A key tip for writing a successful essay is following the Boy Scouts’ motto: ‘be prepared’. Getting ready for an essay through thorough research is essential for creating a successful piece of writing, and it is just as crucial as the writing process itself.
Many students neglect this important step or spend time in the library not knowing exactly how to begin; and this is evident in the caliber of their essays. It will simply help you outperform your classmates, and we will demonstrate how to achieve that. This article outlines the necessary steps to carry out successful research and make the most of your research time.
How to Research on Your Topic before Writing?
As per an essay writing service Write My Essay, students often struggle to link their research phase with writing their first draft.
There is a possibility that they did not do the research stage properly, which could lead to them feeling like they are starting over when they begin writing their essay.
Alternatively, they could have failed to document their findings accurately, leading to the necessity of redoing tasks for the purpose of composing or citing their essay accurately.
Alternatively, they could have carried out and documented their study but failed to structure it properly, causing additional challenges during the writing process. This tutorial will detail the process of utilizing a research document to structure your research.
However, if you still have any questions by the end of the article, don’t forget to comment on it.
1: Allow Some Time to Yourself
Above all, it is crucial to allocate sufficient time for your research. Therefore, ensure you do not procrastinate when writing your essay. If you begin writing without sufficient research, it will likely be evident in the poor quality of your essay.
The required research time will differ based on your educational level and knowledge of the topic, so be sure to allocate more time than you anticipate needing.
You may encounter a concept that requires more time to grasp than anticipated, so it is advisable to allocate extra time rather than not enough.
2: Go Through Your Topic and Thoroughly Understand It
Not having a solid grasp of the essay prompt can lead you astray during your research. Hence, analyze the question by reading it multiple times and identifying the main tasks it requires you to complete. The guidance provided in the question may impact the direction of your research.
When the prompt uses the word "Compare", it signals a specific type of investigation where you will seek out similarities. If it instructs you to Discuss, your focus may shift to exploring various perspectives and creating your own argument.
3: Start Your Journey with Proper Brainstorming
Begin your research session by generating ideas based on your existing knowledge.
By doing this, you can clarify what you know and pinpoint areas where you lack knowledge to avoid wasting time on redundant books.
This provides your research with a clearer focus, enabling you to be more precise in your endeavors to uncover information. It is also a mild approach to acquainting yourself with the task and preparing your mind for learning about the current topic.
4: Have a Basic Understanding of Your Topic
If you're unfamiliar with the topic and have only come up with a few ideas during brainstorming, it's important to gain a basic understanding of the topic before diving into your research further.
If you dive headfirst into your research without preparation, you'll find it difficult to understand the subject. This implies that you might be overly influenced by a particular source, since you lack the awareness to effectively scrutinize it.
Having enough knowledge in the background is necessary to critically analyze all the sources you come across. Therefore, begin right from the very start.
Utilizing Wikipedia or other online sources for a basic understanding of a subject is acceptable.
But remember they may not be completely trustworthy. If you have already discussed the subject in class, review your notes to refresh your memory before delving deeper into the topic.
5: Work Through the Reading List You Have
If you have received a list of readings to complete, make sure to approach each item on the list in an organized manner. Before beginning, make sure to gather all the available books and keep them easily accessible for reference and comparison with different viewpoints.
Organize the sequence in which you'll tackle tasks and allocate a set amount of time for each.
It usually guarantees that you devote enough time to the tasks and concentrate on using your time efficiently with each one.
It is recommended to start with broader sources before focusing on the specific details found in more specialized literature. Consider visualizing an inverted pyramid that begins with a broad top and tapers down gradually; this is the type of structure you should use for your research.
6: Talk to Your Librarian
Library computer databases may be perplexing and can increase stress and complexity to your research if you are not familiar with them. The librarian's presence is intentional; do not hesitate to approach them if you need help locating a specific book from your reading list.
If you need help getting started, they can guide you to the appropriate section of the library to search for books containing helpful information.
7: Keep on Taking Notes
While reading, make sure to jot down notes instead of relying on your memory to retain everything. Only write down the information that is relevant to the essay question you need to answer, rather than jotting down everything thoughtlessly.
Writing too much can lead to including irrelevant material in your essay and receiving lower grades. When taking notes, make sure to be brief and rephrase arguments in your own words for better retention through thoughtful summarization.
Small index cards can be helpful in encouraging you to write concisely about each point or topic. We have discussed thorough note-taking in a different article, which you can access here.
Taking notes is a crucial aspect of conducting research, so make sure to prioritize it. Your notes are beneficial not only for finishing your essay quickly but also for revising later, so make sure to keep them well-organized.
8: Be Careful of What You Find on the Internet
While it is acceptable to utilize Wikipedia and other internet sources for preliminary knowledge on unfamiliar topics, exercise caution when conducting research for an essay online.
Don't rely on Wikipedia completely; remember, anyone can make edits to it! We do not recommend using the internet for your essay research because it lacks academic rigor and the age of a resource may be unknown.
Although your teachers might not inquire about the source of an idea mentioned in your essays, it is not a recommended practice and is unlikely to go unnoticed at a reputable university.
However, trustworthy academic materials can still be accessed through dedicated online libraries like JSTOR on the internet. If you're still in Sixth Form, you might find these concepts a bit too advanced, but you will encounter them when you reach university.
9: Have a Dictionary Nearby
Not knowing the meaning of a key word in a sentence could lead to a total misinterpretation of the point being made. Therefore, it is advisable to have a dictionary with you constantly while doing your research. It not only aids in comprehending the text completely, but also introduces new vocabulary that could be valuable for upcoming essays or future ones.
Expanding your vocabulary is always a valuable use of time!
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