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This page is designed to help you understand the research process and how it relates to your writing and assignments for this course. It is also meant to serve as a touchpoint to access the library's services and contact Fitchburg State's librarians.
Why an appointment? While walking up to the Research Help Desk for help on demand is useful, booking an appointment gives the librarian more time to pull together resources for your topic before you meet. You'll also have the opportunity to talk about your topic and how to overcome any roadblocks to finding good sources. You don't have to do your research alone - librarians want to help!
For a review of search tools, check out this Prezi.
Important Links for Research:
A-Z Databases List (All databases you have access to through FSU)
ILLiad Interlibrary Loan Service (For getting materials the FSU library does not own)*
RefWorks (Citation builder and research organization tool)*
*Note: If you have not done so already, you will need to create an account in order to use ILLiad and Refworks.
Some helpful 1-2 page "Quick Guides" on research process topics:
Search Strategy and Keyword Development
Search Strategy and Keyword Development.pdfWhen and How to Use Quotation, Paraphrase, and SummaryÂ
Quotation Paraphrase Summary.pdfKeyword Searching vs. Subject Searching
Keyword vs. Subject Searching.pdfEvaluating Sources
Finding sources is easy.
Finding authoritative, reliable, trustworthy sources can be difficult, particularly when these sources are found on the web. This is because the internet lacks any sort of oversight or control over what gets published. In some cases this is a positive thing, as when new ideas are shared, but it also means anyone with a computer - from an expert to a novice (or worse, someone disseminating misinformation) can make a page that looks credible, but may not be. This is why your professor usually prefers that you use sources from books and scholarly journals, which can be found through the library.
You can use the RADAR method to evaluate information you find for its credibility. RADAR is an acronym standing for:
Relevance
Authority
Date
Appearance
Reason
To learn more about this method, download the worksheet and accompanying cheat sheet or click through the Evaluating Sources Prezi below.
Fake news is a related problem -- you can learn more about identifying false news stories and the problems associated with spreading fake news on the library's Fake News Guide.
RADAR worksheet.docxCiting Sources
Citation serves a real scholarly purpose above and beyond checking to make sure you did your work - it leaves a trail for future scholars to follow, so the basis of your argument is understood. We cite to provide evidence, but also to provide context so the full implications and rationale of your position makes sense. We cite in a particular style so that the trail is uniform and recognizable across space (between countries, for instance) and time (so researchers in 100 or 200 years can follow our ideas.) Citation styles go through revision meaning new editions of a single style are released. Always check with your professor on which edition s/he/they would like you to use. MLA released their 8th edition recently and many of the databases have not switched from 7 to 8. You are responsible for checking that your citations are consistently in the same format and edition.
These shortcuts should provide you with a good overview of how to cite in MLA 8:
How to Cite Sources in MLA 8 - Amelia V. Gallucci-Cirio Library
FSU librarians have put together a guide with multiple resources to help you figure out MLA 8 and how it's different from MLA 7.
Purdue OWL - MLA Formatting and Style Guide
The Purdue OWL site is a favorite of librarians and professors across the board. It's a really helpful and well-organized tool for checking your format.
This handout from Spartanburg Community College Library provides a format examples and tips for the most common sources you will need to cite.
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