Posts Tagged: research

Library Research Skills

• Searching the Belk Catalog by author, title, subject, and keyword to identify books and other materials in the library
• Locating and retrieving books and other materials in the library
• Selecting and using full-text databases (such as EBSCO or ProQuest) to retrieve full-text articles
• Using Boolean operators (and, or, not) to limit a database search to relevant articles
• Using Journal Finder to find journals, magazines, and newspapers in the library’s databases or in the library’s collection.
• Requesting books and articles through Interlibrary Loan forms (online and print)
• Distinguishing between articles from popular magazines and scholarly journals
• Recognizing the difference in information retrieved from the Internet and Web-based databases
• Evaluating the credibility of both print and electronic sources
• Asking a librarian for help when I need it
• Developing research questions and a strategy for answering them

*  These skills should be taught and reinforced through an assignment(s) that actually involves the student in hands-on use of library resources.

General Research Skills

• Students should be introduced to one of the major documentation styles, preferably MLA
• They should practice summary, paraphrasing, and effective synthesis of others’ ideas with their own
• In developing these techniques, they should learn how to avoid plagiarism
• They should begin to develop a sense of how to evaluate the credibility of sources, including both print and electronic sources

• Observation Activity (In-Class) : Students brainstorm observation criteria and then test them out. When conducted as a group activity, sub-groups could compare results to prompt discussion of the challenges of conducting thorough (but non-obtrusive) observations.
• Interview Activity (In-Class): Students brainstorm interview questions and test them out by interviewing each other
• Field Research Report (See Jessie Moore’s Assignment)
• Ethnography Assignment (See Kim Pyne’s Activity)

• Assignments and Activities

• Library Scavenger Hunt on Student Selected Topic –> Evaluating Sources –> Mini-Annotated Bibliography

• Source Comparison Activities: Give students, or have them find, different kinds of sources addressing the same topic –> Compare the sources –> Assess their reliability
  • Internet and Web-based Databases
  • Scholarly Journals Vs. Popular Magazines

• Library Session Tailored to a Specific Research Assignment in Your Class

Shared English 110 Experience

According to our objectives statement for English 110/College Writing, our course will give students experience “writing to persuade by analyzing, interpreting, researching, synthesizing, and evaluating a wide variety of sources” [emphasis added].

This expectation was extended in the “Library & General Research Skills students should develop in English 110” handout (included in your packet and available on Blackboard). While we can partner with Belk librarians to teach many of these skills, this instruction is most meaningful when completed within the context of a writing assignment. Furthermore, teaching these research skills in College Writing courses gives us another angle from which to discuss evaluating texts, using source material, and avoiding plagiarism.