| Melanie Chu
Outreach Librarian
KEL 3426
mchu@csusm.edu
(760) 750-4378 Office hours: Tuesday 10-11,
Wednesday 1-2, drop-in and by appointment.
|
|
What is the GEL Library Module?
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
and presentation you will do
in this class.
- in general, for the papers and projects you will be
expected to do
for the rest of your college career.
Schedule, Topics and Assignments
The Library Module covers a lot of information in only 9
classes, so attendance and participation are mandatory.
Students who are excessively or regularly late will not
receive credit for attendance.
Appropriate classroom behavior is required (e.g. no iPods,
text messaging, eating, etc).
Each in-class activity and homework assignment is for
credit and must be completed on time.
No late work will be accepted without prior approval.
| In-class activities/attendance
(10 pts each) |
80 pts |
| Homework assignments (3 x 20
pts) |
60 pts |
| Critical review assignment |
50 pts |
| Quiz |
10 pts |
| Total |
200 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.
Advanced
internet searching
|
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. history of, types of)
- you're not sure what you're looking for
|
|
Try out:
|
Try out:
|
|
|
Top
Evaluating
websites
From your own Internet searching,
you probably realize there is an overwhelming
amount of information available online.
You might feel comfortable searching online-- but doing a Google search
and using the first few results for your
paper does not constitute college 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.
In-class activity:
Pick
2 of the following websites (choose different domains-- .gov,
.org) and evaluate them using the worksheet.
Top
Identifying
keywords
For any research topic, you must
first think of
alternative keywords (synonyms) to search for.
Let's say your topic is how blind people are treated. You
need to search for different combinations of keywords:
| blind |
AND |
treatment |
|
| visually impaired |
stereotyp* (e/es/ical) |
| disabled |
social perceptions |
| handicapped |
myths |
In-class activity:
Research topics:
|
The
following are potential research topics related
to themes in The Kite Runner. These can
be approached from a variety of subject areas
(e.g. psychology, sociology, history,
economics), based on interest.
|
Top
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 topics.
Try clicking on some that are related to your topic and see
what titles come up:
E98.E2 O75 1999??
What does a call number tell you? Here's a quick
guide to the Library of Congress system.
Top
Citing sources
For every college paper and project, you will need to
document where you got ideas and quotations from (see
Academic Honesty below).
There are different ways, or styles, of citing your
sources-- including styles from the American Psychological
Association (APA), Modern Language Association (MLA), and
Chicago Manual of Style.
For every source you
use in your paper, you need to include a citation in your list of references. Most sources need the
following information:
-
Author(s)
-
Title (of article, book, journal...)
-
Publication information (when it was
published, by what publisher,
in what journal, volume, etc)
 |
APA:
Publication manual of the American Psychological
Association.
5th ed. Washington, DC : American
Psychological Association, 2001.
|
|
KNIGHTCITE |
A free online citation
tool to help create your bibliography.
In order for the citation to be accurate, you will
still need to understand the difference between a
journal and magazine, volume and issue number, and
so on. You will
need to review the results for
accuracy. |
|
Media |
For citing different
media, follow these formats from
OWL's guide to non-print sources:
Movie
(VHS/DVD)
Producer, P. P.
(Producer), & Director, D.D.
(Director). (Date of publication).
Title of movie
[Motion picture]. Country of origin: Studio or
distributor.
Music
(CD)
Songwriter, W. W.
(Date of copyright).
Title of song. On
Title of album
[CD].
Location: Recording Company.
Image/Picture
Cite source
(website, magazine,
etc) that the image
came from.
|
Top
Writing a critical review
For most college papers and projects,
you will need to investigate and report on the scholarly
research related to your topic-- in other words,
establishing what has already been said. To do this, you
must read and critically review
each of your sources with the following 4 points:
-
Cite source in APA style.
-
What are the qualifications of the author?
-
What is the
main idea of the source?
-
Include one quote from the source.
A critical review includes a
citation (in proper APA style depending on type of
material) AND review (responding
to the above questions in complete, well-written sentences) for each
of your sources.
| Points of
critical review |
Sample formats and explanations |
1. Citation
Where did the source
come from?
|
Author, A., & Author, B. (Year). Title of
article. Title of periodical, volume
(issue),
pg-pg.
Depending on type of material (e.g. article, book,
website), give full citation
in
APA style.
Try
KnightCite,
a free online citation
tool.
|
2. Qualification of author(s)
Why should you trust what
the author has to say?
If the author is an organization
or company, what do you know
about them?
(1 sentence) |
SAMPLE FORMAT Dr.____ is a professor of
[subject] at the University of ____.
researcher
____ is a staff writer for [title of] newspaper
reporter
magazine.
journalist
____ is a non-profit organization that does the
following ____.
company
government agency
|
NOTES
- A professor/researcher has a PhD and is an expert in
their field.
- A journalist/staff writer is a generalist
(writing about any current topic), not an
expert.
- An organization may conduct research or
disseminate knowledge to further their cause.
- A company is for-profit, and might be trying
to sell something.
|
3.
Main purpose
What are the key points/
main ideas of the source?
(1-2 sentences) |
SAMPLE FORMAT This scholarly article
proves ____.
This newspaper shows ____.
book
magazine
website
The main point of this source is ____.
key idea
NOTES
You might note if the source has
a strong bias or point of view:
The author(s) have a biased opinion on ____, because
of ____.
organization
balanced
company
well-researched
-
Bias is a point of view that is one-sided, based
on opinion rather than research, and without
consideration of the "sides" of an issue.
-
A viewpoint (e.g. hypothesis or
thesis) that is based in research is not biased...
the research has proven their point!
|
4.
Quotation
How does this source
support your research?
(1 "quote" or sentence) |
SAMPLE FORMAT
Author (Year) says, "____" (pg #).
According to Author (Year), "____" (pg #).
This source provides historical background that
prove ____.
statistics
disprove
case studies
show
quotes
opposing viewpoints
images/video clips
music/sounds
|
Top
Scholarly vs Popular 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 |
|
Vocabulary |
professional
jargon; may be
difficult to read |
common; easy to
understand |
|
Structure |
specific structure (e.g.
abstract, methodology,
data, results, conclusion, references) |
structured like a story; can look
glossy with pictures and ads; comparatively shorter |
|
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!
Top
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.
The following databases are useful for this class. Try searching for
keywords related to your topic:
Most Useful
Sociological Abstracts
Use 'Thesaurus Search' to find descriptors for your
topic.
Click 'Journal articles only' for scholarly articles.
JSTOR
Use the 'Advanced Search' to limit disciplines and
article type.
Academic Search Premier
Limit your results by clicking 'Scholarly/Peer Reviewed'
Also Useful
ERIC
Good
source
for education topics. Use 'Thesaurus Search' to find
descriptors for your topic.
Click 'Journal articles only' for scholarly
articles.
PAIS
Search
for political and international topics
CQ Researcher
Good for 'sides' of a hot topic
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!
Top
Database demos
Each group will search a specific database for articles
related to their topic. Groups will do 5 minute
demonstrations on how to use this database, addressing the
questions below.
ScienceDirect
CQ
Researcher
Lexis Nexis
Academic
Sociological Abstracts
ProQuest Direct
Show the class a sample search:
-
What kind of information does this
database contain: scholarly or popular articles, other?
-
How do you get full-text? How do
you save, email and print?
-
What is an advanced search feature
in this database?
Top
Academic honesty
What is academic honesty?
A major principle of higher education is student
development of critical thinking skills and original
scholarship. According to our
Academic Honesty Policy: "The integrity
of this academic institution, and the quality of the
education provided in its degree programs, are based on the
principle of academic honesty."
Academic honesty includes:
- accurate use and representation of quotations.
- explicit citation of sources when paraphrasing and
describing ideas or any aspect of the work of others.
- all forms of academic work-- exams, papers,
presentations, and other projects.
To best understand academic honesty, you must know what
is considered dishonest, or academic misconduct.
Plagiarism and other forms of cheating are defined
here in the General University Catalog.
Related resources:
| |
What is it? |
Tips |
|
Quoting |
Using the author's exact
words. Always cite it
and use "quotation
marks." |
Some good reasons to
include a quote are:
-
You want to support
or add credibility
to your arguments
-
The original is
difficult to
rephrase
-
The original is so
good that you want
to preserve the
language
Quoting in moderation is
acceptable, but
stringing a bunch of
quotes together without
analysis and
well-crafted transitions
is bad. A paper is
supposed to be your
work, so limit quoting
to the minimum needed as
per the above reasons.
|
|
Summarizing |
Condensing the author's
words or ideas without
altering the meaning or
providing
interpretation—you use
your own words for this.
Basically, presenting
the original information
in a nutshell.
When you summarize, you
must always cite the
author of the material
you are summarizing. |
In academic writing,
there are a few things
to keep in mind when
summarizing outside
sources:
-
Use your own words
-
Include the key
relevant elements of
the original and
keep it brief—you're
just going for the
original's essence
-
Do not include your
interpretation/analysis
within the summary—make
a clear distinction
between your
thoughts and someone
else's
-
Vary how you
introduce or
attribute your
sources, like
"according to…," or
"so-and-so concludes
that..." so your
readers don't get
bored
-
Always include a
citation.
|
|
Paraphrasing |
Restating, in your own
words, the author's
words or ideas without
altering the meaning or
providing
interpretation.
Paraphrases are about
the same length as the
original.
When you paraphrase, you
must always cite the
author of the material
you are paraphrasing. |
Paraphrasing is
similar to
summarizing in that you: |
Paraphrasing differs
from summarizing in
that you: |
-
Do NOT include your
interpretation/analysis
within the
paraphrase—make a
clear distinction
between your
thoughts and someone
else's
-
Should vary how you
introduce or
attribute your
sources, like
"according to…," or
"so-and-so concludes
that..."
-
Always include a
citation
|
-
Usually write about
the same length as
the original
-
Use your own words,
but you may
occasionally want to
include a sequence
of words or a brief
quote from the
original (Remember
to use "quotation
marks" if you decide
to include any
sequence of words
from the original.)
|
Top
Effective PowerPoint
design
Even the most exciting research needs to be communicated
in an effective presentation. PowerPoint is used to convey
information in
an interesting and visually
pleasing fashion.
Your
PowerPoint is NOT to prove your research—that
is why you are handing in a paper. Instead, HIGHLIGHT and
focus the most important points of your work. Succinct and
straightforward presentations will be more impressive than
ones with lots of jargon and statistics.
Keep in
mind:
|
SIMPLICITY |
- When slides are
cluttered with words, bullets and statistics,
the audience will be too busy reading to pay
attention to you.
-
The rule of thumb is
"6 by 6": no more than 6 lines of text and 6
words per line per slide.
-
No more than one
topic per slide. This will also help you resist
reading right off the screen.
-
Go easy on the
special effects, animation, charts, tables and
clip art.
-
DO select powerful
images. A picture can be worth a thousand words.
|
|
AESTHETICS |
-
Is the background
too busy or distracting?
-
Can the audience
clearly distinguish the slide colors?
Typically light colored fonts against darker
backgrounds are easy for the audience to read.
-
Is the font large
enough and easy to read?
Use font size, style and color to emphasize
titles or major points.
-
Overall, is the
presentation professional looking and visually
appealing?
-
Remember the
importance of non-verbal communication-- good
posture and eye contact gives you more
credibility.
|
|
TIMING |
-
How long is the
allotted presentation time? Are there enough
slides or too many?
PRACTICE beforehand to time the speaker and
slides accordingly.
-
Repetition =
Retention. Make your main point or argument
clear in the beginning, support it during your
presentation, and recap before the show is over.
-
A group member can
be responsible for keeping track of time and
moving things along.
You don't want to spend too much time
elaborating on some points or slides, and then
have to race through the remainder of your
presentation.
|
Additional PowerPoint design resources from:
Need more help?
Don't hesitate to contact me
for research help.
|
(1 per group
submitted via email)