In my last couple of posts, I have been taking a look at the state of my own genealogy education, and sharing some of the educational opportunities out there that I have learned from or hope to learn from in the future. Here are a few more types of activities that can help to strengthen... Continue Reading →
Genealogy Education Programs & Activities – Part 1
As I mentioned in my last post, I’ve been evaluating my own genealogy education. Here are some of the educational programs/activities that I have taken advantage of over the past few years, and some resources I will likely look to further as I work to fill in any gaps or strengthen areas that need it... Continue Reading →
Evaluating My Genealogy Education
Lately, I have been challenging myself to push my own genealogy research to the level required for application for certification by the Board for Certification of Genealogists (BCG). Most recently, I have been working on cataloging and evaluating my development activities, or the educational efforts that have helped me enhance my genealogy knowledge and refine... Continue Reading →
Evaluating My Genealogy Research: The Genealogist’s Code of Ethics
As I mentioned previously, I’m challenging myself to compare my work to the standards set by the Board for Certification of Genealogists. The first component of a portfolio for those applying for certification with the BCG (or for those aiming to perform genealogy research at that level) is to agree to abide by The Genealogist’s... Continue Reading →
Striving to Meet Genealogy Standards: Part 2 – Evaluating My Own Work
Last week, I discussed the Genealogical Proof Standard and Genealogy Standards, and how I believe that all genealogists can benefit from keeping these standards in mind as they study their family histories. As I attempt to improve my own research methods, I've been trying to be more careful with my work, adhering to the standards... Continue Reading →
Striving to Meet Genealogy Standards: Part 1 – Understanding the GPS and Genealogy Standards
For about as long as I have been researching my family’s history (nearly twenty years now), I have worked to improve my genealogy research – not only in the number of ancestors I have identified or how much I have learned about each of them, but also in terms of the quality of my research... Continue Reading →
How Do I Level Up the DNA Evidence for My Ancestors?
Last week, I looked at the current state of research into my ancestors – focusing on my assembled DNA evidence. (This is a modification of Yvette Hoitink’s original Level-Up Challenge for genealogy research). Here, I'll walk through the steps I take to bring my genetic genealogy research to the next level. My goal for this process... Continue Reading →
The Level-Up Challenge – For DNA Evidence
Last week I wrote about taking Yvette Hoitink’s Level-Up Challenge for my genealogy research, which pushed me to clarify what I know about my ancestors and helped me focus my research moving forward. As I mentioned in that post, though, when I classified my ancestors at different levels based on how thoroughly I’ve researched them... Continue Reading →
Taking the Level-Up Challenge!
Last week, I wrote about evaluating my family tree in terms of completeness, or simply counting how many ancestors I have identified (with at least some confidence). There is much more to genealogy research, though, than simply putting names on a tree - even if you have one or more pieces of evidence that seem... Continue Reading →
Research Check-In: How Complete Are My Trees?
I’m starting this year by checking in on my tree completeness. Why am I doing this? While it can be nice to keep tabs on genealogy research progress, and I like a good set of statistics as much as the next person, it’s more than just curiosity. For any research project, it’s useful to start... Continue Reading →