Chapter 6 Reading

I found chapter 6 to be very informative in helping to prepare and organize information gathered for a research topic. I find that when doing a research project the hardest part is just coming up with the topic. Once I take the time to figure out what direction I want to go in, it can be a little overwhelming to start looking for the right information. The chapter talks about the three stages of research, with the first on being preparing for the search. This is where I get stuck sometimes, just trying to find my way and getting started. After I narrow down my topic the next step is gathering the information. This can also be very overwhelming and daunting. There is so much information out there and so easily accessible, you would think that would be a good thing, but sometimes makes it harder to know what is necessary or not. The final step is evaluating all of the information found, this is where the organizing comes into play. It's easy to get a list of sources with the information, but if you don't know how to organize it so that it all flows, it can be very difficult. At this stage is when it is the most important to really narrow down your information and find what exactly is going to be most helpful and get rid of anything that will distract from that. I think that reading this chapter was very helpful in giving the information and showing me how to just focus and organize all that I need for a successful speech and the whole process along the way.