Conducting research is an expectation in most forms of education. As a sixteen-year-old, I have had to research many times about all sorts of topics and write about them. Although I have conducted very little research outside of school, that research consists of the arts and humanities. As this interests me the most. I find that research is one of the most effective ways of learning. Reading information about the topic and then using the information to create an academic project, makes you exposed to the material multiple times. This then gives you a better understanding of the topic.

When making my blog post about my top-five juvenile and young adult fiction novels, I had to create a bibliography. Writing a bibliography requires you to find the author, title, publisher, and the year it was published in. I searched online for these answers and it was easy to find. This process did not take long at all as the information was right there in front of my face after typing in the title in the search bar. Finding the information needed for the bibliography allows you to be able to learn more about the book and how it came to be.

In the past, I have had to research in the field of history. The topic my partner and I chose was the Roman Republic. We used over twelve websites to gather our information. Finding reliable resources was difficult and many sources sometimes contradicted each other. Some would say it began in 506 BC and ended in 25 BC, but it actually lasted from 509 BC-27 BC. This was very frustrating and took too much time but, we were able to find these dates to be true after confirming with many sites. Although this is only a few years difference, it makes the timeline of events not happen in chronological order. When writing about history it is important to include “a strong thesis, having a clear, engaging writing style, narrative of past events, and it demonstrates familiarity with relevant sources” (Bullock et al. 308-309). Since this was our first big history project, we did not execute the ideas stated in The Norton Field Guide to Writing very well. Yet as far as my knowledge, we received a B, which is a decent grade in my opinion.

Reading chapters 24-26 of The Norton Field Guide to Writing has shown me what my disciplinary interests are. Writing in the arts and humanities, social sciences, and technology has piqued my interest the most out of all of the fields. The social sciences disciplinary includes writing about psychology which is why it has interested me. I hope to continue my college education at a four-year university majoring in psychology. Learning about psychological experiments or the ideas behind certain mental illnesses interest me greatly. I researched this topic outside of school.

As stated before, I have a great interest in psychology. This only has happened because of the research I did on my own. Researching about psychology showed me what I am sincerely thinking about being a crucial part of my life.

Work Cited

Bullock, Richard, et al. Chapter 24: “Fields of Study.” The Norton Field Guide to Writing with Readings and Handbook. 5th ed. Norton, 2019