I will never forget that phrase! I was sitting in my Effective Writing class in college and we were discussing an upcoming assignment.
The assignment was to write an essay about a particular topic of interest to Media students. My mind immediately went into overdrive, so many options flew through my head and I was panicking as to what topic I was going to pick. Thankfully, my predicament only lasted about 30 seconds before the lecturer put a list of optional topics on the board - I was very grateful, to say the least!
There were various options to pick from, they included: Reality Television, women in the media, crime drama and Citizen Journalism and the effect it has on the professionals.
I was considering the reality television option but then my mind strayed and I decided I would like to investigate citizen journalism. Considering I work as a News & Sport Journalist at the weekend, I thought it was the most fitting option.
With an annotated bibliography, you are required to use academic journals as the main source of your information and research. I wasn't really sure where I was going to start with my research, I had never searched academic journals before so it was all very new to me. I decided, with some guidance from my lecturer, that I was going to use Taylor and Francis Online to research my topic.
I figured the best way to start was to type the words 'Citizen Journalism' into the search bar. Who knew it was that easy? Within seconds I had over 40 articles presented in front of my eyes, I immediately thought "this is going to require a LOT of reading".
I started to download articles to use for my essay. I found so much information on Citizen Journalism and I discovered a lot about the topic. It's more common that I had first thought. There was so much information, case studies and research that had already been carried out. I knew this was going to be a huge help for my final essay and I was glad I had picked the topic I did.
At this point, I was still slightly confused as to what EXACTLY I had to do with this annotated bibliography. So, I decided I would quiz my lecturer, a little more than usual. I had an idea what I was doing and I thought up of an example in my own head of how to explain it if I was asked.
"It's just a mind-map for the essay"
Correct! It's basically a mind-map for the essay. Or, a trailer for a movie that hasn't been made yet, is how one of my classmates described it! Thankfully, I now knew exactly what was required of me so I began reading the articles I had downloaded.
I have a bit of a problem with summarizing information (you may have guessed by how long this is) but, I always feel like I'm leaving the most important bits out. So, my annotated bibliography ended up being 7 pages long, but we wont dwell on that!
I submitted it for correction and was delighted with my final mark. (71%, just incase you're wondering)
Now, the next step is to write the actual essay based on my findings. It's only 1500 words, it can't be that hard............right?
With an annotated bibliography, you are required to use academic journals as the main source of your information and research. I wasn't really sure where I was going to start with my research, I had never searched academic journals before so it was all very new to me. I decided, with some guidance from my lecturer, that I was going to use Taylor and Francis Online to research my topic.
I figured the best way to start was to type the words 'Citizen Journalism' into the search bar. Who knew it was that easy? Within seconds I had over 40 articles presented in front of my eyes, I immediately thought "this is going to require a LOT of reading".
I started to download articles to use for my essay. I found so much information on Citizen Journalism and I discovered a lot about the topic. It's more common that I had first thought. There was so much information, case studies and research that had already been carried out. I knew this was going to be a huge help for my final essay and I was glad I had picked the topic I did.
At this point, I was still slightly confused as to what EXACTLY I had to do with this annotated bibliography. So, I decided I would quiz my lecturer, a little more than usual. I had an idea what I was doing and I thought up of an example in my own head of how to explain it if I was asked.
"It's just a mind-map for the essay"
Correct! It's basically a mind-map for the essay. Or, a trailer for a movie that hasn't been made yet, is how one of my classmates described it! Thankfully, I now knew exactly what was required of me so I began reading the articles I had downloaded.
I have a bit of a problem with summarizing information (you may have guessed by how long this is) but, I always feel like I'm leaving the most important bits out. So, my annotated bibliography ended up being 7 pages long, but we wont dwell on that!
I submitted it for correction and was delighted with my final mark. (71%, just incase you're wondering)
Now, the next step is to write the actual essay based on my findings. It's only 1500 words, it can't be that hard............right?
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