General Education

Why using good sources matter...

When you endeavor to find sources related to a topic of interest for your academic writing, you are demonstrating a number of skills

• You are able to synthesize a variety of information and integrate it into your own work
• You are able to investigate the dialogue that has occurred related to an area of interest and engage in that conversation through your academic writing
• Using good, credible reliable sources will elevate the accuracy and authority of your own work

Authority is Constructed and Contextual

Information, in any format, is produced to convey a message and is shared via a selected delivery method.  The iterative processes of researching, creating, revising and disseminating information vary, and the resulting produce reflects these differences (ACRL par. 13).

• Information creations are valued differently depending on the context and purpose for which they are created
• Audience matters. Certain things are created for certain purposes and it doesn't really make one format of information better than another. It is up to us to discern what information process best fits our information need.
• In your own creation process, understand that your choices in what type of information you use, impacts the purpose for which the information product you create will be used and the message it conveys.

Source: Project Cora - https://www.projectcora.org/assignment/information-spectrum

This assignment gives us experience with 2 types of information sources, but it should be clear that feature articles and news articles are a little different.

News Articles

Definition:
News articles report current events and are written for the general public. They appear in newspapers, TV networks, and online outlets. The goal is to inform, not to analyze deeply.

Key Features:

• Written by journalists
• Published quickly (daily or weekly)
• Focus on timeliness (“breaking” or recent events)
• Shorter and less detailed than scholarly articles
• May include quotes from officials or experts, but not peer-reviewed

• Can include bias or framing, depending on the outlet

Examples:

• CBC News, CTV, Calgary Herald, National Post

• Articles about new policy announcements, protests, wildfire updates, etc.

Used for:

• Providing context or background on a topic
• Offering recent developments, statistics, or quotes

• Identifying a “news hook” for a feature article

“B” Articles (Feature Articles / Longform / Magazine Pieces)

Definition:
“B” articles (as opposed to “A” news) are longer, more narrative-driven stories that explore a topic in depth. They may be published in magazines, weekend newspaper sections, or digital longreads. They often include a mix of reporting, storytelling, and some analysis—but are still for a general audience.

Key Features:

• Longer than straight news
• Written by experienced journalists or freelancers
• Focus on human stories, context, and nuance
• May include quotes, statistics, some expert sources
• Not peer-reviewed, but usually fact-checked
• Often used to explore social issues, trends, or personal stories

Examples:

• The Globe & Mail’s Report on Business or Opinion/Features section
• Toronto Star’s Investigations or Insight
• The Walrus, Maclean’s, The Narwhal, The Tyee
• CBC “First Person” or “What On Earth” segments

Used for:

• Modeling the kind of feature articles you might write
• Showing how to incorporate human stories and research
• Launching into research questions based on a real-world issue

Scholarly Sources (Peer-Reviewed Articles)

Definition:
Scholarly sources are articles written by experts and researchers for an academic audience. They are published in academic journals and go through a peer-review process—meaning other experts reviewed the article for accuracy and credibility before publication.

Key Features:

• Written by researchers or scholars
• Published in academic journals
• Peer-reviewed
• Cites data, methods, and other research
• Formal tone; technical vocabulary
• Often includes an abstract, methodology, results, and conclusion

Examples:

• Canadian Journal of Public Health
• Journal of Urban Affairs
• Social Science & Medicine

Used for:

• Supporting arguments with credible, in-depth research
• Showing what’s been studied or discovered about a topic
• Providing statistics, evidence, and expert interpretations

Take 3-5 minutes and sort these sources into the column that you think they would best fit (academic/scholarly or non-academic). 

Source Sorting Activity

For the following exercise, you can either join the group I assign or, if you are more comfortable, you can work independently.  I am going to ask all groups to fill out this document, answering the questions to each prompt and report back.  

Each group

1. Skims the article (you don't have to read the whole thing)
2. Fills in worksheet: Who wrote it? Are sources cited? Does it reference a study?
3. Ranks the articles (1–5) for credibility and justifies why

Share back: Each group quickly presents their rankings and findings.

Group 1 

Scan the following resource

Consider the following:

• What is the main claim of the article?
• Does the article cite or link to a research study (academic or report)?
• If yes: what is the study? What are its authors, date, journal/source?
• If no: does this article link to any outside information? If so, what type of information? 
• Compare the claim(s) in the article to what the study actually found
• Rank the article’s credibility (1‑5) and justify (you can apply your CRAAP knowledge here)

Group 2

Scan the following resource

Consider the following:

• What is the main claim of the article?
• Does the article cite or link to a research study (academic or report)?
• If yes: what is the study? What are its authors, date, journal/source?
• If no: does this article link to any outside information? If so, what type of information? 
• Compare the claim(s) in the article to what the study actually found
• Rank the article’s credibility (1‑5) and justify (you can apply your CRAAP knowledge here)

Group 3

Scan the following resource

Consider the following:

• What is the main claim of the article?
• Does the article cite or link to a research study (academic or report)?
• If yes: what is the study? What are its authors, date, journal/source?
• If no: does this article link to any outside information? If so, what type of information? 
• Compare the claim(s) in the article to what the study actually found
• Rank the article’s credibility (1‑5) and justify (you can apply your CRAAP knowledge here)

Group 4

Scan the following resource

Consider the following:

• What is the main claim of the article?
• Does the article cite or link to a research study (academic or report)?
• If yes: what is the study? What are its authors, date, journal/source?
• If no: does this article link to any outside information? If so, what type of information? 
• Compare the claim(s) in the article to what the study actually found
• Rank the article’s credibility (1‑5) and justify (you can apply your CRAAP knowledge here)

Using the Library 

There are a few ways to use the library.  

• Use the library search box/Library Search - allows you to search the entire collection.  
• Search in interdisciplinary databases - I have them listed under the articles tab on the GNED  guide.  You will be searching a smaller collection of sources.
• Search in discipline-specific journals - This type of search will yield fewer results.  It helps to know the publication title to use this feature effectively, but you can also type in a broader topic, as long as that word is contained within the title of the journal  Eg: forensic

Search Smarter!

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

• Use quotation marks to keep phrases together - "Black Lives Matter"

• Use  AND to combine search terms - "police violence" AND protester

• Use OR to connect two or more similar terms - BLM OR "Black Lives Matter"

• Use wild cards to substitute a letter or suffix with a symbol - demonstr*

Things to remember when using Library Search:

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

2. Use the pin icon to save books and articles. 

3. Use the filters on the right. You will use Availability, Resource Type, and Date filters most often.

4. Some items won't be available. You can request unavailable items using interlibrary loan.

5. When viewing an item record, scroll down to the Get It or Full Text section to get the item.

Search Google Scholar

Google Scholar is another great way to find peer-reviewed/scholarly material. Google Scholar has a nifty citation chaining function.  The Cited by function will forward you to indexed scholarly material that has cited an article that you may be interested in.  The Related Articles link will direct you to similar articles that may have the same metadata or keywords. 

The Advanced Search is found by clicking the menu icon (top left).
Besides providing links to articles in MRU databases, Google Scholar links to online repositories that contain articles the author has been allowed to upload.  Academia.edu and ResearchGate are among the repositories searched by Google Scholar.

By clicking on the Settings icon, you can select library links to show library access for up to 5 libraries (type in Mount Royal and click on save).  If you are logged into the MRU library, links should automatically populate if you are running a Google search in another window. 

Note: Google uses different commands: ~; -; +; but AND/OR also works

Find a good scholarly article to complement these news features!  OR, if you have a topic already, start looking for evidence to support your feature!

Article 1

Article 2

• Cite Sources: Learn the correct way to cite sources by using these guides, tutorials, and videos.
• Referencing Webinars: APA & MLA. Referencing Webinars are 75 minutes long.  Registration is required.
• Online Appointments: Personalized online 30-minute appointments with a Learning Strategist

Take an MLA or APA Referencing Tutorial on D2L!

These self-paced 90-minute tutorials covers the same content as live workshops—why citation is important along with the basics of in-text citations and reference entries. Students who complete the tutorial will gain access to a form they can fill out and submit as proof of completion.

Access the tutorial on D2L: Using Google Chrome as your web browser, log in to D2L (learn.mru.ca) with your @mtroyal.ca account. Click the “Discover” tab, then type “APA”  or "MLA" in the search bar. Click on the “APA Referencing Tutorial”  or "MLA Referencing Tutorial" link and then the “Enroll in Course” button. If you have any questions about the tutorial, contact sls@mtroyal.ca.