Research Tools and Skills

Finding the Sources You Need for that Research Paper

Electronic Research Resources

NOTE: Check with Atkins Library Reference for Passwords etc for some of these tools. Some are only available on campus or through the ‘Reverse Proxy Server.’ Details at http://libweb.uncc.edu/

a) Books

1. Jasmine: Always start here. Keywords search is a good place to start, but once you find some relevant material also try the Library of Congress subject headings which you can find in the record for each book. Be sure to browse the stacks near the books you get to see if there is anything else there.

2. OCLC (First Search): Access is best at the following web address: http://firstsearch.oclc.org/. (Password available from Reference Desk) Actually this is a series of interrelated databases. One of the most important is ‘World Cat’, which lists library holdings from around the world: it includes published primary sources and quite a bit of microfilm as well. You will almost always want to do an ‘advanced search’ because you can combine various search criteria (author, title, subject etc) with ‘and’ and ‘or.’ Again, try using the LC subject headings when you’ve found works that are relevant. Note that you will get multiple records for the same book. This search service has the neat feature of direct access to Interlibrary loan request on-line—but do check if the library(s) holding the item participate in ILL.

3. Eureka/RLIN: Access at http://eureka.rlg.org/, password from Reference. This is another book/primary source material database from a linked group of major research libraries.

b) Articles

Historical Abstracts/American History and Life: Now that these two databases of published articles in professional journals is available on line, life is much easier for students seeking sources. Access from on campus to these databases is at http://sb2.abc-clio.com:81/. Choose American History and Life for topics concerning American or Canadian History; choose Historical Abstracts for everything else. One neat feature is the ability to search for articles on a particular time period

Print Sources

• Bibliographies and Footnotes: A wonderful and underused way to find sources is the bibliographies and citations of the material you have already found. Its only limitation is that you find things older than what you’re reading, but hey this is history after all.
• Specialized bibliographies: Ask your professor if specialized bibliographies exist for the topic you are interested in. Many of these are annotated and are very useful.
• Annual bibliographies or lists of publications in journals: Some journals print a list or annotated essay of publications in a field each year.

REMEMBER: Ask for help from your professor and from the staff on the Reference Desk. It’s their job to know this stuff.

Taking Notes for that Research Paper

Good note taking is part of the writing process and helps you think through your argument. It is possible to take the short cut and write a paper with all the books and xeroxes spread in front of you, but your paper will suffer and your professors will probably be able to guess that that’s what you did. In fact, if you take notes efficiently, you will save time and frustration at the reading stage and also when you come to write your paper. To succeed at note taking, follow these three principles

1. Planning

Don't start your detailed research until after you have done some general investigation of your topic.

• Look at your textbook, your lecture notes, and perhaps an encyclopedia or other reference work. Be aware of the general range of facts about your topic, and also of the range of thinking and opinions on it.
• Decide on the angle or component you want to focus on, and formulate a tentative thesis statement--the point you want to argue, or the angle you want to use to investigate the topic.
• Check that your thesis will satisfy the professor's assignment. (Duh…)
• Using your preliminary thesis you can read with an eye to finding facts and theories that support (or controvert) your thesis.
• Make a preliminary list of the subtopics you would expect to find in your reading. These will come in handy as labels for your notes.

2. Reading and Note Taking

The cardinal rule is DON'T WRITE DOWN TOO MUCH. Your finished paper must be an expression of your own thinking, not a patchwork of quotations. Therefore, plan to invest your time in assimilating your sources, not just recording them.

• Record on your note cards or note sheets only the relevant ideas; and they will mostly summarize, in your own words, rather than quote.
• Copy out exact words ONLY in the few cases when the ideas are memorably phrased or surprisingly expressed--when you might use them as actual quotations in your essay. (Hint: your professors can spot a direct quote or a close paraphrase very easily—you do not write in the same style as the historians you read.)
• Many students find it useful to read an entire section of a chapter or article before taking any notes. This is more efficient that stopping every minute to jot something down and ensures you’ve gotten the big picture.
• If you photocopy your sources, use underlining and highlighting sparingly. It's better to make annotations in the margin about important points. Use your own words to indicate subtopics.
• Don’t forget to keep track of the source and the page numbers; you will need them later.

3. Label and Organize

• When you first look at each source, record the details of author and publication in a MASTER LIST. This allows you to use abbreviations in your notes and when drafting your paper, but the details are there for the citations when you need them. (If you’re quick on the computer, downloading titles from Jasmine etc can save you time.)
• Make sure you do the same with photocopies. Avoid later panic by writing down full details before you let go of the book or article.
• Put your master list into the correct citation format, so the master list can be used for your citations without further work and modified only slightly for the bibliography.
• If you keep your notes in a notebook, leave lots of space so you can write labels and comments in the margins.
• Some people like to keep notes on separate cards or sheets, with labels for the topic of each note. That allows for grouping and synthesizing of notes later. It's especially satisfying to shuffle and recombine notes and see how various sources interact to stimulate new thinking.