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SOIL 430/630

Resources for students in Dr. Gale's Soil Science 430 and 630 classes. Find quality sources and learn about the research process. Updated Summer 2020

Important Note

Before you get started with research, it is important to note that research is not necessarily a linear process. Generally, it looks more like the line below, with cycles and periods of increased or decreased activity. At any point where you find yourself circling back or getting stuck, you can ask me for help!

meandering line meant to represent the non-linear nature of research

The Research Steps

These components will help you build a successful research project. Remember that research is a quilt, so you might piece your quilt together a little bit differently or repeat your pattern, but this should give you a good starting point. 

  1. Select a Topic
    • What do you already know?
    • Why do you find this interesting? What do you want to spend a lot of time thinking and reading about?
  2. Conduct Background Research
    • Where can you search to get a general overview of your topic? 
    • What do you need to know first?
    • How can you learn the keywords and language related to your topic?
    • At this point, you may find that you need to narrow or modify your topic based on this preliminary research. You may also elect to do background research first and then pick your topic. Select three broad topics and spend ten minutes looking for information on each. After those ten minutes, which do you find most interesting? Which one makes you want to know more?
  3. Develop a Research Question and/or Thesis 
    • Even if your assignment has specific guidelines and questions to answer, you may also want to consider a research question to guide you. For example - What are the conservation challenges of freshwater marshes?
    • Think beyond yes/no questions. What, where, how, and why does it matter?
  4. Create an Outline
  5. Find Sources
    • The first page of this Guide covers this component of the research process. Ask for help at any point. 
  6. Read your Sources
    • While we tend to think of reading as an innate, unchanging skill, different types of sources might require different reading strategies. 
    • What is the main point? 
    • If you had to describe this article to a friend, what would you say? 
    • Make a hypothesis based on the abstract and title. As you read the article, were you right? 
    • What can you skim? What can you skip? What do you need to read twice?
  7. Evaluate your Sources
    • What is the context in which this article was written?
    • How do I know this is credible information?
    • What is the purpose? Who is the audience?
    • Who is the author? Are they qualified to write about the topic? 
    • What is the scope of the source?
    • What is the date? Does the date matter? Has anything changed since this source was published? 
  8. Take Notes
  9. Cite
    • Cite as you go - it will make it much easier later on
    • Consider using a citation management software like Zotero that helps you keep track of your citations and create a bibliography
  10. Synthesize your Sources
    • What goes together? What follows chronologically? What research is based off other research? Which articles share themes or key takeaways? 
    • Note: this research step is HARD. Many students end up writing one paragraph on Source A, and then a separate paragraph on Source B, and then another on Source C. If you can integrate them together, it shows research maturity and complex critical thinking. Ask me for help on how to practice this. 
  11. Create a Draft
  12. Revise your Draft
    • Repeat steps 5-10 as you determine where the weak points are in your paper. Ask for help as needed.
    • Remember why this topic interested you in the first place. How can you convey that information to your reader?