By Stephen Whittaker, Class of 2013<\/p>\n
Conducting research through a variety of mediums has taught me several valuable lessons that I intend to carry with me into future college classes and careers.<\/p>\n
First, and foremost, I had to learn to control the urge to jump headfirst into primary sources and detailed databases.\u00a0 I discovered that beginning research with secondary sources greases the gears of the entire process and allows one to form clearer research questions and acquire direction.\u00a0 In the early stages of my research into the involvement of Dickinson College students involved in the Civil War, I found myself floundering as I hopelessly searched through databases and primary documents on an immense number of different subjects.\u00a0 Without taking a step back and reforming and detailing my research questions, I probably would have gotten nowhere.<\/p>\n
A second lesson that I took away from this research process is that in order to conduct research well, one must be thorough and truly commit time to reading and sorting through materials.\u00a0 I don’t think that I would have been able to locate some of the information that I found had I followed my original strategy of simply glancing over everything that I had in front of me.\u00a0 During my first visit to Dickinson’s archives<\/a>, I utilized the sources from a history I had read<\/a> to locate documents.\u00a0 Had I not gone deeper than simply reading meeting minutes, or an odd letter, I would not have located items from obscure correspondence, alumni records and photographs<\/a>.\u00a0 I had to buckle down and take clear, detailed notes and read through both my secondary and primary sources without rushing too much.\u00a0 If I did not take the time to sit and patiently read through pages upon pages of microfilm, I probably would not have been able to find the name of a fraternity that led me to images of Dickinson students who had enlisted in the Union Army.\u00a0 In a similar fashion, had I not looked through the card catalog in the Dickinson College Archives and never inquired about the correspondence of a college president’s son, I would not have located a reference to masonic fraternity<\/a> that played a role in the invasion of Carlisle, PA.<\/p>\n A quick glance at headers or keywords would have led me astray in this instance, so I am glad that I took the time necessary to do a fairly thorough reading of my materials.<\/p>\n Utilizing secondary sources and forming research questions coupled with thoroughness and patience form the most valuable lessons that I took from our research project.\u00a0 Had I not been able to confront the problems I had been facing in conducting research, it is unlikely that I would be able to achieve much as a history major.\u00a0 I hope that with this experience I can go forward and put my skills to good use and I hope that my mistakes and achievements can aid other students of history.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By Stephen Whittaker, Class of 2013 Conducting research through a variety of mediums has taught me several valuable lessons that I intend to carry with me into future college classes and careers. First, and foremost, I had to learn to … Continue reading