English research

Renaissance Research Tips & Tricks

Ms. Doyle, District Librarian

Presentation Notes

Please get ready to take notes

Write down words and phrases in red

At the end of presentation, you will have notes A-H

Today’s Topics

A. Objectives:

1. Understand when and why you would use books and databases instead of web sources

2. Use WebCat to locate a book on your subject in the school library

3. Use Gale PowerSearch database to locate relevant biographical information

Database or Internet?Hold up 1 finger if you think database, 2 for Internet

Free to anyone

Paid subscription

Information edited and evaluated

Anyone can publish information

Links can change or disappear

Has more newspaper and magazine articles

Image Attribution: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeeperez/2453225588/

Organized and indexed by professionals

Can search using exact subject headings, dates, etc.

More information on more topics, even if the information might be less reliable

Has more scholarly or academic sources (professional and peer-reviewed journal articles)

Image Attribution: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeeperez/2453225588/

Database or Internet?Hold up 1 finger if you think database, 2 for Internet

Usually include citations for Works Cited list

Easier to access and search

Often difficult to cite; hard to tell who the author/publisher might be

Has most current information, up to a few minutes ago

Database or Internet?Hold up 1 finger if you think database, 2 for Internet

Internet or Book?1 finger for Internet, 2 for book

Usually has the most in-depth information

Usually has more current information

Has been edited

Easier to locate information

Image attribution: http://jccooltech.blogspot.com/2008/04/internet-vs-books.html

B. Use Databases When You Need. . .

Scholarly journals (can also try Google Scholar)

Newspaper articles Magazine articles Encyclopedia articles Biographical information Statistical information

A Note on Wikipedia. . .

Recent studies have rated Wikipedia fairly high on accuracy.

For example, a study by the journal Nature found

• 2.92 mistakes per article for

Encyclopedia Britannica

• 3.86 mistakes per article for Wikipedia.

A Note on Wikipedia. . .

HOWEVER, many teachers and professors do not allow students to cite Wikipedia as a source.

Also:

“[W]e recommend that students check the facts they find in Wikipedia against other sources. Additionally, it is generally good research practice to cite an original source when writing a paper, or completing an exam.“

-- Sandra Ordonez, Wikipedia spokesperson

Image Attribution: http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/in_popular_culture.png

When should you use Wikipedia?

Talk to your neighbor to decide:

1. To get a quick overview of your research topic?

2. As the main source of information for your research paper?

3. When reading about a pop culture topic of personal interest?

4. When making an important decision about your health?

5. To see what sources the article’s author’s used?

Find a Book in the Library

C. Steps1. School Home Page

Find a Book in the Library

2. Library Home Page

Search WebCat

3. Enter name of the person you are researching4. Limit by school5. Click Search Everything

Search WebCat

Search WebCat

D. Print vs. Online Sources

Take about 1 minute to talk with the person next to you about the following questions. Write brief answers in your notes.

1. Why might using a print book be better than using the Internet or a database?

2. What are the advantages of using an online sources rather than a book?

Databases

On your bookmark, find ABC-CLIO History and circle it.

Now find Gale PowerSearch and circle it.

ABC-CLIO History

ABC-CLIO History

E. ABC-CLIO Search

1. Use “World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras”

Searching ABC-CLIO History2. Filter on left to limit, or click on a relevant result

Searching ABC-CLIO History

3. Use Related Entries to find more information, or click words in blue

Searching ABC-CLIO History

4. Use tools to print, email, or cite. MLA citation is at the end of the article.

F. Gale PowerSearch

1. Includes Academic OneFile for scholarly articles

2. Has reference eBooks for biographies of famous people

Gale PowerSearch

Gale PowerSearch

3. Limit by content type, subject, document type -- on left side. For example, Books to get reference book articles

Gale PowerSearch

Gale PowerSearch

4. Use Advanced Search and combine Subjects for very precise results

Review

Turn to the person next to you. Figure out whose birthday comes first in 2012.

The person with the first birthday will explain which two databases are recommended for this project, which one they will try first, and why.

Wrapping Up

In your notes (G), write one thing you learned today

In your notes (H), write one question you still have

Share questions now or email doylem@loswego.k12.or.us