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Find Reliable and Relevant Sources
Find Reliable and Relevant Sources
True research utilizes evidence to grow ideas and assert new claims. Think about what you want to understand, solve, or teach others so you can develop specific questions and find sources that are Current and Reliable with Authority and Purpose.
Consider reliability of internet sources by reading about the CRAP test adopted by several universities.
Newseumed.org includes resources for finding reliable facts and websites like MediaBiasFactCheck, Snopes, PolitiFact strive to check the veracity of claims in the media.
Colleges pay subscriptions to allow students to read articles in academic journals and magazines for reliable research sources. NC Department of Public Instruction offers access to an online database of articles through EBSCO. Resources have moved and are now available when you log into my.NCEdCloud.org with your PowerSchool password. Explora 9-12 is recommended.
Take Valuable Paraphrased Notes
Take Valuable Paraphrased Notes
Record relevant and reliable information for your research onto note sheets. Eighty percent of your notes should be in the form of a paraphrase. Think about WHY the fact matters and assign a SUBTOPIC before writing it down to ensure your notes will be VALUABLE to your research. When you are ready to write your paper, SUBTOPICS will help you organize your PARAGRAPHS.
**NOTE** Learning different methods from different teachers allows you to find what is best for you. If you prefer to use note cards instead of the note sheets I have suggested, be sure each note card contains the following: source (last name & page or paragraph), subtopic, quotation (in quotation marks) or paraphrase (in your own words). Organize your notecards by subtopic before turning them in.
Create a Works Cited Page for Credibility
Create a Works Cited Page for Credibility
Easybib's research guides and Purdue University's Online Writing Lab (OWL) are both excellent resources on the research process and MLA formatting. BE SURE TO SEE "OTHER OPTIONS" if citing a source other than a typical article, website, or book.
Valencia College also has many valuable resources on plagiarism and a color-coded overview of Works Cited page in MLA formatting.
Use the Citation Game from University of Washington to practice formatting citations.
If an article posted online does not include an author, make extra sure the site is reliable. See the bottom footer of the website and/or read the "About" page to find the publisher and Google the credibility of the site.
Rough source sheets can help you fill in information for a Works Cited page. You may use Mybib.com, easybib.com, citationmachine.net/mla, Oregon Library, or the citation tool in Google docs to select MLA format and the type of source you are citing. Remember you are responsible for checking that any computer-generated citation includes all available information; generators often miss the publisher because they do not read the company image from the website. You may follow the procedure in this video to set up hanging indent in Google Docs.
Utilize Research to Support Claims
Utilize Research to Support Claims
Examine research paper format before you get started on your own; notice how in-text and parenthetical citations match the Works Cited section to allow the reader to fact-check evidence and claims.
BLEND quotations by providing context before the quotation, and ANALYZE why the quoted phrase is important and how it supports new claims.
Wikipedia
Wikipedia
Is Wikipedia Wicked or Wonderful? Dulcinea Media explains the complicated nature of Citing Wikipedia.
It can be a great place to get background information to formulate valuable research questions. The bottom of each Wikipedia page also includes links to sources that can be cited for credible research.
Social media makes it harder than ever to break free from a bubble that reinforces our own biases. It is best to examine a wide variety of sources to develop a balanced account of local, national, and world events.
Social media makes it harder than ever to break free from a bubble that reinforces our own biases. It is best to examine a wide variety of sources to develop a balanced account of local, national, and world events.
Fact-Checking Sources:
Fact-Checking Sources:
Information changes and may need to be updated; as such, please let me know if links are broken or no longer accurate.
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