Logan Frey

Andrew Brown

April 28th, 2017

UWRT 1104

Annotated Bibliography Reflection

Reflecting on the Annotated Bibliography process, I have gained a further appreciation

for the process that is required in terms of collecting multiple research sources and incorporating

them into a piece of writing revolving around a specific research topic. In terms of my personal

bibliography, I was able to quickly discover multiple sources such as online magazines, school

databases, and other online sources. During my quest to find various sources, I was able to

identify two sources through the UNC Charlotte Atkins Library Database, as well as two other

sources on an online magazine called Reason. As I continued to search for sources, I was faced

with multiple problems in terms of finding credible and quality sources that could be used to

create a trustworthy bibliography, therefore I had to overcome this obstacle by narrowing down

my search to acquire sources from reliable sites. Through intricate research, I was able to obtain

a vast amount of knowledge regarding my topic that provided further understanding of my

research subject and strengthened my overall perspective of my topic as well.

The most critical piece of information that I learned while researching my topic was that

all states that select a drinking age less than twenty-one will lose 10% of its highway funding

from the federal government, which is the reason why most states wont even consider lowering

the drinking age. While reading an article written on whether or not the drinking age should be

reduced to eighteen, Dr. Neustatter, who studied the effects of alcohol on brain development

stated, If the question was whether to lower the drinking age to say, 15, this would be a much
different conversation. But the mere three years between 18 and 21 doesn't make that big of a

difference. It's pretty much the same brain -- physiologically, and psychologically. One last

striking piece of evidence I gained through delicate research was that, In a 2003 survey 22% of

American tenth graders said they'd had five or more consecutive drinks in the last 30 days,

which shows the amount of underage drinking that takes place in uncontrollable and dangerous

settings. Therefore, if drinking was introduced at a younger age, such as eighteen, it could be

taught to be done in a responsible manner and in safe conditions that could make drinking at a

younger age more realistic.

After completing the research aspect of the annotated bibliography, I was able to make a

comparison between my perspective of my topic prior to the research process versus my

perspective of my topic after the process. Prior to my research topic, I had strong views on why

the drinking age should be reduced to eighteen, but I did not have the detailed facts to support

my beliefs. Therefore, through intricate research, I was able to gather information that not only

supported my beliefs in terms of my topic, but strengthened my overall views of my topic as

well. In terms of finding helpful and reliable articles, I would say that I discovered the most

useful articles through searching the UNC Charlotte Atkins Library database. In my opinion, I

believe that the database articles were the most helpful due to the fact that it comes from reliable

sources and provides the most accurate information that is crucial in terms of supporting a

research topic. Supporting a research topic requires intellectual knowledge acquired through

reliable sources such as the UNC Charlotte Atkins Library Database that provides surveys,

medical information gathered by doctors, and other useful facts that allow a writer to accurately

support a specific research topic.

 In terms of the process behind completing the annotated bibliography, I was able to

obtain useful information regarding the overall structure of an annotated bibliography and

specify the importance of annotated bibliographies. As I began my annotated bibliography, it was

vital to gather reliable sources that could provide trustworthy information for later use in a

research paper. Once the sources and information was gathered regarding the research topic, the

next step was to gather information such as the author, publisher, and publishing date to

incorporate in the citation. From there, I was able to provide the citation for each source, and

then construct a short summary followed by a personal reflection regarding the information

distributed amongst articles. By completing the annotated bibliography, I have been able to learn

how to construct a structured document such as citation page followed by summaries and

personal reflections, which will be crucial in the business world when it comes to writing

detailed and structured business reports.

In terms of identifying SLOs that correlate with the annotated bibliography, I have

selected critical reading and composing processes as the two student learning outcomes that fit

the description of the annotated bibliography process impeccably. Reflecting on the critical

reading SLO, it discusses using reading to inquire, learn and discover, which is what was

required in terms of selecting sources that correlate with an individuals specific research topic.

Not only does the critical reading SLO discuss using reading to inquire, learn, and discover, but

it also discusses being able to locate, evaluate and synthesize evidence from sources (primary

and secondary), which goes back to being able to pick out specific information that correlates

with an individuals specific research topic. Aside from the critical learning student learning

outcome, the critical reflection SLO also correlates with the annotated bibliography due to the

fact that part of the bibliography process requires individuals to compose a reflection based upon
the sources theyre citing. The critical reflection student learning outcome is described as using

writing as reflection and introspection, which displays the usage of critical reflection in terms of

using writing to reflect on the information being distributed amongst the various articles.

Reflecting on the overall process of the annotated bibliography, I have been able to

properly gather specific information from sources that correlate with my research topic, gain a

deeper understanding for the importance of composing annotated bibliographies, and use the

information collected throughout the process to strengthen my views on my overall research

topic. Throughout the annotated bibliography process, it has opened my eyes to the steps that are

required in properly composing a citation page and reflecting on the information located

throughout the sources that are being cited. With that being said, I have not only been able to

grow as a reader and writer, but I have been able to fully understand the deeper meaning behind

reflecting on certain pieces of writing and use that to compose a research paper. Overall, I have

gained a deeper appreciation for the annotated bibliography process and putting forth the effort

to fully gather the necessary information and incorporate it into a piece of writing that serves a

specific purpose.