Considering the readings so far and your own learning interests, form a research question. Think about how you would locate primary, historical sources that might begin to help you answer that question. How might your findings cause you to reframe your question? What can you reasonably answer with the materials available? What materials would you like to access that are not digitized? What are your next steps? Write a blog post about your preliminary research process in a digital contextSince I am still exploring my research options, I do not have one specific question I want to be committed to. However, considering the readings that we had so far, I am very curious about what Indigenous knowledge is, how it is defined, and why is it preserved the way it is preserved. It is also interesting how it is usually affiliated with communities rather than individuals solely. What is the best way to protect and transmit Indigenous knowledge is another question I am interested in. More precisely I wonder how that information can be protected but also shared. What distinguishes the teaching of Indigenous history from the teaching of other histories? Those are the questions I have in my mind for now. I definitely think I can reframe my questions, and make them less general. I usually start my research with the sources that are available in the library catalog. My favorite and most used database is JSTOR and Worldcat, so I am probably going to begin with those. I also want to try to use search engines that were provided on the classroom page.
Rukhsora– you present a number of central questions involved with doing research in Native history/studies. As you describe in your post, it is so important to be mindful of Indigenous knowledge practices and how these might differ from our own. Doing this kind of work often requires deconstructing how we interpret and place value on the production, preservation, and presentation of such knowledge. These are all of the right questions to ask ourselves when delving into a topic that engages the lived experiences of Indigenous people.
Starting at the library is the PERFECT place to begin your research! There are so many wonderful resources there and it always helps to have an actual conversation with a librarian– they can guide you in the right direction and offer many helpful tips. I am also a huge fan of WorldCat; that is another great place to start for research!