IAT 309W Library Research Workshop Shane Plante SIAT Librarian

The plan Finding your topic Researching your topic Evaluating your sources with the 3 Rs Citing your sources Getting help Questions (at any time)

finding your topic

How many of the four questions mentioned in the video require research?

Keep in mind that you’ll be writing a persuasive research paper, not an opinion paper. better sources = a better argument + a better paper

news sources general topic  specific topic background sources examples: encyclopedias handbooks books A few places you may find topics something tangible keep your eyes open Farokhmanesh, M. (2014, June 10). Ubisoft abandoned women assassins in co-op because of the additional work. Retrieved from

finding a topic try to be Goldilocksian - not too narrow - not too general

finding a topic A.Should unhealthy foods be required to carry a warning label? B.Should sodas 16 oz. or more be required to carry a warning label in Canada? C.Should stores be banned from selling large sodas? D.Should 7-Elevens in Surrey be required to include a warning label on their Big Gulps? Do you think these topics are too broad, too narrow, or just right for an 8 page research paper? S M L

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researching your topic

before researching your topic Spend some time brainstorming the following: - What information would you like to find? - What are some good words for searching? (+ gather new words as you go) - What are some good places to search? - Who would be likely to collect and publish the information you need?

What if you can’t find the articles and information you want on your exact topic? One perfect source (2 min. video) VR5adTjeM Sample topic: Should sodas 16 oz. or more be required to carry a warning label in Canada?

researching your topic Tips on finding good places to search great starting place: IAT 309W research guide

anatomy of a database Search boxes Sort results Results “Add to folder” button allows you to articles and APA citations to yourself “Where can I get this?” link finds full-text for articles not included in the database Here, you can limit to scholarly journals; refine your results by date, subject heading, geography, etc.

evaluating your sources (with the 3Rs)

Identifying scholarly sources Scholarly journalsBeason’s article “Ethos and Error” Bibliography/References 19 citations in “Works Cited” list Methodology Includes “Procedures” and “Subjects” sections Author info “Associate Professor of English at the University of Southern Alabama” Length 32 pages long Language Understandable, but you need to concentrate “Using the questionnaire, subjects first indicated the extent to which they were bothered by each error, thereby gauging the error gravity of twenty pre-selected errors” (p. 38).

The 3 Rs: Evaluating your sources Recency – Are you including the most recent research about your topic? – Would an historical perspective be useful? Relevance – How closely does it relate to your topic? E.g., If you’ve found information that differs in culture/size/etc from your topic, is it still relevant? Reliability – Who is the author What is the author’s expertise? – What is the purpose of the document? – Type of source? (scholarly, popular, government, etc.)

citing your sources

What information don’t you need to cite? What information do you need to cite?

Image credits Tree by Alberto Guerra Quintanilla Lungs by chris dawson Brain Machine Interface by HYPERMORGEN Light Bulb by Olivier Guin Curious by Stephen Borengasser Korea by Gira Park Hand by Dmitry Baranovskiy Bear is in the public domain Map by Alessandro Suraci Bucket by Anton Gajdosik Soda by Christopher Anderson Cigarettes by Julia Soderberg Poison by Robert Leonardo Glasses by Cor Tiemens Gymnast by James Keuning Scalpel by Danny Sturgess Okay by Stephanie Wauters Warning by Stefan Parnarov Network by Mister Pixel Signpost by Juan Pablo Bravo Thinking by Timothy Dilich All icons used were published with CC-BY licenses or are in the public domain. They all come from The Noun Project: thenounproject.comthenounproject.com In order of appearance:

getting help

How can the library help? 1)Helping you to find background sources? Yes! 2)Helping you to find articles? Yes! 3)Helping you to evaluate sources? Yes! 4)Helping you to find APA style examples? Yes! 5)Helping you with structuring, paraphrasing, and becoming a better writer? Yes!* *see the Student Learning Commons

research consultations I’m happy to meet with you in a one-to-one appointment or you can visit one of our reference desks (Surrey, Burnaby, Vancouver) If you want to meet with me, please: - Arrive prepared: - bring topic(s) - bring questions - Plan ahead: - please contact me (at least) a few days before you’d like to meet - there are 80 of you + only 1 of me

ask a librarian Or contact me directly: Shane Plante SIAT Librarian