First Draft of Alternative Viewpoint Paper continuing..

 I came out the three articles which are talking about same-sex marriages and adoption in the world. And the paper is in a process to be finally written.... I so happy because it is almost done...

Original Research vs. Library Research

Have you ever done original research before?  I already have done an original research before and even during the process to answer questions about my research. I felt obligate to do it in a personal purpose because I have to be more involved in the topic to understand it.

 Based on what you learned in IM 204 or your own experience, what makes original research different from library research?  Based on my own experience, I believe both are really different from many perspectives. In other words, library research is more about gathering information that other people have collected on a topic, however an original research is more based on their own fashion strategy and design to come out with a rational idea on the type of issue you want to solve. This research is based on the type of information you want to collect to answer the question you are asking.

  How does library research support or guide original research?  Library research supports and guides original research in a fact that resources you will find in the library provide you more background ideas about the subject. Also, the resources oriente and give you a way where you should go. Then, give you information about what has been done or which studies have been done on the topic before. Also, give you how did people do that research.  At last, based on people’s researches you can judge if ideas and results did their studies address/ solve the problem.

 

 What are the pros and cons of library research, compared to original research? 

 Pros of library research numerous and among them we can cited the following which are important:

·         Uses universal cataloging systems that classify and organize all resources

·         More available sources such as books, newspapers, magazines, and other resources that have been edited and reviewed priory to their publication

·         Provides access to encyclopedia and print reference works

Cons are

• Resources can be checked out by other patrons and, therefore, may not always be available.
• A library's publications cannot provide up-to-the-minute news and information the way Web sites can.
•    Closes after hours and takes time.

Pros for original research:    More quantitative and qualitative research   Follow a certain methods and the good of this is that you are involve in the research means that there is a better understanding of the topic  Testing of a hypothesis using surveys or experiments or either problem statements about the population you wnat to identify/quantified/solve/improve...  Gathers numerical data and measurements from the subjects in order to come to a conclusion or make a decision Actions, behaviors, or attitudes of subjects must be measurable to explain phenomena Research design such as experiment, case study, longitudinal  design, cross-sectional design  Survey Questionnaire Interview Observation Analysis of document Cons are : ·         Take more compare to library research to be solve ·         Have to pay attention to the methods used and follow the required step because if not can be rejected by other because of the inconsistently

What critical thinking skills are involved in both types of research? 

· Interpretation

· evaluation

·  explanation

·  inference

· self-regulation

· Good analysis and evidence through observation of document, facts, and people involved…etc.

· Context

· Relevant criteria for making the judgment well

· Applicable methods or techniques for forming the judgment

· Applicable theoretical constructs for understanding the problem and the question asked

 What critical thinking skill, in your opinion, is the most important for library research? 

    I believe among of the critical thinking skills cited above, interpretation, evaluation, and self-regulation are the most important because you need to know how evaluate what you are reading/ watching. You need to interpret data and statistics numbers provides in documents and then self-regulate yourself.

 For original research?

   I believe that the application of methods or techniques for forming a judgment is relevant in an original research. Then, other skills such as theoretical constructs for understanding the problem and the question should be set up. At the end of the research inference skill is important here because without it we cannot conclude clearly.

 

Statistical Information from Governement document and Scholar Journal Article

I have found statistical information on each type of source. In both indication how the data was collected and analysed have been provided. It is important because we will need to know how it has been processed in order to analyze and interpret with efficiency the results.
Here are the APA works cited for both sources.

Solodnikov, V. V., & Chkanikova, A. M. (2009). Children in Same-Sex Marriages. Russian          Education & Society, 51(7), 13-34. doi:10.2753/RES1060-9393510702

Lofquist,D.(2011). Same-Sex Couple Households. American Community Survey Briefs.ACSBR/10-03. Retrieved from    http://permanent.access.gpo.gov/gpo18497/acsbr10-03.pdf

" Checking in"

I have successfully answered almost all of my questions's assignment for my presentation project except two of those.  Those are based on the research question and the string  about how I have found my sources. I think I will draw something that will make my life easy while I will give an explanation to the class. I like to work steps by steps and have everything on my side, so what I have left is just play with the puzzle game.
 A  research question should be given at the end of a project from my prospective because it is the one which give a sense, guide, and attract any reader to open a source. So, I am waiting for my first draft to come back to update the rest of my work.
 My challenges is the  annotated biography.  You cannot imagine how this assignment asking for time and work to be done.  Be sure to understand the content so you can summarize the source and give a good idea to the class. That is huge and I am dying.
My alternative viewpoint paper project is OK and I have almost done. I just need to correct my grammatical mistakes and that all. Some other points may be fixed when I will get my second draft back. I pretty sure it will be on the questions I am supposed to answer from going over each articles.

Uradhi Void's Presentation

When I went to the Uradhi Void’s presentation I did expect nothing at all. I did know anything on “Winning Marriage and More: Emerging challenges for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality”. I thought it going to be the same audience and same presentation as usual when you attend any presentation based on LGBT community.

 I was so surprise because I enjoyed it! O my God!

 I am not trying to say good things about her but she is magnific and so strong. The way she speaking with so much confidence shows how hard she worked to be where she is now. It showed her strong trusts in what she believe to and had achieved by trusty have faith in her personal dream.

The presentation was presented with so much honesty and confidence. It is what makes it different compare to what I was watched before. She fought for so long. She mentioned and explained how she fought for almost 30 years from now. For instance, she talked about the case of “Karin" (I am not sure if the spelling is correct but the women was in the audience) and how hard it was at the beginning of the 60's in St Cloud are for the LGBT community to survive.

 The speaker’s choice of words was easy to understand   and even the information provided was clear to everyone (I assume because for me it was).  That was a complete reflexion based on the work she had done and the reasons why for her people around her do not want to legalize same-sex marriages. She talked about LGBT movement in social justice, gender equality and religion liberty.

She explained that most of people are anti-marriage because of three points: tradition (norms, culture, etc...) and prophetic (insecurity and tradition of family anxiety). Means that people are afraid about the old family traditional picture they still have in mind and the one they do not want it to go away.  For them, they will be no more mother and father... with children at home who are laughing and sharing duties. The last point she mentioned is on people reflection about their loss control over the idea that same-sex may form a family or can get together.

The part I like the most is when she explains and argued against those points and said: " Why LGBT? They are not the cause of the decrease of our norms." LGBT programs create jobs and increase the number of children cares. People are learning more about the community. Children Care's increases because they have more chance to be love and are in a real family where love exist and here for them. Uradhi Void said that because they suffer and because they are few in their community, they are honest and live in with love and cares all the times.

At last, I like when she clarified to us about the relationship between sexual orientation, children, and parents. According to her, parents do not have influence on children when it comes to talk about how parents can influence them based on their sexual orientation.  For her and I believe that it is true because the values that kids learn are coming from parents no from sexual orientation or neither from “Gay".  This choice has to be personal.

I had never heard about Uradhi Void before and I did not know she was lesbian when I saw for the first time until she said so.  Knowing her achievement give you the strength to find again everything you consider to have the right for.

She has a great and strong personality. Because of her academic background and her profession she has an authority during her presentation.  Due to the fact that she is a lesbian and she is an activist for movement of justice between LGBT communities for long. Second, she a lawyer and has been in numerous conferences.

The ideas and concepts I can take away with me from this presentation is that parents do not have anything to do with us and with what we want to be in the future. They can influence us in the way we have to learn and physically dress up, act, and be in relation with others. However, they do not control our mind and either where way to make choice. We are the only one who decides about what we want to do and accomplish their dream. Based on their strength to believe in what they claim to be true, we can materialize our dream.

When one of our classmates asked on “During your presentation you mentioned that you are concerned about the worries and argument of the traditional heterosexual people. Why this feeling or could you elaborate further on this?”   She responds with knowledge and the answer was very satisfied for me because she explains why she said that.

What is "intellectual property" ?

 I believe an "intellectual property" will be the the right of your mind. What I mean by it is that whatever comes from you mind has right and belong to you. First, because it is unique and comes from you and has to stay unique because it shows you existence and how you contribute to the world you belong to. No one has the right to steal and publish what you build with your reflexion because it had been done with the work of your nerves and meninges.
A " expect's" definition of intellectual property is one from WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization). According to the website the "Intellectual property (IP) refers to creations of the mind such as inventions, literary and artistic works, and symbols, names, images, and designs used in commerce.

IP is distributed into two classes:  Industrial property,which consist of inventions, trademarks, industrial designs, and geographic indications of source; and Copyright, which includes literary and artistic works such as novels, poems and plays, films, musical works, artistic works such as drawings, paintings, photographs and sculptures, and architectural designs.  Rights related to copyright include those of performing artists in their performances, producers of phonograms in their recordings, and those of broadcasters in their radio and television programs

Also examples of intellectual property we observe everyday  is the work we are using from academic research such as books, journal articles, said in movie and video we are watching in class....

However we are using all of those properties  for education  the concept of PI will not change at all because we have to respect the laws and rights stated for the copyright and fair use of any documents and sources  which from someone else.

Never end !!!

My God! this research will never end up. Today, with a little chance I have find my three articles( I am waiting for the review). While I was searching for those I just made a new point which raise my curiosity... Why gay female have more chance to adopt children than Gay men? Here is a new question but a this time I want search anymore and that answer will wait until I have a time for myself. At this time of the semester I have to be ready for the comings exams and assignments due.

First Draft of Alternative Viewpoints Paper

I am reviewing my findings and hope to post everything by the end of this week. I have already found my three articles ...

Research Reflexion 2

I am back after two long week of fatigue and being struggling with some personal stuff.... God Bless Me!  I am out of that trouble. I have being looking for good articles everywhere for information regarding  my alternative viewpoint paper. Unfortunately, I could not found some good one on my topic. I went to the library and asked for help and the librarian who worked that day could not help me as much I expected. He sent me to the LGBT organization to talk to someone who has eventual knowledge on the topic and whom  may help me better; but however the person who supposed to help me ,  did  not do as much I expected to.
So  based on this tragic research of the Truth in the world of the press and news , I have to reshape my topic or find myself a correlation between my findings and my topic.After talking to the organization, I  have learn that Gay men from the Midwest moving from Minneapolis because of  good lifestyle that the city offering to them. Also there are couple other advantages such as safety, welfare, and organization such as "outfront" which help them to live without stress and away front people behavior like in the sub region such as in Chicago, Wisconsin and others. But this viewpoint I had from people working at the LGBT organization at St Cloud State University is not enough to make a decision or to have a general opinion. For this reason I came out with another subject which is adoption of same sex marriage in USA because they are a lot of gay couple and parents in our community who want to adopt children but this is not easy at all for them and even if some states allow them to care about children it is under certain rules such as fostering them not be able to have a right on them such as considering them as part of them ( adoption). Also, it seems like even if they have a chance to have children most of them have to surrogate and this process has other difficulty such as children do not belong to all parents. One of the parents have more right then the other etc...

Google 101

 I missed the class on March 13th so I had to do my own research on Google.

I found good information on google regarding my research on adoption by same sex marriage. I did not know that we can find relevant articles on google such as scholarly an popular ones. Actually ,based on google search I was able to  find one of the three artcles for my alternative viewpoint paper on google. I found it funny and I did not known that we can choice the language and the country of where you want to take the information. For instance, you can trace and see which news are in top of the press in one country versus another country. I also learnt about how to narrow down result in google.  I always thought that these options where only available in library database search website and no somewhere else.

Research Assignment Questions

When reviewing my  reasearch questions on my population, I did not have any issues about answering questions I had raised. However, I am working on name of organizations that educate people  from my population.While, I was reading the articles I  found on my topic, I noticed the name of one organization called Colage which helps children from gay parents to understand the socail environmentyal and help them to deal with social issues that the societies such as peers at school can create to them. I am not sure about the way  it works. I have to make more research on it.  

Blogs are legitimate forms of scholarship or news?

Based on your knowledge about how to evaluate an blog, I would say a blog which one has multiple features (social networking features, RSS feeds,blogroolls, tags, and archives) and functions can be considered as a form of scholarship or news.
As we known the blogosphere has always included sites by students, professors, librarians, administrators and other university members, more scholars are now tying their blogs to their work-related activities and making the connection between online presence and career development. Mostly the function of the blog depend on the purpose about why it has been created. For instance, some blogs are create simply to collect information and provide to the reader more information regarding his research and interests. The collection of that type of information can include reference questions and answers, themed websites, links to news articles or reviews, MP3 files, videos, or artwork. However, not all blogs can be considered as good  resources. This qualification as a scholars form will depend on why,how, and who wrote the blog and what kind of work cited have been cited to persuade the readers.
Academic blogs by definition tend to focus on professional rather than personal topics, showing explicit connections between blog content, research issues and academic life. Peer-reviewed articles are still the benchmark for academic professionalization, and some graduate students and early-career academics feel that blogging is a waste of precious time that could be spent on “legitimate” publishing. Because it’s a form of self-publishing that lacks peer review, blogging isn’t usually viewed as a legitimate form of scholarship.
 The issues with the blog is that information can be scooped and no one want to use an information which can be copied from another source without knowing if this information is relevant or not.
In regard of blog which cannot be use as scholars source I will cite here the following that I found  while i was doing my  research on  the following topic: the influence between gay parents and their children in their sexual orientation from Eric Harris ( Eric Harris. ( Fall 2009).  Child and Infant development : Are gay parents better?   Retrieved from http://psy3215.wordpress.com/)
The blog entry is not that rich based on the work cited which I found did not concise which the entry because I did not found this relevant. Eric Harris posted the following a resources : 
http://www.gayrightswatch.com/2007/05/gay-parents-better-parents.html.


http://www.narth.com/docs/does.html.


 However, if we check the following blogs , I would say that is a good form of scholarship and news because the writer has a knowledge  about the topic he/she develop and discuss : http://a-mother-from-gaza.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default
http://freegovinfo.info/

Research Reflexion 2

Since I am doing a research on Gay parents and their children and that I am working already on a
“LGBT" population, I would like to emphasize my research reflection on a particular aspect on either gay parents or gay men.  I believe I should learn more about what are the circumstances which push them to wait during many   years before coming out clearly about their sexuality.  For this research, I will focus more about gay in Minnesota vs. Atlanta because I assume that here in Minnesota laws are different compared in Atlanta where this population is numerous and may be well developed.
I assume laws, people, and believes are different based on those gays may coming out more easily or not.
My assumptions are based on "said" from friends and relatives. Also, once I read on a magazine that the number of gay men is numerous in Atlanta. Another point I would like to learn about is the migration of gay men or lesbian in Minnesota. Why they are moving from certain regions to another such as Minnesota? It is due to the fact that laws state are more favorable to this population or simply because they fell safer, more secure in certain parts than others.
As any research, the most difficult challenge will be to find information on the topic of choice. I think that I am already one step ahead due to the fact that I know where and how to find resources since I went over the entire step in previous research. However, do people write much regarding comparison of gay men in Minnesota vs. Atlanta? I will see how it will work and hopefully let you known

About the Popular Magazine Article and Scholarly Journal Article on My topic

     The popular magazine article I found is entitled "Get a Room!" Webb-Mitchell, B. (2008). Get a room! Advocate, (1011), 19-19.
The sholarly journal article I found is "Growing Up in an Same-Sex Parented Family: The adolescent Voice of Experience" Journal of GLBT family studies [1550-428X] Welsh yr:2011 vol:7 iss:1 pg:49 -71. 
     The former focus on  a gay father who has two children. He is talking bout his family experiences while his children are going to school and progress through their career  from middle to high school ; while they are growing up and talking to him regarding thier sexuality and attraction to the opposite sex. 
      The latter talks about voice to a special group of young people who are out going in public eye amid a storm of polical, legal, and social change but rarely observed and engage in the debate about their sexual development as they have been raised by same-sex parents.  A total of 14 adolescents who range from 13 to 18 years of age were interviewed.  According to the author,this qualitative method of study allowed for each participant to explore their thoughts, feelings, and perceptions, thus creating an opportunity to assign meaning to their experiences. Special questions are asked to them while they are interviewed such as  (1) Family Concepts, (2) Development of Self, (3) Tough Times and Tough Transitions, (4) Coming Out, and (5) Communities of Understanding.
      By comparing both articles , I will say they talk about the same topic: gay family and their influence in sexual orientation, education, and development of their children in a society where it is difficult to either themselves or their children to find a place in the society. However, the articles are quit different because the magazine is focus on only one gay family and voices are coming from the all family includes their two children. The scholar is more focus on a group of young people who are between 13 to 18 years old while they are reserved regarding their home'lives  in one side but out going  where observed in public.

Getting Ready to use Acadmic Search Premier

Academic Search Premier is a search engine that you can use to search a variety of different journals and magazines on various topics. This scholarly collection provides journal coverage for most academic areas of study, including biological sciences, economics, communications, computer sciences, engineering, language and linguistics, arts and literature, medical sciences and women's studies.

Academic Search Premier features:

·         contains indexing for 8,175 publications

·         Full text for more than 4,700 titles

·         PDF back files to 1985 or further are available for well over one hundred journals

·          Searchable cited references are provided for more than 1,000 titles.

·          Over 1.4 million company records from Dun & Bradstreet

·          Coverage of The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and The Christian Science Monitor

·          Over 1,000 journals with images       

·         This is an EBSCOHost database, and can be search individually or in combination with other EBSCOHost databases.

·         Coverage

·         Indexing: Varies by title, 1985-Present

·          Full Text: Varies by title, 1985-Present

·         Information Type:

 Citations? Yes

 Abstracts? Yes

·         Full Text? Yes

·         Frequency of Updates:

Daily

·         Help & More Information:

List of included journals and magazines

·         Related Databases:

·          News and Current Events  

Based on those features I believe Academic Search Premier is a good search website to find articles and databases on my topic.

I have already used the search engine in another class when I took cell biology one years ago.

I was searching for an article talking about the experiment I was doing. It was not easy. I should have taken IM 204 before enrolled into any science classes which required to handle a researh paper at the end of the semester that will made my life easy. I really do not remenber how I used the search premier database website. I remember asking to the librarian for help.

I did use another database to do my research for the same class ,it was ACS Chemistry Journals  because the paper I had written had some chemistry aspects that I had to develop. I remembered click on the "articles and databases" and typed couple keys words. Basically, it is easy to do it when you are searching for scientist research. In my case because I a scientist. All you have to do is, type the name of the experiment and from the abstract you can see if in the experiment researchers or professors (or who conduct the experiment) are using the same chemicals or similar ones and decide if you will use it or not.

I wonder if I will  find good information regarding my research topic like I did on chemistry matter subject. English is hard and communication more harder. It is easy to find for me something in science fields and understand it right away compared to searching on sociology or social humanity matter. I hope be lucky and using skills I have acquired here in that class.

Research Reflection

1.       Since working with databases, have your research question(s) changed at all?  Why or why not?

After working with databases, research questions are changing and may change later again dependent on when I will finish reading all the resources I have found.  I just realize that gay parents do not affect much the sexual orientation of their children because “we are what you are and only you know what you need and want”.   I still reading the articles, magazines, and journals I found. I will update my work later on and clarify exactly on what type of questions I will focus.

2.       What has been your biggest challenge in composing your research question?  How do you think you would be able to overcome those challenges?

I did not have much challenge I expect to have.  It was pretty easy to me to use academic search premier and databases compared to OPAC.  The information are different and more specified in academic searcg premier. You have more opportunities to read information regarding your topic by using academic search than OPAC.

A search on Academic Search Premier Vs. a search on a subject specific database

What subject specific database did you choose?

I choose: First, Education, Psychology, Recreation, and Sport-------PsycINFO------            

Gay Parents AND child* AND Sexual orientation

Second, Ethnic and Gender Studies ------- GenderWatch------Gay parents AND child* AND Sexual orientation

2.      Which database provided more relevant results for your topic?

Ethnic and Gender Studies gave me more relevant information regarding my topic

3.      How are you able to narrow down results in Academic Search Premier?

Library main page-------Article and Database--------advanced research --------Gay parents AND child* AND Sexuality orientation

Sholarly (Peer reviewed) Journals (on the left of the page)--------Select date from 2000-2012 (on the left of the page)

 How are you able to narrow down results in the subject specific database?

Second, Ethnic and Gender Studies ----- GenderWatch -------Gay parents AND child* AND Sexual orientation

4.      If your first search string did not work, what synonyms did you use?

My first string works pretty well

5.      How many relevant articles did you find from Academic Search Premier?

About 102 from 1985 to 2012 but I end up with 72 after narrowed information from 200 to 2012.

  How many from the subject specific database?

About 309 but I end up with 16 after marked what I found interesting about my topic.

6.      Of the relevant articles that you have found, how many were available in full text?

All of the 16 articles found were available in full text

7.       How many were available via Find It through other databases?

3 of 16 where accessible also follow “Education, Psychology, Recreation, and Sport” string research.

8.       How many were available via Find It in print in our collection?

None

9.       How many were not available at all, and required an ILL request?

All 16 articles required an ILL request

 Ps: ----- means  one step to another