Research Assignments: The Details

What Types of Sources are Appropriate

• primary or secondary sources
• popular or scholarly articles
• government documents
• data/statistical sources
• editorials/opinion pieces
• crowd-sourced information

Terminology

• primary vs. secondary sources
• reference sources
• monographs vs. collected/edited volumes
• peer reviewed journals
• review articles or literature reviews

Sources to be Used or Avoided

NB try to be sparing with blanket prohibitions (e.g. "don't use Google or the web" )

• e.g. use PsycINFO to find a report of a clinical study
• e.g. use the Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy for information on the life and work of W.V.O. Quine
• e.g. use OBIS/OhioLINK Library Catalog to find books or videos beyond class readings
• e.g. don't cite Wikipedia as an authority

Confirm Resource Availability

• use reserve services when many students will need the same sources
• provide links to required or recommended sources when possible
• give complete citations to sources you expect students to locate independently
• indicate whether alternate versions or editions are acceptable
• verify holdings and access to key sources
  • access to electronic books, journals, and databases can change without notice

Convey Expectations for the Finished Product

• indicate your preferred citation style
• format preference (e.g. hard copy, electronic or both)
• printing preferences (single or double-sided)
• file type preferences (.doc, .pdf, .xls)
• length (number of pages or word count)
• other preferences:
  • margins, point size, image types, slide background, graphs/charts