentaries, encyclopedias,

Examples of secondary sources include:

• A journal/magazine article which interprets or reviews previous findings.
• A history textbook.
• A book about the effects of WWI.

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.

We have also learnt the distinctions between primary, secondary and tertiary sources.  

The distinctions between primary, secondary, and tertiary sources can be ambiguous. An individual document may be a primary source in one context and a secondary source in another. Encyclopedias are typically considered tertiary sources, but a study of how encyclopedias have changed on the Internet would use them as primary sources. Time is a defining element.

Topic1: Big 6

After taking this course i was afraid about our class. However, from week 5 i learnt what is information literacy and what is BIG 6 model of information literacy.

Information literacy 

Information literacy enables people to recognize the value of information and use it to make informed choices in their personal, professional and academic lives. An information literate student 

                                           

    v Effectively accesses,

    v  Evaluates,

    v  Organizes,

    v  Synthesizes and

    v  Applies information 

      From a variety of sources and formats in a variety of contexts. Information literacy requires an ongoing involvement in learning and in evaluating information so that lifelong learning is possible.

     

      The Big 6 Information Literacy Model

Is a Transformational process in which the leaner needs to find, understand, evaluate    and use information in various forms  to create  for personal, social or global purposes.

Step 1 Task Definition

What am I supposed to do? Explain in your own words what is expected of you for this assignment.

Step 2 Information Seeking Strategies

Which are the best sources for the assignment?

Step 3 Location and Access

Where will I find these sources?

Who can help me find what I need?

Step 4 Use of Information

How will I record the information I need?

How will I give credit for my sources?

Step 5 Synthesis

How will I present the final assignment?

How will I give credit in the final assignment?

Step 6 Evaluation

Judge the result (effectiveness)

Judge the process (efficiency)

INTRODUCTION 

I would like to begin by sending praise and thanks to Almighty ALLAH, Who is The Sovereign, The Powerful, The Creator, The Nourisher, The Magnificent, The Greatest, The Just, The Majestic, etc… Then I send Darud and Salaam to our Noble and Beloved Prophet Muhammad (SAW), His household, His Companions and all believing men, women and children until the end of time.

I would also like to thank my beloved and esteemed lecturer Madam Mr. Azam Uddin and Nur Khairunnisha Zainal for all their well dedicated time, patience, energy and knowledge for me to complete my blog along with other assignments for this particular subject Introduction to Information literacy.

With any further ado I would like to introduce myself. This is Sayeem Hussain from Bangladesh. I grew up in a normal family with 3 siblings, so my childhood days were fantastic and full of enjoyment. My father is farmer and my mother is housewife. My parents are proud of me that i am the fast of my family who is studying foreign country. My academic record is good as I spent most of the time on studies, but along this I like to hang out with my friends and family and play indoor and outdoor games. I like to read books. It helps me to enhance my vocabulary and increase my reading ability. I am also interested to watch movie. However, after getting the scholarship, I came in Malaysia and started IEP course for studies in Albukhary International University (AiU), Malaysia. Prior to coming to Malaysia, I didn’t want to study abroad because I was afraid of the life after from my home. My parents had advised me to study in a foreign university because I would able to gain new knowledge, exposes, experiences and so many things. I am here around 16 month and it is second trimester in foundation studies progmme.

 

Before I go any further I would like to elaborate on the purpose for creating and publishing this blog. First of all it’s an assignment from my lecturer, its carry’s fifteen percent of the total marks for the course. Actually it’s a reflection of what I did in class and lab, so I can always refer to it. The sole reason why it’s a reflection is that you can always use it to identify your mistakes and improve on it by learning form the past. It is also used an evidence for whatever I have learned and studied in this course, which may be used for reference and quarries in the future to avoid any dilemma. The lecturer may also use to as evidence of what she have taught in class and lab. This task also rate my level of learning in class, my participants, and my progress in this subject area.  However, In this trimester, there was no class till 4 weeks because information literacy lecturer had gone from this university. At last, our class is started from week five. There are two lecturer decided to teach us about this lesson. Mr Azamuddin and Ni Sha both are teaching us about Information Literacy. Now,I am going to write reflection on five topics.