Hello!

I am Mrs. Taireh

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District Teacher Librarian

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etaireh@hbuhsd.edu

How to Conduct Scholarly Online Research

Print Resources

• Why are print resources so coveted? Isn’t it easier to look online?
• Print costs money and if people are going to invest money…
• It had better be pretty darn good.
• It requires time to create, time to make, and time to find the stuff you need.

Print Resources

• It will not answer you question directly or on the first page.
• Imagine if Romeo and Juliet gave you ALLLLL the details. Why would you read the rest?
• But the story is worth it and so is the info in a print resource.
• Why does this matter?
• Treat every online resource like a print resource.
• Would you pay for it?
• Does it answer your question in the first sentence?
• Does it look like someone spent time on it?

BIG CONCEPT

EVALUATE ONLINE RESOURCES AS IF THEY WERE GOING TO BE TURNED INTO PRINT RESOURCES.

Online Resource:

Databases

Online Databases

• A database is a collection of information.
• Through your public library it is free to you, but the library pays the website so that you can have access to it.
• Some databases have better information than others.

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If you see a lot of ads, then the database generates their money from those ads. Most good databases earn their money through subscription.

BIG CONCEPT

ONLINE DATABASES PAY THE AUTHORS BUT SAVE MONEY BY NOT PRINTING THE MATERIAL.

Online Resource:

Search Engines

Search Engines

• This is your best friend and your worst enemy.
• Avoid typing your question into the search engine.
• Topics are good, but the broader the better.
• After all, you shouldn’t know everything about your topic yet...otherwise why would you be researching?

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Search Engines

• Write out your question (but do not put it in the search engine!).
• Why does Oedipus continually resist his fate?
• Underline the key words.
• Oedipus
• Resist
• Fate

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Search Engines

• Think of alternatives for the words chosen
• Oedipus
• Sophocles. Oedipal, tragic hero
• Resist
• Combat, battle, fight, defy
• Fate
• Destiny, fatalism, ordained, oracles

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Search Engines

• Try all of your keywords
• If that does not yield results, change the words
• If that does not yield results, reduce it down to one less keyword.
• Which one would you eliminate first?
• Oedipus Resist Fate
• Why?

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Use online resources to your advantage

You don’t type your question into a search engine because it would narrow your results.

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When you are searching, start broad and then narrow it down. You might find a new spin on your topic.

BIG CONCEPT

SEARCH FOR BROAD TOPICS INSTEAD OF QUESTIONS.

BIG CONCEPTS REVIEW

ONLINE DATABASES

SEARCH ENGINE

PRINT RESOURCE

OCPL.ORG

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Click on: Online Resources (Left Side)

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Library Card #: 2530605526

Websites on FVHS

Encyclopedia Britannica

Annals of American History

Salem Press

Database

Destiny Webpath Express

Sometimes you can ask a question...

• Questions are appropriate, they are driving your research.
• And sometimes...you just need to Google
• What is Domino’s number?

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Thanks!

Any questions?

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You can find me at:

etaireh@hbuhsd.edu

CREDITS

Special thanks to all the people who made and released these awesome resources for free:

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• Presentation template by SlidesCarnival
• Photographs by Death to the Stock Photo (license)

Presentation design

This presentations uses the following typographies and colors:

• Titles & body copy: Muli

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You can download the font on this page:

https://www.google.com/fonts#UsePlace:use/Collection:Muli:300,400,400italic,300italic

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Click on the “arrow button” that appears on the top right

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• White #FFFFFF
• Blue #00B2FF

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You don’t need to keep this slide in your presentation. It’s only here to serve you as a design guide if you need to create new slides or download the fonts to edit the presentation in PowerPoint®

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