tsem spring 2012 - wood

LAKSAMEE PUTNAMLPUTNAM@TOWSON.EDU

RESEARCH & INSTRUCTION LIBRARIAN

TSEM 102: Current Issues in Education: Living and Learning in a

Digital Society

First…

Laksamee Putnamlputnam@towson.eduCook Library Reference:

410.704.2462. IM/email

Phone: 410.704.3746.Twitter: @CookLibraryofTUAlbert S. Cook facebook profile!

Agenda

Research Process Overview

General search strategy

Brainstorming keywords

Evaluating information

Interpreting the Assignment

Reading Background Information

Using Online

Databases& Indexes

Gathering Sources

Drafting Paper or Presentation

Identifying & Listing

Vocabulary

Citing Sources

Refining a Topic

Evaluating Sources

The Research Process

Selecting a Topic

research skills ≠ needle in the haystack

Web “Pre-Searching”

Why or why not start your search online? Respond here: http://bit.ly/1TSEM

Web “Pre-Searching”

Why not start your search online? The Invisible Web

http://goshen.libguides.com/beyond_googling

Can you trust this information?

TED video: Online filter bubble – Eli Pariser http://

www.ted.com/talks/eli_pariser_beware_online_filter_bubbles.html

Web “Pre-Searching”

Why start your search online?

Find background information

Help solidify research topic

Find new terminology to use as keywords

Find links and/or citations to other sources

Identify Subject Gateways for your topic…

Cook Library’s Subject Gateways

… and other familiar tools to identifywebsites with academic content.

Source: www.wikipedia.org.

Source: www.google.com.

Try new features to help build your keyword list and search strategy.

Keep this in mind!Any topic might include various facets that you might want to explore and consider as you clarify your topic at the beginning of the research process.

Keywords are critical!

Sample topic: What are some ways elementary teachers can assess

whether a certain technology solution is effective?

First, break the question down into keywords: What are some ways elementary teachers can assess

whether a certain technology solution is effective?

More on keywords…

Expand your list to include synonyms then add to it once you have done some background reading.

What are some ways elementary teachers can assess whether a certain technology solution is effective?

teach* assess* technolog*learn evaluat* comput*strateg* test* [software name]method gaugeinstruct*

Search Terms and Keyword Reminders

Keywords come from the search question

Use Boolean “search connectors” to combine keywords in ways that capture the results you need

Good searching starts with good keywords

Boolean “search connectors”

AND OR NOT

For example:

internet AND children• Combining >1 topic

instruct OR teach• Combining synonymous terms

Search Tip #1

Use AND when you need to combine more than one topic

Innovation AND education

educationinnovation

Search Tip #2

Use OR to combine synonymous terms (to get results regardless of what term an author uses).

teach instruct

Search Tip #3

Use truncation!

Educat* finds Educate Education Educating Educator

Etc…

Search Tip #4

Phrase Searching… Use quotations to keep a keyword phrase intact

(words will be searched in the specific order)

Examples: “No Child Left Behind” “school reform”

Putting it all together…

What are some ways elementary teachers can assess whether a certain technology solution is effective?

teach*instruct*method*learn*

assess*evaluate*

test*

technolog*comput*

[software name]

teach* OR instruct* OR method* OR learn*

AND

assess* OR evaluate* OR test*

AND

technolog* OR comput* OR kidspiration

Evaluate what you find

Go to one of the websites below and analyze it http://bit.ly/cosmicweb1 http://bit.ly/cosmicweb2 http://bit.ly/cosmicweb3 http://bit.ly/cosmicweb4 http://bit.ly/cosmicweb5 http://bit.ly/cosmicweb6 http://bit.ly/cosmicweb7

CurrencyReliabilityAuthorityPurpose/Point of View

Check for CRAP

Currency How recent is the information? Can you locate a date when the resource was

written/created/updated? Based on your topic, is this current enough? Why might the date matter for your topic?

Check for CRAP

Guidelines for CRAP provided by the Jean and Alexander Heard Library

Reliability What kind of information is included in the resource? Does the author provide citations & references for

quotations & data Where am I accessing this information?

Check for CRAP

Guidelines for CRAP provided by the Jean and Alexander Heard Library

Authority Can you determine who the author/creator is? What are their credentials (education, affiliation,

experience, etc.)? Who is the publisher or sponsor of the work/site? Is this publisher/sponsor reputable

Check for CRAP

Guidelines for CRAP provided by the Jean and Alexander Heard Library

Purpose/Point of View Is the content primarily opinion? Is the information balanced or biased? What is the purpose of the information? Is it to

inform, teach, sell, entertain or persuade

Check for CRAP

Guidelines for CRAP provided by the Jean and Alexander Heard Library

Fill out the worksheet

Worksheet 1 Go here: http://bit.ly/2TSEM Fill out the worksheet Be ready to fill in more of the worksheet after the next

library session!

Questions?

Feel free to contact me: Laksamee Putnam lputnam@towson.edu 410.704.3746. Twitter: @CookLibraryofTU

Or any reference librarian: Visit Cook Library Reference Desk 410.704.2462. IM – tucookchat