BAPP Task 3c: Sources of Information

Each and every one of us has our preferred methods of researching, gathering and presenting information. The sources from which we accumulate our information depend upon the content of what we are looking for. This could be something that we are personally interested in or have been asked to source and research for educational or work purposes. Thinking about how I acquire my information, I have settled on five sources that I commonly use on a weekly, if not a daily basis...

1. Internet (Google)
It is genuinely challenging to go a day without asking something of Google. Whether it is asking for the weather; for unknown facts; for celebrity gossip; for recipes, for music artists, for trip planning; for location exploring; the list is endless! It is such an incredibly useful tool and one which we seem to trust in above many other things. We like to insist that Google is right! When it comes to researching information for me personally, I like to use Google as a quick and convenient research tool. I'll simply type in the person or the subject that I wish to find out more about and immediately, a wealth of information is available to me. I have been using it to look up the many philosophers and theorists mentioned in the Readers and also to gain a better understanding of the meaning of some of the terms used and how they can be applied to professional practice. I have also been using it to source articles and build up references as I write my blogs.

2. Blogger
I am surprised at how much I actually use Blogger to fuel my research. It is so practical to be able to view other students' blogs on the BAPP course as it often helps me with my own research. I can grasp so much information about the course and its content simply by looking at other blogs. I have found it particularly useful to immerse myself in the blogs of Module 3 students as they give me such a solid impression of what is to be expected of the course and whether I am heading in the right direction. I also find that I become more familiar with new methodology and can be inspired to expand my own ideas and line of research. Blogger is a truly fantastic community to be a part of!

3. Social Media (Facebook and Instagram)
Facebook and Instagram are the two social media tools that I use the most. I also find them the most helpful and engrossing. These social platforms allow me to communicate with friends and other professionals who may be able to offer input to my research. If you like/follow a page or are a part of a group, you are constantly updated with information that will be of interest to you and may spur on new ideas that you can explore further.     

4. Face-to-face 
Face-to-face communication is the most effective form of communication that we have. It often feels as though social media and online tools are taking over from this method and that, due to mobile phones in particular, we have become more unsociable in a physical sense. I therefore support the use of face-to-face communication as I can see the benefits of using it for my research. I experience these benefits particularly whilst teaching at English National Ballet School on a Saturday. It is so refreshing to be able to communicate face-to-face with my colleagues, rather than doing it online, and I can obtain a wealth of knowledge from them instantly. If I were to ever want to conduct an interview or get someone's personal opinion on my work, I would much prefer to do this face-to-face. I just think that you can get a far better sense of what they are actually thinking/feeling whilst simultaneously, you feel as though your ideas are being heard, considered more thoroughly and appreciated more greatly.

5. Self Reflection/Exploration (past experiences)
My final and one of my most commonly used sources of information is a bit of a different one. I find that I can learn a lot and discover news ideas/themes for my research using self-reflection/exploration. If you are able to reflect on your past and present experiences, you can learn so much about yourself that can then be directed towards your research. You can use your knowledge of what you have experienced in the past to fuel what you are doing in the present and what goal you hope to reach in the future. You can learn from mistakes you have made; praise you have received; feelings and emotions you have had. All such factors allow you to make mature, rounded decisions on how to approach whatever situation you presently find yourself in.

So those are my five most frequently used research tools, all of which I feel are essential to the attainment of information that will feed my course. Some assist me to a greater extent than others, although being without one of them would not allow me to source information as broad and diverse.  

Lil' Blogger