Academic Databases
At Cleveland Sate University, students can access various library databases. However, research articles are also published outside subscriptions on the internet. A simple way to discover relevant articles is by using Google Scholar. In the following essay, I compare the strengths and weaknesses of Google Scholar to the library databases that my university is currently subscribed too.
Navigating Resources
It is important to get to know the resources available to you, and to find what works best for you. Research is a long process, but it can go a lot smoother if you are comfortable with digital resources. In this video I briefly navigate Google Scholar and CSU's library databases for the first time outside of class. I will reference this video in my essay.
Speaking of discovering academic resources... Screen-cast-o-matic is a free program that allows anyone to record his/her/their screen. This is what I used to create the 'Database Practice' video.
Google Scholar Versus Library Databases for Academic Research
There are many parts to a research project; after brainstorming topics for research and developing a general question, a student must begin to source previous research in relative topics to define his or her own research gap. Two digital resources that help students in this part of the research process are Google Scholar and library databases, such as Academic Search Complete. To guide students towards the most effective academic research for their projects, it is important to compare the strengths and weaknesses of Google Scholar and library databases.
Let us begin with Google Scholar. Instead of paying for subscription services to access articles, Google allows people to search through an incomprehensible, impressive number of scholarly writings that offer either free or individual payments to access. While anyone who has access to the internet can use Google Scholar, many articles require additional payment for full text. Unfortunately, there is no filter to avoid titles that come with a price tag; essentially, the only filter Google Scholar has is publishing date. Nonetheless, it is relatively easy to narrow down potential sources on Google Scholar by looking at the number of citations listed, patents, and format of the article.
On the other hand, library databases are accessed through subscriptions. Students can access these resources by being members of institutions who pay for the subscriptions, such as Cleveland State University. It can be noted from the video recording, the same keywording in Google Scholar offered over 2 million results, while the library database initially offered 262 results. Filtering by date and articles with full-text access in Academic Search Complete, the number of relevant articles associated with these keywords were reduced to 115 (2:35). Thus, while library databases might be less accessible than Google Scholar, they offer many more filtering options to speed up the research process. While google only allows users to type into a single search bar, library databases offer options to search for multiple topics while avoiding other topics at the same time. And in addition to filtering by date, these databases offer options to narrow down which articles offer full text, specific publishers, a specific publishing format, and more.
Essentially, students must decide if accessibility or filtering options will help them complete research in a more effective manner. Google Scholar excels in accessibility, but sometimes comes with a price tag. Library databases offer fast filtering options, but require unique connections to access. At the end of the day, no matter the strengths and weaknesses of these resources, both are capable of providing sufficient access to scholarly articles for college students to complete professional research projects.
Further Notes
In my research process, I found it easiest to use Google Scholar. Google Scholar can be connected to a library's resources and identify if an institution has access to an article. After linking my library to google scholar I was able to search the entire web and quickly recognize subscribed and free research articles that I could access. I highly recommend using this research method.
If you are interested in linking you library to Google Scholar, simply follow these steps:
Google Scholar > Settings > Library Links > search for your institution in the search box > click the check box next to your institution name > click save and wait for the library to link with google scholar.
If these instructions do not make sense to you, try following the these steps from University of Toronto Libraries.
Analysis
I learned how to navigate various academic databases. While Academic Search Complete was available to my high school, Google Scholar was highly despised. However, in this class, I learned the benefits of using both resources together. Connecting CSU's library resources to the Google Scholar database immensely eased my research process. It was still important to understand how to use CSU's library resources, as Google Scholar sometimes lead me to them.
Revisions
In a class assignment, simply posting a video link is enough. However, on a webpage, it is more user-friendly, to embed a link. Embedding the link allows for a preview of the source, reducing the amount of text on the webpage. This will make the video more appealing to watch. It is especially important to convince viewers to watch the video, since it is cited in the essay. Additionally, an introduction gave context for the assignment. Images were added to help break up a very wordy page, as well as to familiarize viewers with the logos of databases I referenced. The logos are also hyperlinked to their respective sources, so that users can easily access them on their own. Finally, recommendations based off of the lessons learned in this activity were provided for the viewer's benefits.