1. Able to assist students/teachers in using library information sources such as EbscoHost, the internet, encyclopedias, books, etc.
2. Practice writing skills.

To provide experience in library research techniques and exposure to a variety of research tools through the solution of a bibliographic problem in your major area of interest.

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The description of your search strategy should be 5-6 pages in length, typewritten, and is worth 60% of the assignment.

A.  Topic selection:

Choose a topic that interests you.  You may choose a topic for which you have to write a paper in another class or it can be a scholarly topic of personal interest.  If you choose a topic for which you are also writing a paper in another class, remember that ONLY the topic of these two papers is the same; the requirements or restrictions of the other class paper is irrelevant to the requirements of this assignment.  If the topic for your other class does not allow you to fulfill the requirements of this assignment, the topic will not be approved.

Begin with a brief description of your topic and a discussion of the process by which you selected and defined your topic (1 page maximum length).

Questions to consider:

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B.  Search Strategy:

Your research essay should be descriptive, evaluative and reflective.  Building on the approved topic description (resubmit your original description with your final paper), your essay should describe and evaluate the research processes and methods you used in finding sources on your topic, and it should reflect on those processes, noting problems you encountered, methods that worked and didn't work, and what changes you would make in your strategy if you had this assignment to do over again.  Your essay should detail what you have learned about research methods and research sources, both in relation to your topic and to doing research in general.

Be sure to list the specific research tools consulted (e.g. general information sources, EUREKA!, print indexes, electronic resources, Internet).  For each tool, indicate the type of information sought, your rationale for choosing it, and an assessment of how useful this tool was for your purposes.  List the access points (e.g. search fields, controlled vocabularies, keyword) which proved most useful for finding information in each tool and indicate how and why you selected these access points. Remember, not all types of information sources are useful for all subjects. Justify why you used the kinds of information sources that you did, and why you didn't use others.

Other questions to consider in evaluating and reflecting on your research process are:

Be sure to write in complete, grammatically correct sentences, using proper punctuation and correct spelling.

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C.  Reference List:

The reference list must contain a minimum of 20 items and is worth 40% of the assignment.  The majority of the items must be available through the PHS Library; items found via the Internet, and full-text articles found in periodical databases will be considered as items in our collection.  At least one (1) of your items must be an item received via Interlibrary Loan, (maximum of six (6) interlibrary loans)  through Parker Public Library.

Your reference list should consist of the most significant sources of information you have located on your topic which are both most useful as well as those that best represent your topic.  A variety of literature (books, government publications, journal articles) and formats (paper, microforms, audiovisuals, WWW documents, etc.) should be represented.  It is important to use a number of different tools to obtain your citations. The types of literature and the tools you use will vary considerably depending on the nature of your research topic. You may not need to include every type and format available, but be sure that all relevant sources are represented in your list.

Each item in the reference list must include the following:

1.  Citation.

Give a full citation for each item using APA bibliographic style (see below).  Arrange the citations in a logical order (e.g. by subtopic, format, or alphabetically by author).

2.  Source.

After each citation, identify the reference source/library tool used to obtain that item (e.g. EUREKA!, Social Sciences Index, Medline, browsing, Yahoo!, etc.), and the access point(s) (e.g. subject headings, keyword, etc.) used to locate the item.  We must be able to duplicate your exact search.

3.  Critical Annotation (for 10 items only).

Briefly summarize the content of the item and evaluate it in terms of its contribution to your paper.  A brief description of the item is necessary, but the emphasis is on critical evaluation as discussed in class and in the readings.

4.  Photocopies of Title Pages.

If the item is a book or government publication, include a photocopy of the title page.  If the item is a journal article (print or online), supply a photocopy of the first page of the article.  Photocopies need not be supplied for nonprint items (other than journal articles), but be sure that your citation provides the complete URL or other relevant information so that the item can be located.

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D.  Summary:

Your final paper should include:

1. A description of your topic (resubmit your original description with your final paper).
2. A description of the research processes and methods you used.
3. An evaluation of those processes.
4. A reference list of 20 items as outlined above, including critical annotations for 10 items
5. Photocopies of items in your reference list as outlined above.

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