This is more of a reflection of the assignment than my project, but this reflection has enhanced my project. I have made several presentations, as many of you have, in courses I have taken; however, this is one of the first annotated bibliographies that I have written. As I approached the assignment, it was relatively easy to summarize. During the phase of the requirement to include the important information so that there were "no surprises" I had more difficulty. Many of my articles were based on data analysis of different types of information. In the past, I've gathered what I felt I needed to support the material, but this assignment made me dig much deeper.
My preference is to set aside blocks of time and read and reflect. While this rarely happens, it is in those moments that I truly absorb more than just the words, but the purpose of the research. It is in these times that I can write my own questions that go beyond the research. That's when the fun starts!
My research is based on blog entries that overall focus on the original intent of the hospitalist profession and the quality of care. In reading these studies and reading other studies reported in the readings, I'm beginning to understand the juxtaposition of healthcare, medical costs, and quality of care. Understand that I thought I knew before I read, but this assignment has cause me to question earlier conclusions and really read.
Debra
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3 comments:
I like your comment "really read." We go through so much data that at times for me I find myself skimming through massive amounts, just to get through. It is only when I force myself to sit down and reflect that the true ideas emerge- both from the material and my own thought process.
Debra,
It sounds like I have always approached a paper the same way that you have. Creating an annotated bibliography has been a different but I think very helpful experience for me. As much as I hate to watse paper I find that I print off all of my readings and carry them around with me in a folder so that I can whip them out whenever I have time. I then site down and read with a highlighter and pen in my hand making notes for the annotated bib and notes that relate to my paper that I am working on. This makes it much easier for me to go back and reference later when I am trying to put all the pieces together. I think adding the annotated bibliography into this process has been helpful because it has allowed me to as you say reflect on each piece as I am finishing it as opposed to doing a mass read and write.
I often claim that I learned to read when I was a junior in college and had a professor who made me "really read" the assignments for her class, and that's been invaluable.
While I think I've done more than just "skim for what I can use" (or however you said that...) in the past, I don't think I've ever paid quite this close attention to the methods of projects very much of the time. Does that mean I'm finally starting to "get it"? Gee, I hope so!
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