Written by Hello everyone, I have completed grading all of the Sources Survey assignments, and you all did well.
I want to make sure that everyone understands the focus of the assignments: information behaviors and needs of your chosen community. Many of you have located useful studies related to your community’s info behaviors and needs. Some of you may be using studies of a related group because LIS research has not been done on your chosen community. If the bulk of your research is not in our field, you may want to make sure you have some good applicable LIS studies to support your work as well as our course theories ands models. Message me if you have questions.
It might also be a good idea to review the assignment synthesis examples to see how everything flows into the research paper:
The assignments in INFO 200 are meant to build on student knowledge of a community’s information behavior, understanding of peer-reviewed research articles and community-created resources related to the group, and a synthesis of our course content with findings about the community. Blogging and the other major assignments should provide content and insights for the successful competition of the research paper. Content can be remixed and re-used.
As a reminder, the clarity of your writing is paramount for success in INFO200. I have attached a list of successful academic writing techniques that I shared with you earlier. Please refer to this guide as you prepare for your assignments.
Academic Writing Expectations and Best Practices
• Maintain a Formal and Scholarly Approach: Your remaining assignments require a formal, research-based synthesis of scholarly LIS literature and a high degree of critical thinking—this is an expectation of graduate-level work.
• Follow Assignment Guidelines Closely: Each assignment builds toward your final research paper. Carefully review the assignment pages and adhere to submission procedures for each task.
• Organize Your Writing with a Logical Structure: Begin with a cohesive outline and ensure your writing has a clear, logical flow, particularly in the research paper.
• Use Provided Resources: Take advantage of the assignment pages and strictly follow formatting requirements for your research paper.
• Cite All Sources Properly: Always cite your sources in written work. Use APA 7 formatting consistently (note: APA formatting may not be perfect in WordPress).
• Refer to Citation Guidelines: Review Module 2 and other course materials for APA 7 citation rules, including proper in-text citations.
• Support Your Claims with Evidence: Avoid generalizations in academic writing unless they are supported by peer-reviewed or professional sources.
• Avoid generic praise: Instead of saying “This is a great study,” specify why it is valuable—e.g., “This study provides a comprehensive analysis of X, offering new insights into Y.”
• Avoid contractions: Use “It is…” instead of “It’s…” to maintain a formal tone.
• Be mindful of colloquial phrases:
• Colloquial: “Based on our research, it really seems like X and Y are connected, no doubt about it.”
• Better: “The findings of this study strongly suggest a causal relationship between X and Y.”
• Use precise academic verbs: Scholars argue, write, find, discuss, note, propose, etc.
• Instead of “In the article, Stephens talks about a professional development program…”, use: Stephens (2016) discusses a professional development program…” or “In the article, Bates writes that information seeking…”
• Follow APA 7 Citation Standards: Avoid including article titles in your text. Instead, use the standard APA format: Author’s last name and year in parentheses.
• Example: “Stephens (2016) finds that students using blogs…”
• Use Balanced, Evidence-Based Arguments: Academic writing is grounded in research—avoid sweeping generalizations or unsupported opinions. Support all statements with peer-reviewed studies, scholarly monographs, or academic sources.
• Clarify the Nature of Your Readings: Most monographs in INFO 200 are nonfiction—they are not novels.
• Proofread Your Work Carefully: Avoid grammar errors and typos. Proofread closely and, if possible, ask a colleague or friend to review your work before submission.
