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Assignment Highlights

🔎Research and read a number of relevant, credible sources, summarize/paraphrase/quote others' arguments, and build your own argument in response.

Research Requirements:

  • Four scholarly sources (e.g. journal articles, book chapters) from the MRU Library

  • Two supplementary sources (e.g. news articles, websites, documentaries, podcasts) from the Library or the Web.

 

TIP: 👀 Look at Reference Entries in LibrarySearch or explore the Background Sources tab in the GNED Research Guide to find information about the history and background of your topic, debates and differing points of view, and relevant facts.

LibrarySearch Activity

Open this form: 

https://bit.ly/GNED1401

 
Answer the Questions using LibrarySearch

 

What is a Scholarly Source?

Author / Creator Subject matter expert; often with advanced education (e.g., PhD) or working at a university
Verification / Quality Control Reviewed by an editorial board or other subject matter experts (peers)
Audience & Language Researchers, scholars, students; language is academic or technical. Not aimed at the general public
Content Reports original research or analysis AND builds on previous knowledge. Not just opinion.
Use of Evidence Arguments based largely on existing evidence. Long reference lists and many in-text citations
Access Usually through the Library or Google Scholar; usually paid access

 

LibrarySearch Tips

Things to remember when using LibrarySearch:

  1. Sign in to save searches, items, and to request materials.

  2. Use the pin icon to save books and articles to your Favorites for future reference.

  3. Use the filters on the right. You will use Availability, Resource Type, and Date filters most often. Filter settings can be "locked in" so that you don't have to reapply them to every search that you make.

  4. When viewing an item record, scroll down to the Get it (for hardcopy/physical items) or Access options (for electronic items) section to get access to the item.


Helpful Search Operators to Use in LibrarySearch

You can use what are called search operators to search in a way to combine or omit different terms by telling the search engine exactly what you want and this can help you save some time (and frustration!)

  • Use quotation marks to keep specific phrases together:

    • "energy transition"

    • "surveillance capitalism"

  • Use AND to combine search terms (LibrarySearch automatically creates an AND when you write terms one after another, but it can be good practice to use an AND to help you understand the searches that you build) (AND narrows your search):

    • "social media" AND privacy

  • Use OR to connect two or more similar terms (OR broadens your search):

    • "social media" OR "social networking"

  • Use an asterisk to find different variations on a root word:

    • health* (in this example, the search health* will search for records that contain the words health, healthy, and healthcare)

Librarian

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Sara Sharun
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