Research: B2+. Anneli Williams

training courses on using library facilities such as databases

      

quiet study spaces

      

printing, photocopying and IT facilities

      

access to inter-library loans.

       Using the internet for research

      If you do not have access to a library, searching for information on the internet using a search engine such as Google ™ can be a good option. Remember that the internet contains vast amounts of information, so good key word search skills are essential. Most search engines have advanced search options which allow you to use Boolean operators to narrow down your search. Sometimes these may appear as options such as ‘any of these words’ (= and) or ‘all of these words’ (= or).

       Glossary

      bias Bias is a tendency to prefer one person or thing to another, and to favour that person or thing.

      When you search the internet, you also need to be able to identify academically credible sources within your search results. Whereas library catalogues and academic databases contain items which have been selected for their academic credibility, internet search results will automatically list any online material which contains your search terms. In addition, most web search engines are commercial businesses which rely on income from advertising. Companies may pay to have their web pages ranked higher in search results or to have their web pages advertised alongside. This means that you need to look carefully for commercial bias when selecting information for your essay.

      Using a specialized search engine facility such as Google Scholar ™ can help because it lists scholarly publications such as journal articles, books, theses and so on; however, you still need to evaluate the source of the items you find listed.

       For more information on choosing suitably academic material, see Chapter 3.

      

Exercise 10

      Enter the search terms ‘generosity’ and ‘innate human trait’ into Google ™ and Google Scholar™ and compare the first ten items returned by each search result. How many of the items appear to be scholarly?

       Remember

       When looking for information for an essay, begin with sources listed in your course reading lists and handouts.

       Learn to use your university library catalogue.

       Get to know where print books and journals in your subject are shelved.

       Make sure you know your institutional login so that you can access e-journals and e-books held by your library.

       Find out what academic databases are recommended for your subject.

       Learn to refine key word searches by using phrases, truncation and Boolean operators.

       Find out what additional services your library has to offer – take advantage of any training available.

       When using the internet for research, narrow your key word searches and be prepared to evaluate items listed in your results for academic credibility.

3

Choosing the right source material

       Aims

choose academically credible materials

know who the experts are

recognize what makes a text academic

choose relevant materials

manage your materials

      Quiz

       Self-evaluation

      Which of these texts are suitable to use when writing an essay? Circle your answer.

1 An online encyclopaedia entry	OK | not OK | not sure
2 A textbook	OK | not OK | not sure
3 A newspaper article	OK | not OK | not sure
4 Lecture notes	OK | not OK | not sure
5 An article from a magazine	OK | not OK | not sure
6 An online lecture	OK | not OK | not sure

       Choosing academically credible source material for your essay

      Selecting good quality source material for your essay is a key skill. Relying on materials recommended in your course reading list is a safe option, but it may not give you all the information you need. You will have to develop the ability to select the right type of material yourself. This is particularly important if you use the internet for research.

       Glossary

      source material Source materials are books, articles,