Writing assignments tend to be daunting tasks for me to undertake. A completely blank Microsoft Word document can sometimes feel like an empty lot where a person is supposed to somehow build a building. In general, I am happy with my facing these tasks and writing essays, but I think that my research essay on was weakened since my sources were not of the caliber of academic sources. This is the area that could have been most improved if I were to take a stab at writing the essays again. In this reflection I will reflect on the process of writing it, vet the sources I used, and look for ways that my essay might have received a higher grade.
I chose the topic of cyber security because it was something that I was interested in learning from. I hear often that there are these looming threats of people who want to break into our devices and steal identities and money. I do not want this to be one of those things where I do nothing and then have my device broken into and look back and wish that I had taken additional measures. So I chose this topic because through it seemed that I could kill two birds with one stone. I could fulfill the requirement of the research essay and also learn some valuable knowledge along the way. My only concern with the topic was where I would be able to find good research. Cyber security did not seem to me to be a topic I would find in “academic journals” as was required for the essay. But I assumed the information must be out there and so if I did enough research I became certain that I would be able to find it.
When I was researching, I first thought that maybe I could find some books that had information from the physical library. I did this because I assumed that books would automatically fit the criteria of academic research, however, I did not find the books I was looking for. It is possible that the library had them, but to be honest, I am not entirely sure how to find actual physical books in the library. I come from a generation of finding things through searching on the web and a building filled with books seems impossible to find what I was looking for.
After giving up on the library, I turned to the UMUC Information and Library services. The keywords I used for the research were, “Cyber security,” “The threats to mobile devices” “Protecting your privacy” Guarding against hackers” and a few others that I have since forgotten.
In the end, I also turned to Google to find some of what I was looking for. And this is likely why I only received 25% of the points I could have for the category of “Scholarly as appropriate.” Then I looked on the Library network to see if what I had found on Google Scholar could also be found on the library database. In some cases there was an overlap, such as in the case of the NYS Division of Homeland Security & Emergency Services paper. Also in the case of the CERT report. But the Mobile Technology Fact Sheet from Pew research was not to be found on there. I found this to be a little strange, since I have always considered PEW to be a legitimate research center.
In the future, when I am doing such research, I want to not be so confined to finding that research on the Internet. I could also always contact the IT department of the University, talk to professors there, and ask them about any publications or articles that have been peer reviewed where I could find the information that I am looking for.
It seems I have learned in this course how to correctly cite my sources throughout the essay. Indeed, I received as high a mark as was possible in this part of the grading rubric.
If I were to give myself a grade now on the essay, reflecting on what I could have done better, I would give myself a C grade. While the sources that I used were useful and relevant for the topic, only two of them were in fact academic level research. Many were the types of articles that derive their information from academic publications. Another way in which I could have found better sources would have been to taken the sources that I used, and then found out where those articles derived their information from and used that for a source. I could have done this for Mobile Devices and Cybercrime: IS Your Phone The Weakest Link. In looking at the article now it lists its sources, which I could have then read through and used to source my paper.
All in all, this was a valuable process and while I am happy with the grade I received and think that I deserved it, I am happier to have learned what I did in the process so that I may apply these lessons to future essays.
References:
CERT. Retrieved February 18, 2014, from https://www.us-cert.gov/sites/default/files/publications/TIP10-105-01.pdf
Mobile Technology Fact Sheet. (n.d.). Pew Research Centers Internet American Life Project RSS. Retrieved February 18, 2014, from http://www.pewinternet.org/fact-sheets/mobile-technology-fact-sheet/
Mobile Devices and Cybercrime: Is Your Phone the Weakest Link?. (n.d.).KnowledgeWharton Mobile Devices and Cybercrime Is Your Phone the Weakest Link Comments. Retrieved February 21, 2014, from http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/mobile-devices-and-cybercrime-is-your-phone-the-weakest-link/
