Welcome to my research help page! In this page, I introduce you to the basics of research, reading a scholarly article, and citation basics. Everyone researches on a daily basis ranging from looking at movie reviews to how to fill out college applications or tax forms. Scholarly research is a bit different, but the skills are the same: you need to know how to find quality resources, how to read them, and how to apply them.
WHERE TO START
If you have never written a research paper or searched for scholarly sources, it can be intimidating to get started. I suggest starting with my library orientation video, then the databases 101. Next, on the right, view my information literacy video to learn how to create key words to find quality sources and what qualifies as scholarly. Then, check out the pdf worksheets on how to read a scholarly article. Lastly, end with the research guides, citation and writing styles columns. These will help you when you are creating your assignments.
KNOWLEDGE CHECK
Don't forget to fill out the knowledge check survey at the bottom of the page. Research takes time and practice. Don't give up!! You can do it! Let me know what questions or issues you are having through this survey or contact me directly.
Check one of the links below for helpful guides.
There are many different writing and citation styles in academia. The three main ones are: APA (sciences and social sciences), Chicago/Turabian Style (history), MLA (humanities).
If you need some help finding your way around the library's website, check out this orientation video.
In this tutorial, I show you how to access our databases and use them to find quality sources for your projects.
The worksheets below are excellent tools that teach you how to read scholarly works thoughtfully for analysis and application.
In this video, I give an overview of how to discern which sources are more likely to be credible. I discuss how to create key words to find the information you need and how to read a scholarly article (yes, it's different than reading for pleasure).