snow college teaching demo

Lauren Wojcikwojciklm@gmail.com

November 11, 2011

Session Outline• Identifying Keywords• Developing a Search Strategy : Keywords • Conducting the Search : Academic Search

Complete• Enhancing Your Search Strategy : Subject

Terms• Questions and Comments

Identifying KeywordsScenario:You have been assigned to research and report on

a contemporary environmental issue. You recently read a short article about the extinction of the Western black rhino and you think this could be a great topic. You must develop a strategy to conduct further research.

Topic Summary:How does poaching impact endangered species?

What are some possible solutions to this problem?

Identifying Keywords“No wild black rhinos remain in West Africa, according to the latest global assessment of threatened species. The Red List, drawn up by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), has declared the subspecies extinct. Overall numbers of black and white rhinos have been rising, but some subspecies have been particularly vulnerable to poaching by criminal gangs who want to trade the animals' valuable horns.”

Boettcher, Daniel. "Western black rhino declared extinct." BBC News 09/11/2011. Web. 10 Nov. 2011.

<http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15663982>.

Identifying KeywordsBased on what you know right now,

what keywords might you use to conduct further research on this topic?

Developing a Search StrategyWe can conduct a search for each keyword

separately, but combining keywords is often more effective.

Boolean terms (AND, OR, NOT) can be used to refine and limit your search results.

Examples: (Rhinoceros) AND (Poaching)(Rhinoceros) AND (Africa) OR (Asia)

Conducting the Search Plan to search multiple resources, especially if

you need a combination of books and articles for your project.

Today, we will search:Academic Search Premier (to locate articles)

Enhancing Your Search StrategyWe can also use subject headings or subject terms to locate articles

dealing with a specific topic.

To do this, we will first run a search using one or more keywords. We can then browse the list of results to find a result that seems relevant. Most results will have a corresponding “tag” (often known as a subject heading) which links it to other results that share the same subject.

Questions and Comments

Instructor’s contact information:

Lauren Wojcikwojciklm@gmail.com