Let me just say that I definitely need the Growth Mindset course before attempting the Literature Review. That first-semester writing assignment put me right back at my childhood kitchen table. My mom was visiting for the weekend.
So, my process was to print out articles and then look for themes. Here is an image of my initial literature review research process. I still struggle with research organization, but needless to say, this was the last time I attempted to print and physically organize it. I am a visual person, so the sorting process is helpful, but I learned over time and with experience that not every article on your topics is worth including.
I began my review outline and early writings, and it was a complete regression into our old roles. I was the frustrated and confused learner, and she was the “It is so obvious; how do I explain it to you any differently” knowledgeable expert?
It’s a Lit Review…
– Mom
I really thought my ship was going to sink before I even got through the first course of the program. This had me in full-out tears and beginning to question my professional embarrassment when I had to drop the first course for one of the programs I was advising. You see, in hindsight, I see now that I was still looking to my mom to explain it to me in a way that made the lightbulb go off. I still didn’t know how to be an auto-diadic learner. I was frustrated because she couldn’t make me understand. It was rough on both of us, having that flashback to my childhood.
It was not until I paused and thought about what we were learning throughout our discussion posts, video resources, and readings. I stopped looking to another person to help me understand and instead began looking up the meaning and purpose of a literature review. I watched YouTube videos on how to conduct and organize research. At one point, I attempted to explain to my mom that I was going about my approach all wrong. I now felt like I had a better understanding of what I needed to do, but she thought I was just being defeatist and trying to start over. I finally had to trust that I knew what I needed to do. I still struggled with the task and do not feel confident in my writing abilities, but completing that first literature review is an accomplishment that is mine alone.
The Advisor That Cares 