ENG 101 Research Workshop

Question of the Day

If you could shop for free for the rest of your life at one store, which one would that be?

• Make sure that you log in to use all of the available library features.

• The Save Query feature will allow you to save the exact search terms you enter and results that come up

• Articles and eBooks can be downloaded as PDFs for offline viewing

Saving Your Work

• This is short for Permanent Link; because TCTC uses multiple servers for information access, many times, students will simply copy paste what shows up in the browser when they want to save their work; but then they can't find the article. Permalink icons are located alongside each source.

Permalinks

Permalinks and Tools for Saving Your Work

Citation Generators

• ​All databases are equipped with citation generators

• There are citation generators attached at all stages of the research process; however, it matters which one you use. Can you determine why?

Complete the following:

1. On the homepage, search the word "copyright law".

2. Scroll down to the entry for the book Canadian Copyright Law

3. Click the three dots to the right to reveal the citation.

4. Click on the title of the book, then click view online. Enter the database that contains the book.

5. Click on "cite book" on the left hand side to look at the citation again. What's different?

Developing a Research Plan: Key Words

• Library databases rely on keywords to organize information--it's harder than typing something into Google. If you don't use the right key words, source information you need (and that we have) may not come up in your search.

• More than that, using effective key words keeps your search results manageable--typing in a broader term may bring in information that isn't as relevant to your topic or the type of information you are seeking out, causing your search to take more time than necessary.

• This brief video will help you visualize this process: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6kjt2Mt_4w

Create Keyword Searches from Research Questions

Thesis: The college admissions process timeline is lengthy, causing students and parents an unnecessary amount of emotional and financial stress in the face of uncertainty.

• Fact: How long is the standard college admissions process?

• Cause/Effect: How have online applications changed the timeline of the college admissions process?

• Cause/Effect: Why does the college admissions process still take longer, even though it is now electronic?

• Problem: Does a longer college admissions process mean more careful consideration and less room for error?