Research Resources

Research Tools for Students

Below, you will find several links (along with descriptions) of different research tools of which you can take advantage. And remember, if you need assistance, contact Mrs. Renick through the Student Help Desk!

KYVL/EBSCO Host

"The Kentucky Virtual Library (KYVL) is a consortium of nearly 300 Kentucky libraries and institutions, including colleges and universities, public libraries, K12 schools, hospitals, Department of Defense libraries, the Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives (KDLA), and more.

The three primary services of KYVL include:

  1. Databases - core resources accessible to the users of KYVL member libraries;

  2. Courier service - facilitating resource sharing among Kentucky's public and academic libraries;

  3. Kentucky Digital Library - a platform for shared digital archives in the Commonwealth of Kentucky."

(KYVL, 2021)

Directions for Accessing KYVL/EBSCO Host Databases

  1. Click here.

  2. Enter your Patron ID (this is your student ID number).

  3. This will give you access to all EBSCO databases, along with descriptions of each.

Scavenger Hunts

Familiarize yourself with all EBSCO has to offer with one of these fun scavenger hunts:


en_explora_scavenger_hunt
en_brc_scavenger_hunt
en_lrc_scavengerhunt

Google Scholar Search

Google Scholar a free academic search engine that can be thought of as the academic version of Google; searches repositories of publishers, universities or scholarly websites rather than all of the information on the indexed World Wide Web.

If you already use Google Tools, you should be comfortable using Google Scholar. The biggest differences, however, from a regular Google search, are:

  • the option to copy a formatted citation in different styles including MLA and APA;

  • links that let you explore which other works have cited the listed work;

  • links that let you easily find full-text versions of the article.

Pro Tips for Using Google Search

Although Google Scholar limits each search to a maximum of 1,000 results, it's still too much to explore, and you need an effective way of locating the relevant articles. These tips will help you save time and search more effectively:

  • Google Scholar searches are not case-sensitive.

  • Use keywords instead of full sentences.

  • Use quotes to search for an exact match.

  • Add the year to the search phrase to get articles published in a particular year.

  • Use the sidebar controls to adjust your search result.

  • Use Boolean operator to better control your searches.

    • AND requires both of the words or phrases on either side to be somewhere in the record.

    • NOT can be placed in front of a word or phrases to exclude results that include them.

    • OR will give equal weight to results that match just one of the words or phrases on either side.

For more information on navigating Google Scholar, check out this link.

(Paperpile, 2021)


Citation Assistance

Citation Machine

Bib Me

Scribbr

Use these websites to assist you in creating cited sources for research. From each site, you can choose between APA, MLA, or various other common citation styles. And remember, if you get stuck or need assistance, ask for help with the Student Help Desk!