| Judith Downie
Humanities Librarian
KEL 3424
(760) 750-4374
jdownie@csusm.edu Office hours: by
appointment or stop by whenever my door is open. |
|
The Library Module will introduce you to the basics of college-level research. The
skills you learn during the module
will help you for 2 main reasons:
- specifically, for the
research project you will do for this class.
- in general, for the papers and projects you will be
expected to do
for the rest of your college career.
Library Module Syllabus and Grading
The Library Module covers a lot of information in only 6
classes, so attendance and participation are important.
- Each
in-class activity and homework assignment is for credit
and must be
completed on time.
- Appropriate classroom behavior is required (e.g. no iPods,
text messaging, eating, etc).
- NO late work (either handed in or emailed) will be accepted
without prior arrangements with the librarian.
- Homework must be typed.
- You must do your own work--do not turn in the same
work as another student unless you are instructed
to work in a group on an assignment.
- Plagiarism and other forms of cheating, as
defined
here in the General University Catalog, will
result in zero credit for each plagiarized
assignment. Repeated violation or plagiarism on the
final library project will result in a grade of
zero points for the library module.
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In-class
activities |
25 pts |
|
Homework assignments |
55 pts |
|
Annotated bibliography assignment |
40 pts |
|
Quiz |
30 pts |
|
Total |
150 points |
Note: The
Office
of Disabled Student Services provides a variety of
services and resources to students. Students with
disabilities should contact me immediately to ensure
appropriate accommodations are made during the Library
Module.
Library Module Schedule
The instructor reserves the right to make changes as
necessary, to assignments outlined in this syllabus. However,
no changes will be made in the nature of weighting of
assignments given in class, nor will any schedule changes
shorten the amount of time that students have to work on any
written assignment.
Assignment Descriptions
Homework Assignment #1 (10 pts.
text pp. 8-13, 23-24, 35-36 and below)
From your own Internet searching,
you probably realize there is an overwhelming
amount of information available online.
When searching for information, whether a web page, book
or article, you can plug keywords related to your topic into
Google or another search engine... but doing this
and using the first few results for your
paper does not constitute research!
Anyone can put up a website. How
do you know that its information is accurate,
legitimate or current? Learn how to
evaluate a web site before choosing
to include the information you find in your
research project.
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Locate a scholarly, or at least, reputable,
website on your topic. Print the first
page of the site with the URL clearly printed in
the bottom margin (write in by hand if it is a
PDF file, but browser and printer settings can be adjusted
to print the URL on other types of pages) Write your name clearly on the top of
the page.
See the
Widener University website tutorial as a reminder of
what you are evaluating.
On the back of the page, write down an item
of
evidence you found for each of the following:
- Authority
- Accuracy
- Currency
- Objectivity
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Top
Homework Assignment #2 (15 pts.
text pp. 29-31)
Plagarism can occur accidentally
from not recording your citation information. But in many
cases the temptation to plagiarize comes from the pressures
of school workload combined with social life and work
responsibilities. Any form of academic dishonesty
can have serious repercussions that you don't want to
suffer
(see the CSUSM
Academic Honesty Policy).
A little careful attention to what you need to do will go a
long way in protecting yourself.
Read through the
CSUSM Plagiarism Tutorial's
4 sections and
complete the checkpoint at the end of each of
these sections:
- "What is Plagiarism",
- "How to Avoid It"
- "How to Credit Sources"
Email the results of each
checkpoint to me at
jdownie@csusm.edu, so I will receive 3
emails from each of you. I will answer the third
email with your points earned on this activity.
Make sure your name and email are on the
checkpoint as there is a time-stamp but no email
address unless you type it in. NO credit given
for checkpoints not received by
1:00 PM on Monday
February 18.
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Homework Assignment #3 (10 pts.
text pp. 14-19 and below)
The library
catalog is not designed to be a barrier to finding
information, although it may feel that way. The labels that will locate
material most precisely have been developed by experts in the
various subject areas and they use precise terminology that
you need to become acquainted with in order to be successful. This exercise will help you develop
the skills to investigate and open the doors to the
information you need from the catalog.
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Refer to the
homework model for both required format and
required information. Provide the
information as indicated on your topic,
keywords, subjects and keep in mind as you
search that you need to provide an explanation of how the material you
found will be useful.
Using the keyword search function in the
CSUSM Library catalog and with the keywords you used,
locate at least ONE book that you might use for
your research (it must be a book!) Open that
item record and examine the subject headings at
the bottom and list two subject headings that
will be useful to locate other materials (you
may have to find your second subject heading in
a different record). You do
not need to find the entire book useful, but at
least one chapter should be relevant to your
topic.
Remember, this must be typed and provide a
short explanation of why this item applies to
your topic. |
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Homework Assignment #4 (15 pts.
text pp. 23-26, 35-36 and below)
The
Research Databases are by far our most popular information
sources. But we have a ever-growing list of databases and not
all will be suitable to all research needs. Make sure you
are looking in an appropriate database, and when in doubt,
consult with your professor or a librarian!
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Using the keywords from your homework #3 or new
keywords that you have decided on, use a
research database to locate a SCHOLARLY article.
It must meet the standards we covered in class
or will not count for points.
Recommended places to look, besides
Academic Search Premier
used in class are:
Print the entire article and write
your name in the top margin. Read through the
article and highlight or underline THREE key
ideas or statements that you could use in your
paper. Bring to class--No hard copy? NO credit.
A hard copy is required for use in class and you will be
turning it in to me.
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Homework Assignment #5 (5 pts.
text pp. 20-22)
Any paper worth
a good grade will have a thesis statement. (That is a
simple thesis statement right there!) It should not be a paragraph
long, but should be found in the first paragraph of the paper so
the reader knows what is going to come.
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Using the tools you have and the knowledge you
have gathered to this point, write a thesis
statement that won't embarrass you or me and
email to me at
jdownie@csusm.edu with the subject line
DOUGLASS and your name. Don't just use the thesis
builder and turn what comes out in the first try, you will need to
polish the grammar and check the spelling before
sending.
Don't think this is the final statement you
will anchor your work on, but it should still be
good work at this stage with correct grammar and
a sound concept for the thesis. Good writers
continue to
polish the statement as they analyze and develop
their thoughts while writing the paper.
DUE BEFORE CLASS MEETING ON
February 27 via email. |
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Annotated bibliography (text
pp. 27-28)
What is an annotated bibliography anyway?
An annotation is a brief summary of a book, article, or other
publication. BUT it is not a 'book report' in that an annotation is more
analytical and critical of the purpose, authority and
application to a particular research question.
Annotations can appear as
part of a bibliography, the list of sources that is standard in scholarly books and articles, including most student papers.
When a
bibliography includes annotations it is known as an annotated bibliography.
Here are 6 points commonly covered
in an annotation to help you write one:
1. What are the
qualifications of the
author?
2. What is the main
purpose of the text? (summarize in one sentence)
3. How does this source
relate to your topic?
4. What is the viewpoint
or bias of the author?
5. Who is the intended
audience of this work?
6. What is your final
comment on this work?
Here is a sample Annotated
Bibliography for this class assignment and a
checklist
to use while completing the bibliography to make sure you
include everything needed. Please be sure to follow all
details in the sample--doing so will make it easier for me
to make sure you get credit where credit is due.
Top
Advanced
internet searching
Google or DMOZ? Yahoo or LII? What's the difference?
|
Search Engines |
Subject Directories |
Compiled by
computer "spiders" that "crawl"
the web, constantly adding websites |
Compiled by
people, selectively adding websites |
|
"More is better" or "Quick and easy" |
"Less is more" or "Quality, not quantity" |
| Websites often
listed by popularity or paid sponsors |
Websites often
listed by subject categories |
BEST FOR:
- very specific searches (e.g. person or org.)
- phrase searches (e.g. "Martin Luther King Jr")
- you know exactly what you're looking for
|
BEST FOR:
- broad topic or concept searches
- need background information (e.g. alternative
health treatments, history of, types of)
- you're not sure what you're looking for
|
|
Try out:
|
Try out:
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Finding books
Find books by searching the
Library Catalog. A good strategy
is to:
|
Enter
a keyword or two |
housing and Hispanic
bilingual education
gender and role |
Scan
the list for one good
title of interest |
'Clear and convincing evidence: measurement of
discrimination in America'
'The
Hispanic child: speech, language, culture, and
education'
'Gender
and domestic life : changing practices in families
and households'
|
Click
on the subject
headings for that
book |
Discrimination In Housing United States
Education Bilingual
Sex role -- United States -- History |
*The following are just
a few subject headings from our Library
Catalog related to the class topic.
Try clicking on some that are related to your topic and see
what titles come up:
HQ784.W3 H66 2006??
What does a call number tell you? Here's a quick guide to the Library of Congress system.
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Finding articles
Journals articles include the latest
research in the field. To find articles, you need to start
with a research database. Each will allow
you to search hundreds or even thousands of journals at once
by searching for keywords relevant to your topic. Databases
can have BOTH scholarly and non-scholarly articles.
|
|
Scholarly (peer-reviewed,
refereed, empirical) |
Non-scholarly (popular) |
|
Audience |
academic readers |
general audience |
|
Author |
researchers, experts, specialists |
journalists, free-lance
writers, generalists |
|
Language |
professional
jargon; may be
difficult to read |
common; easy to
understand |
|
Style |
specific structure (e.g.
abstract, methodology,
data, results, conclusion, references) |
structured like a story; can look
glossy with pictures and ads |
|
Sources
|
long list of
bibliography, references, footnotes |
no bibliography or
references listed |
| Examples |
Ethnic and
Racial Studies; Gender & Society;
International Migration Review;
American Journal of
Public Health;
Latin American Perspectives |
Time; Newsweek; Business
Week;
US News & World Report; New York Times;
Christian Science
Monitor |
Some databases provide a 'peer-reviewed' or 'scholarly
only' limit function that can narrow the results, but will
still bring back non-scholarly materials that were published
in a scholarly journal (e.g., editorials, letters to the
editor, book reviews.) When in doubt, ask a librarian!
NOTE: Depending on your topic, other databases
might be more relevant.
You can choose a
database by
subject.
Think you can find all this stuff on the Internet?
Not for free!
See an article you want in one of
these databases?
- Look for "Full Text" in
PDF,
HTML,
 Linked
or 
- If all else fails, fill
out an Interlibrary
Loan article request form. You'll get it within 5-10 days for FREE.
- Or, any time you need
help, ask a librarian!
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