Using Sources A Helpful Guide Why are sources

Using Sources A Helpful Guide

Why are sources important? • Anyone can make an argument, logical or illogical, but what really makes an argument “solid” is the use of specific evidence. • Outside sources allow you to further prove that your stance has merit. They provide even more evidence that your claim is valid. • You should use sources whenever your topic needs more factual information or will benefit from having more than just your personal feelings and experiences.

Types of Sources • There are two types of sources you can gather. • Primary sources: historical documents (letters, diaries, speeches), literary works, autobiographies (written by the person himself), original research reports, eyewitness testimony, interviews, personal observations, or letters (correspondence) • Secondary sources: reports or comments based on primary sources. • Ex. A journal article that reviews other published reports • Ex. A book written about someone famous

Use Sources to… • • • Make general statements more specific by adding facts. Give specific examples to illustrate your main points. Supply technical information. Support opinions with evidence. Provide historical or cultural information Locate information about similar events or ideas.

Using Sources to Write a Research Paper • Writing a research paper means that you need to collect and analyze information on a topic from a variety of sources (577). • You can use a combination of primary and secondary sources. • To collect all these sources in one place (the easier to find them) it may be helpful to create an annotated bibliography. • The most important thing to remember about using sources is to represent them in your paper fairly and accurately. Do not change the source to suit your own needs and goals.

Planning Your Essay • Some people like to start a paper by doing the research first, BUT it is always best to start by yourself, in your own space, with your own ideas. • Think about the assignment first and your own opinions, then come up with an outline to help you execute.

First Step: The Assignment • The first step of writing anything is to understand what the writing assignment is asking you to do. Not all assignments ask you to do the same thing; the purposes may be different. • A good thing to do is the follow the instructions given to you. Your instructor will go over instructions or have them written down; it is also a good idea to ask any questions you have. • Keep your assignment sheets handy so you have something to refer back to should you have questions.

Second Step: Prewriting • Choose a topic that interests you. You may be given broad topics, but that doesn’t mean you can’t write something interesting to you that falls under that broad umbrella. Make sure it is a manageable topic, one that is not too current (because they won’t have much reliable information yet), and by all means don’t pick something everyone chooses (like euthanasia). • Read up on your topic a little to familiarize yourself with it. • Prewrite: outline and do a bit of drafting. • Write a working thesis (you may revise it later) and think of some questions that may help guide you.

Choosing and Evaluating Useful Sources • Many students like to go to the library or search the internet to find every source dealing with their topic, but they often find many materials just don’t do what they need. Before going to do research, think about what sources would be the most helpful to you.

Internet Sources • Searching for sources on the internet is easier than going to the library for books, but it does come with problems. • Not every internet source is a good one. Some sources just are not considered reliable. Sources like personal blogs, Wikipedia, and many “googled” (. com) sites just are not good sources. • The internet is disorganized and not “vetted, ” so you have to evaluate many sources, and this may take a good deal of time. • However, sources you find through your library’s database are credible.

Print Sources • Print sources are trusted more than the internet, but they can be cumbersome to carry around, and you have to spend a lot of time digging through books and such. • However, books and periodicals found are generally accepted as credible sources.

How to Choose Good Sources • Relevant sources contain information that helps you answer one or more of your research questions or points. Reliable sources are honest and accurate. Criteria you need to consider are • Is the source too general or too specialized for your audience? Your audience will help you determine the right source. You don’t want to choose anything too general for an audience that already knows information, but you don’t want to be too specific for an audience that has no clue what you are talking about. • IS the source recent enough for your purposes? Finding an article that is too old does not do you any good. Old articles means old data, and something new may have been discovered concerning your topic. • Is the source scholarly? Scholarly sources are the best because they are critiqued and held accountable. • Does the source and author have a solid reputation? No one wants a shoddy source or will trust the word of someone who is not credible. • Is the topic fair or biased? Does the author approach the topic with a strong, but unbiased, eye? If so, good! Does the writer ignore facts and opposing viewpoints? If so, you don’t want that one!

Separating Facts from Opinions • A fact is a statement that can be proven to be true or false. Facts can be verified. • Ex. The Earth has six times the volume of Mars. • An opinion is a statement about a belief or feeling; these are neither true nor false. • Expert Opinion, however, is an attitude or believe by someone who is an expert on a topic. They still qualify their statement with words like “it seems likely” or “it is possible. ” • Ex. Humans will probably destroy the planet Earth if they don’t stop polluting it. • Opinions are stronger when they are backed up by facts.

Bias • Bias attitudes happen when writer’s put their own views of a particular subject in their essays without considering counterarguments or other viewpoints. A good argument tries to be as unbiased as possible. • When looking for bias in an article, look at the author’s background, the language used, and the overall tone of the essay.

Recognize Generalizations and Identify Assumptions • A generalization is a broad statement made about a large group based upon experience with a limited number of that group. Some generalization can be trustworthy, like those made by an expert with years of experience, but not most generalizations should be avoided. • Ex. High schoolers in this town are not well-behaved. • An assumption is a statement that people accept as true without verifying the facts. If the assumption is false or cannot be proven, then it can lead to a bad argument. • Ex. Childbirth is a painful experience, intolerable even with appropriate medications.

Reading Sources First, scan it. • Figure out the organization of the source. • Scan the index and table of contents to see if source has good information. • Scan for key words and phrases. • Be systematic. Don’t just pass your eyes over the page. Second, read more closely. • Once you’re done skimming the article or essay, read it more closely and carefully. Annotate as you go. Read it more than once.

Finding Sources: The Library • Your library is an excellent resource for finding sources because nearly everything you find in a library can be considered reliable. • Learn about your college library: take a tour by yourself or ask a librarian for one (they love when people seem interested in the library!), get help from librarians (they know their libraries better than anyone!), and review the library web site (some things you can find on your own!). • Get familiar with your library’s databases (for articles online) and catalog (to find books on site).

Using Key Words for Searches • A keyword is a word or phrase that describes your topic. Keywords help narrow your searches so you aren’t wading through a lot of nonsense. • Specific key words can be both good and bad. • Good—it narrows your search so you don’t get nonsense. • Bad—too specific of a keyword may not yield enough sources. • To get the best out of your search, think about synonyms or related terms that go with your topic.

Helpful Tips for finding Sources • A bibliography lists a lot of sources on a particular subject. Try searching for your topic and the word “bibliography. ” • Know that most college libraries are organized in “Library of Congress” style—if you find one book about your topic, you will find other books on that topic nearby. • Periodicals include newspapers, magazines, and scholarly journals. Learn how to search on your library’s database (don’t rely solely on newspapers and magazines). The catalog should have an index that tells you what articles are available by title, author, and subject. Also abstracts can tell you a little about what the source is about. • Abstracts are not sources by themselves. If you cannot get the full text, you cannot use the abstract. • Limit your search. Make sure you are only looking for articles written in English, for example, or articles that have full text available.

Finding Sources: The Internet • The internet gives you an array of information to choose from. However, you want to be VERY careful. Not everything found on the internet is a good, reliable source. • Here is a short list of okay internet searches: • News sites • Encyclopedia cites (not Wikipedia, never that one) • . edu sites • Some. org or. com sites are okay, but you have to evaluate the site very carefully.

Finding Sources: Interviews • Do not discount the simple interview. You can take time to talk to an expert and get information from them. • Many experts, authors, and businesses are willing to respond to email requests, but you should make sure that the information isn’t already available somewhere else. • If you do send an email or letter to someone you don’t know, make sure to introduce yourself and give your school and contact information, and explain what your doing and what you need. Be professional and polite!

Gathering Information: The Annotated Bibliography • Once you’ve found all of your sources, you need to compile everything you’ve found into one easy to locate place. An annotated bibliography can help you with that. • An annotated bibliography is a list of all the sources you consulted in your research. Anything you looked at or read needs to go in this list. • It is much easier to create an annotated bibliography as you research than to try to do it after.

Example: Annotated Bibliography • Your instructor may ask you for an annotated bibliography. If so, make sure it is alphabetized and formatted. Your instructor may also ask that you “give your two cents” about your source. Garrison, D. R. , and Terry Anderson. E-learning in the Twenty-first Century: A Framework for Research and Practice. London: Routledge, 2011. Print. A book that provides research based information on how elearning can be integrated into the college classroom in ways that make technological, practical, and educational sense.

Finding Sources: The Interview and Survey • Interviewing someone can be a valuable resource for you. When you interview someone: • • First, choose carefully who you want to interview. Make sure it is someone who will be able to help you. • Come to the interview with a list of questions. Do not create “yes or no” questions. You want “sound bites, ” so give the interviewee a question she can answer in sentence form. • Take notes during the interview. Don’t think you will remember it all. If the interviewee allows, take a recording device. • Review and evaluate your interview as soon as you can after you have done it. That way, you’ll remember your reactions and more of what the interviewee said. Second, arrange your interview well in advance. A day before is not advance. Don’t just show up and expect help. Be courteous and respectful. • Surveys may also be helpful for you. A survey is a set of questions designed to help you gather information quickly. Be sure to tell people what the survey is for, design your question to be multiple choice or “closed, ” and make sure you ask the right people and make it random. (Picking your friends won’t do you much good. ) • For our purposes, surveys will not be used, but an interview or two will be just fine!

Using Sources: Note Taking • There are different ways to take notes (annotate) as you are working with your sources. • Use note cards—using one card per source, write notes about a source. Make sure you copy all the relevant information, like author name and source title. • Type your notes on the computer. • Write notes on a copy of your source (marginal notes). • Write summary notes—use these when you want to get the gist of what the author is saying but you do not need exact wording (direct quotes) or paraphrases. • Paraphrase—state the author’s ideas in your own words. You still have to get credit. Do not condense or eliminate details (like in a summary), but use different vocabulary while keeping the author’s meaning.

Quotations: Direct and Indirect • A direct quotation has the exact wording of something in your source material. You use quotation marks to show that it came from a different source. • You can delete a word or sentence as long as it does not change the meaning of a quotation. To show that you eliminated material, use an ellipsis (…). • An indirect quotation is a paraphrase.

What the what is plagiarism? • Plagiarism is using someone else’s words, ideas, or organization without giving that person credit. It’s the same as lying or cheating. • Academically, plagiarism is one of the worst things you could do. • Whether you plagiarize on purpose or on accident, the result is the same: you will fail the assignment and possibly the course. You may also have the stain of plagiarism follow you on your permanent record (as an XF—an F you can’t get rid of). You can also get kicked out of school. • If you don’t know whether you plagiarized or not, ASK.