sources of support whilst conducting a research project

3.1 Identify sources of support and how they can be used for own learning and development

Learning and development is an essential aspect of working in the health and social care sector, so it is important that you are able to identify and access sources of support in this area.

As well as formal training (both in-house and from external providers) there are several other ways that you may can obtain support for your personal development including:

• Your manager
• Your co-workers (especially experienced and senior colleagues)
• Own research (e.g. books, journals, Internet)
• Agreed ways of working (e.g. policies/procedures/protocols)
• Other professionals (e.g. doctors, occupational therapists, speech and language therapists, social workers etc.)
• Service users and their family (they will often know more about their conditions than anyone else)

Library Subject Support

News, tips and features from the Library.

Identify resources for your research project

A strong research project such as an essay, dissertation or thesis will always be supported by good quality information from a wide range of sources.  There are a huge variety of resources available to you and being able to make appropriate choices when selecting materials to include in your project and explain why you have chosen them, is an important academic skill that demonstrates a good awareness of your subject and an ability to think critically about ideas and research.

Of course, not all information resources will be relevant to your particular research.  You will have to think about the type of information you need then identify the type of resource that will provide that kind information.

For example:

Books will offer an in-depth overview of popular ideas, theories, and opinions in your subject area and are likely to be broader in scope than a journal article or conference paper.

While a c onference paper will often discuss ‘work-in-progress’, and therefore can be an ideal way of finding out about up to date research and ideas.

For more information on different resource types, including standards, patents, maps, newspapers and more, take a look at our range of Resource guides .

Your Subject Guide can also help you identify useful sources of information for your research as it contains a carefully curated list of resources that are tailored to your subject area.  Here you’ll  find useful lists of online reference books, eBook collections and recommended databases for finding relevant journal articles and conference papers.  Also, under the Subject Specific Resources tab, you’ll discover a further host of specialised materials relevant to your subject such as audiovisual media, data-sets or professional organisation’s websites.

Depending on your research topic, you might also want to explore the Special Collections tab to see materials held in our Library archives that are relevant to your subject area specifically.

For more advice on finding and evaluating resources for your research take a look at our Finding Information and Evaluating Information Guides.

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• Learning Modules
• Using ChatGPT
• Copyright, Citations, and References
• Sources and Research
• Misconduct Process
• Appeals Process
• Preventing Academic Misconduct
• Investigating and Reporting Alleged Academic Misconduct
• Handbook on Academic Integrity for Faculty, Instructors and TAs
• Reporting lesser offences
• Reporting major offences
• Academic Conduct
• Examination protocols
• Course outline template and Turnitin
• Professional Conduct
• Research Ethics Policy
• Academic Staff Responsibilities With Regard to Students

Finding Sources and Conducting Research

Knowing how to conduct good research is key to success at university. This page provides a very brief overview of a few important tips.

On this page:

Scholarly Research

Google & Wikipedia

Evaluating resources

Analyzing the URL

Who is the author and how credible is the work?

BEWARE of the ~

Watch for the parody

When you are conducting research for university-level assignments, you need to make sure to use sources that are suitable for academic research (i.e., are peer reviewed). While there is lots of information available online, most of what you will find using Google or other popular search engines will not be suitable for your course assignments.

While everything you need to know is probably out there on the Internet, finding it in a quick and effective manner is challenging. Searching the Internet may provide you with a snapshot of popular sites about your topic, but scholarly sources will not likely appear.

Back to top

The Ontario Tech library website includes information on conducting research and finding scholarly sources that are peer reviewed and are suitable for your research for course assignments. This section also provides you with important information on properly citing sources, and details on the common citation styles used. Click the link below to view this information.

• Research Help 
• Research Process
• Using Research Databases

To begin your search, you need to know what you are looking for. What is your topic? What is the breadth of information required? Do you require scholarly articles or opinions? Narrowing down your topic can save hours of searching on the web. Google is a powerful search engine that can be useful in helping to narrow your topic. The Google search engine ranks sites by collecting information on how many sites have linked to that particular page. If a page has many people linking to it, it is presumed the information must be relevant. The higher the number of links to the page, the higher Google places the web site when it returns the results of the search. Be watchful! Many search engines enable companies to purchase placement at the top of the search results. These "sponsored links" are usually separated and identified. For example, Google has sponsored links which can appear on the left side of the page.

Wikipedia can also be useful in conducting preliminary research to narrow your focus and get general background information. Wikipedia, however, is an encyclopedia that includes content created by volunteers. There is some oversight of the content, but it is not peer reviewed and edited in the same way that journal articles and books are. And encyclopedias are not suitable for academic research.

The onus is on you - the student - to establish the authenticity and reliability of your resources. Online materials are easily duplicated, manipulated, transferred, and stolen. One of the benefits of the Web is its ability to provide a venue for anyone to publish materials, yet this means that one has to be vigilant in ensuring the resources are academically sound. 

The first step in evaluating Web resources is to learn how to read a URL (universal resource locator) or Web site address. Web addresses work the same way as a street address, it is a specific location for that piece of information. URLs are organized in specific order. For example:

https://tlc.ontariotechu.ca/index.php

http://  - means "hypertext transfer protocol" and is used to provide access to the Web site.

tlc  - is the department's web site that we are going to visit ontariotechu  - is the domain name or the name of the organization that owns and runs the Web site .ca  - is a code that helps define the organization. In this case, it is the country code for Canada. index.html  - is the first Web page in the newsletter site Other types of domain codes can include but aren't limited to:

• .com - commercial business
• .edu - educational institution in the US. Canadian schools do not have a specific domain code and usually use just the country code.
• .gov - government organization
• .org - non-profit organization
• .net - networking organization
• .ca - Canada's country code - others include: .au - Australia, .uk - United Kingdom, .bm - Bermuda, .cn - China, etc.

Back to Top

Let's assume that you have found an article on the Web that you think may be of help to your research. You've looked at the URL and it seems credible, but now, let's look at the article itself. Review the list of questions below. Are you able to answer those questions about the article? If not, perhaps this article is not credible and therefore, would not enhance your research. 

• What are the person's credentials?
• Does s/he have the academic background to publish on this issue?
• Can you contact the author?
• Watch for advertising. Is there a corporate endorsement?
• Is this page a parody or hoax or joke?
• Does it provide a bibliography or reference list?
• Is it biased or forcing one particular view?
• Is the page up-to-date? When were the last edits made?

Back to Top   

This is a tilde ~ . This sign usually designates that the site is a personal Web page. For example, the URL may look like this: <http://www.bestuniversity.ca/~essmith/nursing.htm>

In analyzing this (fake) URL, one might think that it is an academic page because it has the name of the university in it. However, as an instructor, I have seen students reference pages with the ~ sign only to determine that the information was written by a low level staff member at the university and had no academic background or credentials. 

Hoaxes or parody or joke Web sites are prevalent on the Web. Their purpose is for entertainment, to poke fun or satirize a topic or person. Some of these sites are so well done that it can be very difficult to tell if they are real or not. Most sites have a link to "contact us" or "about," this is where you should be able to contact the site's author or editor to gain more information. 

For more information, see:

• Ontario Tech Library Research Help 
• NOOL @ Ontario Tech

Other sources:

• Peer Reviewed Journals (www.lib.utexas.edu/lsl/help/modules/peer.html) [link opens in new browser window]
• University of California Berkley  (www.lib.berkeley.edu/) [link opens in new browser window]

DSDWEB: FREE STUDY GUIDES FOR CARE QUALIFICATIONS

Answers for the Care Certificate and Levels 2, 3, 4 & 5 Diploma/NVQ

Learn, Do Not Copy! ALL DSDWEB RESOURCES ARE FREE. Please do pay for anything purporting to be from DSDWEB.

• LEVEL 2 DIPLOMA IN CARE ANSWERS
• Personal Development in Care Settings
• Identify Sources of Support for Planning and Reviewing...

Identify Sources of Support for Planning and Reviewing Own Learning and Development

This page is designed to answer the following questions:

• 2.1a Identify sources of support for their own learning and development ( Care Certificate , Standard 2: Your Personal Development )
• 3.1 Identify sources of support and how they can be used for own learning and development ( Level 2 Diploma in Care , Personal development in care settings )
• 4.1 Identify sources of support for planning and reviewing own development ( Level 3 Diploma in Adult Care , Promote personal development in care settings )

NOTE: This page has been quality assured for 2023 as per our Quality Assurance policy.

Professional development is an essential part of a health and social care worker’s role. It is important to keep up-to-date with changing legislation and best practices and there is always room to improve. It is prudent to have a good understanding of the sources of support available to help with learning and development.

Perhaps your best source of support for your own learning and development is your manager. You will have regular supervision and an annual appraisal to discuss any training that you or they think you could benefit from and to discuss your personal development goals.

You should prepare for these meetings by making notes of any issues you have had, any non-urgent concerns (urgent concerns should be reported immediately) and any insights you have had during your reflective practice . Your manager should offer guidance and feedback about how you can improve your practice.

You should also have regular formal observations, where your manager observes you doing a support task.

All formal meetings and observations should be documented and stored in your personnel and training records.

Training & research

Your employer must provide training so that you can work at the minimum standards required for a health and social care worker. This will include the standards covered by the Care Certificate as well as any specialised training that is relevant to your role.

Formal training can either be provided in-house by your employer, or an external agency may be used. You may also undertake other types of training, such as on-the-job training or online courses.

You may also do your own research to learn about topics that you feel you should know more about or think may benefit the services you provide. These days, research is often performed using the Internet, but books can still play an important part.

Team meetings & co-workers

Team meetings are an opportunity for you and your team to learn together. You can share ideas and discuss solutions to common problems.

Your co-workers can also be a source of both formal and informal support by providing feedback or offering advice and guidance.

Feedback from others

As well as obtaining feedback from your colleagues, talking with the individuals you support and other professionals from the care sector can be great sources of information. The individuals that you provide care to or their friends and family will be able to explain to you how your practice impacts them. Other professionals may be able to provide you with information about changes in local policy or training opportunities in your area.

A good example of knowledge-sharing between other professionals is the Registered Managers Network run by Skills for Care – they are free, and you don’t have to be a registered manager to attend, although you should contact the Chairperson first.

• Mentors/tutors

For some people, a mentor can be a valuable source of learning. This is someone who is experienced in care work and can give you pointers and advice about your work and how you could do it better. You can also learn from observing them and incorporating their good practice into your own practice. Similarly, if you are enrolled on a course or training program, your tutor/teacher may be able to give you valuable advice.

Policies & procedures

Company policies and procedures can also be great sources of information regarding your own personal development. By reading and understanding them, you are much better equipped to deal with situations in the correct manner, and you can learn a lot about how your organisation and the health and social care sector as a whole work.

Standards are used to set out the required attitudes, behaviours and competencies of health and social care workers. They will inform your practice and can be used to assess your performance. A list of standards in the health and social care sector can be found here .

There is no better teacher than experience. By doing your job on a day-to-day basis, you will instinctively learn how to do it effectively and to the best of your ability. It is also useful to reflect on your work to aid your learning and development.

So, in summary, the main sources of support are:

• Informal and formal conversations with your manager
• Supervisions
• Observations
• Professional discussions
• Regular training
• Own research
• Talking with colleagues
• Talking with professionals
• Team meetings
• Registered Managers Network
• Company policies and procedures

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Choosing Using Sources: A Guide to Academic Research

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Engaging graphics, compelling examples, and easy-to-understand explanations make Choosing and Using Sources: A Guide to Academic Research, your most valuable, open access resource for completing research-based writing assignments and projects. With this free-of-cost guide, students are better equipped to tackle the challenges of developing research questions, evaluating and choosing the right sources, searching for information, avoiding plagiarism, and much more.

With Choosing and Using Sources, you have:

• Research help through short videos, easy-to-follow explanations, and self-quizzes, designed to help increase your understanding of the research process.
• A guide with easy-to-navigate chapters and tips to help you figure out what your instructor may be asking for in a writing assignment or research project.
• Time savings and increased confidence to successfully carry out research for your class.
• Get started with Choosing and Using Sources today.

Support for research staff and students

Introduction, resources for doing your research, resources for tracking your research outputs, guides to help you with conducting and organising your research.

• Research Data Management
• Setting up your researcher ID
• Sharing and promoting
• Publishing your research
• Tracking publications
• University research policies
• Open Research
• Checklist for new research staff
• Information for research students
• Help and Training

The links on this page have been selected to help researchers to find useful information on the library website and tools relating to researchers

If you are just starting your PhD you will also find the Study Advice guide for research postgraduates useful. 

• A guide for research postgraduates Expert guidance from Study Advice at the University of Reading for research postgraduates.

Catalogues of our resources

• BrowZine BrowZine draws together many of our e-journals in an attractive, easy to use interface. Download the app to create your own 'bookshelf' of journal titles and to be alerted to new issues - it's then easy to see new tables of contents. You can save articles to read at a more convenient time, or export the citation details to EndNote or another referencing system.
• Special Collections Services website Provides further information about the University of Reading Special Collections service, which covers rare books and archive material.

Databases for finding references to journal articles and other materials

• A-Z list of databases A full list of databases that the Library subscribes to.
• Databases by subject Find databases relevant to your area of study.
• Video, image and sound resources We have access to various databases and websites that provide images, videos and sound resources.
• Accessing e-resources Guidance on accessing the Library's electronic resources.
• EThOS E-theses Online Service from the British Library. Doctoral theses from across the UK. Some are available to download instantly, scanned copies can be ordered for. For more guidance on using EThOS, see our guide below.

After your research output is published, you'll want to track attention to it from your peers and possibly from the general public (depending on what type of research you are working on).

Immediate impact To track immediate impact, you can use tools such as Altmetric Explorer and Plum Analytics (via Scopus). These tools pick up attention from social media and news platforms. Your publisher may also show downloads and views of your article on the journal website. 

Longer term impact For longer term impact, tracking citations to your work can be interesting. Citations are often used as a measure of a researcher's or institution's impact and are often part of international league tables.  Track citations to your research outputs via tools such as Google Scholar, Web of Science, Scopus, or Dimensions. If someone is citing you, they may be interested in your next paper. If your output has been added to an institutional repository, such as CentAUR, you can also track downloads of your work from the repository. 

• Altmetric Explorer Altmetric Explorer can help you to track the attention that research output has received following publication more... less... For help in interpreting and using the data in your CV or grant application, contact the Research Publications Adviser
• PlumX metrics in Scopus Find out more about PlumX metrics in the Scopus database

Scopus gives references to peer-reviewed literature in all subject areas. It includes journal articles (including 'in press' items), books, conference proceedings and patents. It is possible to search for topics, authors (including by ORCID ID), author affiliation and funders. Extensive analytical tools also allow you to: -analyse your search results by year, source, author, affiliation, country or territory, document type and subject area -compare journal impact to help you decide where to publish -see the citation impact and scholarly community engagement for an article -analyse the citation trend for any given article, set of results or for a list of author documents -view an author profile to analyse and track an individual's citation history Help and guidance Scopus Quick Reference Guide (PDF) Tutorial of creating alerts Scopus learn & support site

Web of Science gives access to a range of databases which can be searched individually or simultaneously: - BIOSIS Previews - biological sciences - Current Contents Connect - Data Citation Index - research data from international repositories - Derwent Innovations Index - patents in engineering - FSTA (Food Science and Technology Abstracts)   - Medline - biomedical sciences - Web of Science Core Collection - made up of the Arts and Humanities, Science, and Social Sciences Citation Indexes, plus a number of other databases The cross-search also includes open access journals and open archive repositories. Also available via Web of Science: - JCR (Journal Citation Reports)   Help and guidance Web of Science Training Portal

• Dimensions Dimensions bibliographic database

It is unclear which publishers are included in Google Scholar, so it shouldn't be used as your only source for a comprehensive literature search. For references to reliable, academic sources search our Summon discovery service or databases covering your subject. Link to our full-text You can set your preferences on Google Scholar to show links to full-text articles in all of our e-journals. 1) Click on the three lines on the top left of the home screen. 2) Select 'Settings'. 3) Select 'Library Links' on the left of the screen. 4) In the search box type 'Reading' and select the 'Reading University Library - Full-Text @ Reading' option. 5) Save your settings. When you do a search, look for a 'Full-Text @ Reading' link to the right of references in your results list. This indicates that we have a subscription which will give you access to the article. Click on this link to access the full-text. If the 'Full-text @ Reading' link does not appear next to a reference it indicates that it isn't covered by our subscriptions and you probably won't be able to access the article. If you are off-campus you will need to login to access the articles. You will usually be prompted to login as soon as you click on the link to the article. If this doesn't happen you will need to look for an institutional or Shibboleth login link once you reach the journal's website. For more guidance see Accessing e-journals. Google Scholar Button Google have produced a plugin for Chrome, Firefox and Safari which allows you to easily search for and cite articles. Highlight the title of an article in the page you are reading and then click the Scholar button and it will search for the article on Google Scholar in a pop up window. To get a formatted reference for a search result press the quote button next to it and the reference will appear in three different styles. To make the most of this tool set up the University of Reading as a 'Library Link' using the instructions above.

• CentAUR Find out how many times your output has been downloaded from the CentAUR repository (if you have a full text uploaded),
• Doing your literature search A guide to finding articles, books and other materials on your subject. Includes tips on constructing a comprehensive search using search operators (AND/OR), truncation and wildcards.
• Finding conference papers Info on sources to use to find conference papers.
• Finding journal articles Guidance on finding journal articles in your subject.
• Finding theses A guide to identifying and consulting theses produced at Reading and beyond.
• Doing a systematic review An introduction to the steps involved in doing a systematic review and how it differs from a literature review.
• Citing references guide Includes guidance on why, when and how to use references correctly in your academic writing.
• Keeping up-to-date Library guide to keeping up to date with new publications in your subject.
• Library webpages on EndNote Guidance on EndNote software for managing references.
• Using other libraries Advice on visiting other libraries, including the SCONUL Access scheme which grants access to other university libraries.
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• URL: https://libguides.reading.ac.uk/research-support

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Online Guide to Writing and Research

The research process, explore more of umgc.

• Online Guide to Writing

Research Resources

What are research resources.

Research resources are usually thought of as primary sources and secondary sources. Click on the tabs to learn more about both.

Primary sources  can be firsthand accounts of actual events written by an eyewitness or original literary or artistic works. They may be letters, official records, interviews, survey results, or unanalyzed statistical data. These sources contain raw data and information, such as the original work of art or immediate impressions. 

Secondary sources , on the other hand, are usually discussions, evaluations, syntheses, and analyses of primary and secondary source information.  

You will no doubt use both primary and secondary sources throughout your academic career. When you use them, and in what combination, usually depends on what you are researching and the discipline for which you are writing. If you are unclear about which sources to use, ask your professor for guidance.

Types of Research

Your research question and the kind of research you do will guide the types of resources you will need to complete your research. Students’ access to information is greater than ever before. To be a good researcher, you must be able to locate, organize, evaluate, and communicate information.

Common Places to Find Research

Research resources are found in various places, both within and outside the traditional library. Your research resources can come from your personal experiences; print media such as books, brochures, journals, magazines, and newspapers; and electronic sources found on the Internet. They may also come from interviews and surveys you or someone else conduct. 

Your Library

Libraries are a main resource for conducting academic research. Learning how to use them and their resources effectively is important to understanding the research process.  Libraries provide access to information through online research databases and library catalogs, ebooks and ejournals, and Internet resources, as well as traditional print resources. Understanding how to select and use the appropriate resources for specific information needs is the key to successful research. To become adept at locating and using information for research, you must know about the many different resources that are available to you.

The following links provide information about the resources available to you as a UMGC student through the UMGC library:

  About the Library

  Ask a Librarian

  Library Resources

Key Takeaways

Primary sources include firsthand accounts, raw data, and other original material.

Secondary sources include material that interprets and analyzes primary sources.

Mailing Address: 3501 University Blvd. East, Adelphi, MD 20783 This work is licensed under a  Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License . © 2022 UMGC. All links to external sites were verified at the time of publication. UMGC is not responsible for the validity or integrity of information located at external sites.

Table of Contents: Online Guide to Writing

Chapter 1: College Writing

How Does College Writing Differ from Workplace Writing?

What Is College Writing?

Why So Much Emphasis on Writing?

Chapter 2: The Writing Process

Doing Exploratory Research

Getting from Notes to Your Draft

Introduction

Prewriting - Techniques to Get Started - Mining Your Intuition

Prewriting: Targeting Your Audience

Prewriting: Techniques to Get Started

Prewriting: Understanding Your Assignment

Rewriting: Being Your Own Critic

Rewriting: Creating a Revision Strategy

Rewriting: Getting Feedback

Rewriting: The Final Draft

Techniques to Get Started - Outlining

Techniques to Get Started - Using Systematic Techniques

Thesis Statement and Controlling Idea

Writing: Getting from Notes to Your Draft - Freewriting

Writing: Getting from Notes to Your Draft - Summarizing Your Ideas

Writing: Outlining What You Will Write

Chapter 3: Thinking Strategies

A Word About Style, Voice, and Tone

A Word About Style, Voice, and Tone: Style Through Vocabulary and Diction

Critical Strategies and Writing

Critical Strategies and Writing: Analysis

Critical Strategies and Writing: Evaluation

Critical Strategies and Writing: Persuasion

Critical Strategies and Writing: Synthesis

Developing a Paper Using Strategies

Kinds of Assignments You Will Write

Patterns for Presenting Information

Patterns for Presenting Information: Critiques

Patterns for Presenting Information: Discussing Raw Data

Patterns for Presenting Information: General-to-Specific Pattern

Patterns for Presenting Information: Problem-Cause-Solution Pattern

Patterns for Presenting Information: Specific-to-General Pattern

Patterns for Presenting Information: Summaries and Abstracts

Supporting with Research and Examples

Writing Essay Examinations

Writing Essay Examinations: Make Your Answer Relevant and Complete

Writing Essay Examinations: Organize Thinking Before Writing

Writing Essay Examinations: Read and Understand the Question

Chapter 4: The Research Process

Planning and Writing a Research Paper

Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Ask a Research Question

Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Cite Sources

Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Collect Evidence

Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Decide Your Point of View, or Role, for Your Research

Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Draw Conclusions

Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Find a Topic and Get an Overview

Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Manage Your Resources

Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Outline

Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Survey the Literature

Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Work Your Sources into Your Research Writing

Research Resources: Where Are Research Resources Found? - Human Resources

Research Resources: What Are Research Resources?

Research Resources: Where Are Research Resources Found?

Research Resources: Where Are Research Resources Found? - Electronic Resources

Research Resources: Where Are Research Resources Found? - Print Resources

Structuring the Research Paper: Formal Research Structure

Structuring the Research Paper: Informal Research Structure

The Nature of Research

The Research Assignment: How Should Research Sources Be Evaluated?

The Research Assignment: When Is Research Needed?

The Research Assignment: Why Perform Research?

Chapter 5: Academic Integrity

Academic Integrity

Giving Credit to Sources

Giving Credit to Sources: Copyright Laws

Giving Credit to Sources: Documentation

Giving Credit to Sources: Style Guides

Integrating Sources

Practicing Academic Integrity

Practicing Academic Integrity: Keeping Accurate Records

Practicing Academic Integrity: Managing Source Material

Practicing Academic Integrity: Managing Source Material - Paraphrasing Your Source

Practicing Academic Integrity: Managing Source Material - Quoting Your Source

Practicing Academic Integrity: Managing Source Material - Summarizing Your Sources

Types of Documentation

Types of Documentation: Bibliographies and Source Lists

Types of Documentation: Citing World Wide Web Sources

Types of Documentation: In-Text or Parenthetical Citations

Types of Documentation: In-Text or Parenthetical Citations - APA Style

Types of Documentation: In-Text or Parenthetical Citations - CSE/CBE Style

Types of Documentation: In-Text or Parenthetical Citations - Chicago Style

Types of Documentation: In-Text or Parenthetical Citations - MLA Style

Types of Documentation: Note Citations

Chapter 6: Using Library Resources

Finding Library Resources

Chapter 7: Assessing Your Writing

How Is Writing Graded?

How Is Writing Graded?: A General Assessment Tool

The Draft Stage

The Draft Stage: The First Draft

The Draft Stage: The Revision Process and the Final Draft

The Draft Stage: Using Feedback

The Research Stage

Using Assessment to Improve Your Writing

Chapter 8: Other Frequently Assigned Papers

Reviews and Reaction Papers: Article and Book Reviews

Reviews and Reaction Papers: Reaction Papers

Writing Arguments

Writing Arguments: Adapting the Argument Structure

Writing Arguments: Purposes of Argument

Writing Arguments: References to Consult for Writing Arguments

Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - Anticipate Active Opposition

Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - Determine Your Organization

Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - Develop Your Argument

Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - Introduce Your Argument

Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - State Your Thesis or Proposition

Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - Write Your Conclusion

Writing Arguments: Types of Argument

Appendix A: Books to Help Improve Your Writing

Dictionaries

General Style Manuals

Researching on the Internet

Special Style Manuals

Writing Handbooks

Appendix B: Collaborative Writing and Peer Reviewing

Collaborative Writing: Assignments to Accompany the Group Project

Collaborative Writing: Informal Progress Report

Collaborative Writing: Issues to Resolve

Collaborative Writing: Methodology

Collaborative Writing: Peer Evaluation

Collaborative Writing: Tasks of Collaborative Writing Group Members

Collaborative Writing: Writing Plan

General Introduction

Peer Reviewing

Appendix C: Developing an Improvement Plan

Working with Your Instructor’s Comments and Grades

Appendix D: Writing Plan and Project Schedule

Devising a Writing Project Plan and Schedule

Reviewing Your Plan with Others

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Education and Training

Wonderful Sources of Support for Learning and Development

Lead Academy

The world is becoming competitive day by day, so personal and professional development has become crucial to sustain in this competitive era. It’s your skills that speak on your behalf wherever you present yourself. To develop these skills and stay updated, continual learning has no alternative. This learning, when backed up by sources of support, can lead you to the path of success.

But, what are the sources of support for learning and development (L&D)? How to identify sources of support for planning and reviewing own development? This blog can help you know. Do give it a read.

Do you want to develop your learning strategies?

Table of Content

What are Sources of Support for Learning and Development?

Your manager, your co-worker, your mentor, formal and informal training, team meetings, volunteering, internet research, why are sources of support important for personal development, why are sources of support important for professional development, what to read next:.

“Sources of Support” are those elements that aid in your learning and development. These sources can be either formal or informal. While the formal sources of support mostly rely on the professionals, their advice and guidance, informal sources are about events, research and practical learning. Both the forms of support can help you create a personal vision and motivate you to reach your target.

Different Sources of Support for Personal and Professional Development:

This blog has attempted to outline sources of support for learning and development, which are as follows-

Formal Sources-

The best source of support for your learning and development can be your manager. It’s him with whom you can discuss your personal development goals. Your manager might suggest any training they think would benefit you after annual appraisal and supervision. They can also offer you guidance and feedback on how to improve yourself both personally and professionally.

Another important source of support for your learning and development would be your co-workers. Just like your manager, they can guide you to meet your career goals and provide feedback on your performance. You might also be able to learn from their decision-making process and strategies.

A mentor is someone who provides advice, guidance and support you need to thrive personally and professionally. Your mentor can be anyone from your work or outside your workplace, whom you can trust and who is willing to assist you in your learning and development.

You can follow your mentor’s advice, observe them, and then incorporate their good practice into your own. If they share their experience, you might also take lessons from those experiences.

Training programmes, both formal and informal, can contribute to your learning and personal development. Your employer or any external agency might provide formal training. You can also undertake on-the-job training and online courses to develop your skills.

Routine team meetings provide an opportunity for you to learn something new along with your team members. You can share your views, ideas and discuss common problems to bring up a solution.

Informal Sources-

You can attend local seminars that contribute to your personal or career development. These seminars provide information that you can incorporate in your personal and professional life to reach your goals.

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To discuss problems and offer solutions, workshops bring all the professionals with specific expertise under one roof. These workshops demand active participation from those attending. This hands-on experience can benefit you in achieving new skills.

Volunteering offers an opportunity to acquire practical skills and improves your communication skills. It helps to reinforce trust in your ability to learn quickly and act efficiently.

The Internet is a wonderful source for learning and keeping yourself up-to-date. That is why you can do your own research through the internet and browse about topics you need to know for your personal and professional development.

Consider reading books that interest you and relate to your personal-professional development. If you are not sure what to read, ask your peers, manager or mentor to recommend.

Check out this blog and learn how to write a personal development plan .

Before acknowledging the importance of the sources of support for personal development, you first need to understand why personal development is necessary.

Personal development is about improving your talent, potential and employability. Thus, it helps to set your vision about life and makes your life goals clear. Personal development acts as the driving force behind your success.

Likewise, the sources of support allow you to embark on a meaningful journey of growth and self-reflection. When it comes to personal development, the sources of support help to identify your talent and hone your skills.

The formal sources of support guides and encourages you to improve yourself and the informal ones, prepares you through practical learning.

As per Forbes , “Professional development aims to give professionals the skills, knowledge and behaviours that they need to thrive in their careers and ensure it aligns with their values.”

Now, the question is, what is the role of sources of support in professional development? Well, there are many. For instance, informal sources of support like conferences, workshops and volunteering aid in networking with other professionals. This broadens your career opportunities.

Furthermore, formal support like training develops your skills, preparing you as an eligible candidate for your respective field.

Additionally, by observing your senior employees, like your manager, colleagues or mentor, you can adopt their work style and improve your workplace performance.

The blog has explained the 10 sources of support for learning and development that are helpful for your growth, whether personally or professionally. With the help of these sources, you can also refine your abilities and expand your expertise.

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3.1 Identify sources of support whilst conducting a research project

Qualification : Level 4 Diploma in Adult Care Optional Units Unit : Unit 543 Undertake a research project within services for health and social care or children and young people Learning outcome : 3. Be able to conduct a research project within services for health and social care or children and young people Assessment criteria : 3.1 Identify sources of support whilst conducting a research project

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