Understanding how to utilize library resources is very important in and outside of a classroom setting.

In
my previous undergraduate classes, it usually sufficed to simply use online articles that weren’t peer-
reviewed. Now at a higher level of learning, this is my third class that has demonstrated to students the
importance of scientific research and educational journals. Reading these journals and finding
connections with our graduate level classes will be beneficial for our writing skills and understanding the
world as we continue our executive leadership journey.

The library resources available to us have already been beneficial to me in my previous classes and I
expect to use them as my schedule continues. For management and leadership especially, these
resources are great to read real world studies, capture data, and relate those findings to our goals and
projects during these courses. Often we can find similar or dissenting opinions through these library
resources. We shouldn’t always be searching for works that closely align with our own ideas. Even
arguments against our writings can be included to add substance to our proposals. This research really
expands our base knowledge and allows students to dive deeper into topics they may not have been
comfortable discussing or investigating beforehand.

The library resources through ProQuest include peer-reviewed articles and journals that enhance the
overall academic structure of our work. Using this and the Purdue Owl websites that guide students with
format and APA styles will be great starting points when we are working to achieve higher writing skills
and improve our communication abilities.
It’s interesting that during my undergraduate studies, about five years ago, it was normally
recommended to use direct quotes from the author’s work. I think that was mainly to avoid
misunderstanding the main points and ensuring the reader clearly understands the proposal. Now that
the APA style favors more paraphrasing, it’s important to understand what that actually means to us and
how it can benefit our target audience. Personally, I think paraphrasing is better in catching the readers’
attention and keeping them focused on important matters that might not be engaging and lively through
quoting someone else’s direct work.

My advice for doing great “paraphrase work” is to first create a draft where you are free-flowing the
ideas onto the document. Much like you would talk to a friend about this topic, use this space to sum up
what the author is saying but in a common language that everyone can understand. This get the juices
flowing right away and we can always go back and fix up or “professionalize” what we need to change.
It’s also good to read your paraphrase out loud and ask yourself if the person who wrote the original
works would agree that you’ve summed up the original one correctly. I usually try to read the article in
pieces, maybe read another related document, and then start breaking down what I want to say in my
own work. You don’t usually have to relay each main point given from the author, but the pieces can be
useful, especially if you’ve done previous work to expand on that original idea.