cmpt 322w: library research workshop

CMPT 322W: Library Research Workshop

Shane Plante, Applied Sciences Librarian, [email protected]

Survey results (And: thanks!)

1) Conducting substantial, relevant research on your topic (30% are confident)

2) Coming up with a strong thesis (35%)* [ the SLC can help with this ]3) Narrowing your topic (39%)4) Identifying scholarly sources (43%)5) Citing sources with APA style (48%)6) Avoiding plagiarism (83%)

CMPT 322: research workshop

n = 23

Agenda (derived from survey results)

1) Narrowing your topic2) Finding what you need

[ i.e., doing substantial, relevant research ]

3) Identifying scholarly sources4) Citing sources5) Getting help


Meet the CMPT 322W research guide


Are there any specific aspects of doing research that you find difficult to do well?

“writing an abstract for your paper.”

+“Clear arguments and

chained logic.”CMPT 322: research

workshop

Narrowing

Two suggestions: 1) Background sources 2) Quick and dirty searching

Tip: In general, you can only cover one idea per paragraph.

– This can help to determine if your topic is too broad.


Finding what you need

Finding what you need on your topic often stems from three things:

1) Finding good keywords for your searches2) Selecting the right search tools for the job3) Cycling your search


Finding good keywords



http://www.flickr.com/photos/tracilawson/4575783486/


For example: Facebook


“Not sure how the commands work for

search bars.”


* * *

Selecting the right tools



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kr.c

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What do you think would be the right tool(s) for finding the following documents on your topic?

a) A high-level, big picture overview b) A bookc) Scholarly articlesd) A government reporte) Up-to-date information on the latest

developments in Canada


These are the 3 search options on the Library’s homepage:



Library Search

Catalogue

Fast Search

SFU Library’s Russian dolls

http://www.flickr.com/photos/aussiegall/288377539/



http://www.flickr.com/photos/aussiegall/288377539/


Always access it through SFU Library; otherwise you’ll be asked to pay for articles

Another “quick and dirty” search tool


“Finding the right journal libraries to

search in.”



The library has hundreds of databases (i.e., journal article search engines), each of them with different content.

The main types:– subject-specific databases (+ indexes) – multidisciplinary databases (+ indexes)

(Examples of both types are listed on the CMPT 322 guide.)

Some advice on picking the right one for your topic.CMPT 322: research

workshop

Cycling a search



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“Narrowing down how many links show up.”

+“How to find related

books or topics.”CMPT 322: research

workshop


“Finding whether or not the SFU Library has access to a specific journal I'd like to get an article/paper/what-not from.”




Two methods: 50% vs. 100%


“-finding scholarly sources (peer-reviewed) -sometimes very dry material that is peer-reviewed

-boring to get through.”


Identifying scholarly articles

Do you think this article scholarly? Why/why not? – What are the differences between popular and

scholarly publications?


This journal is peer-reviewed, but this article isn’t.

Here is the complete article.


Evaluating sources

Popular Scholarly

Author No affiliation provided Affiliated with an academic / research institution

Abstract No Yes

Length Short Long

Images For aesthetic appeal Research findings displayed as graphs, charts, etc.

Language Easy to understand Elevated, specialized

Citations None at all, or very few

Yes, many

Review Editor Peer-reviewed



“Finding authoritative sources on the internet.”


Citing sources

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


The very basics of APA

You need to cite each source in two places:

• In the body of the paper– Called an in-text citation

• At the back of the paper– In the list of References

CMPT 322’s Research Guide includes links to SFU Library’s APA style guide – It will likely answer 90% of questions; librarians (like me)

can help you to answer the other 10% CMPT 322: research

workshop

Getting help

The library provides many ways to get help:– In-person at the reference desk– Telephone– Email– IM– Text message – Student Learning Commons


cmpt 322w: library research workshop

Documents