Research It!

EFFECTIVE SEARCHING

If you are going to spend the time to search for the information you need, you want it to be as easy and painless as possible, right? Learning effective search skills can save you a great deal  of time and can even reduce the headaches caused by long hours of researching.

Tips for Successful Searching:

1.   Keep a record of the search terms that you have tried as you explore different resources to avoid repetition and wasting time.

2.   Be sure to use a method of tracking successful search terms, as you may find that these terms bring you continued success during the research process.

3.   Be specific with your search terms. If you want information on the American Civil War, search for American Civil War instead of civil war.

4.   Be aware and take note of new search terms that you encounter as you search; these may bring you added results when searching.

5.   Refrain from hastily dismissing a source; be sure to take time to evaluate the material provided before you decipher the value of the source for your assignment.

6.  Avoid jumping around from one resource to the next while researching. Jumping around from database to database, for example, without conducting organized and thoughtful searches can cause you to become confused and frustrated with the multitude of resources available for your research.

7.   Keep track of the resources that you have consulted and note whether or not they have produced successful searches (be sure to include why). You may choose to take these notes in a notebook or type brief notes into a Word document (possibly copying and pasting items as you search).

8.   Try using synonyms for your original words. For example, try "nervous breakdown" or "mental breakdown" or "nervous disorder" or "mental instability".

9.   Check your spelling. If you type litrature instead of literature, you will not find matches.

10.  Talk to your classmates about credible resources and tools that they (and you) consider helpful when searching.

11.  Never be satisfied with "zero results". Try new search terms, try new term combinations, or simply ask your information media center staff or teacher for help.

Search Strategies:

Many electronic resources, such as databases, allow you to use certain search strategies to yield more specific and relevant search results. Typically, the resource's main search page will have a link to tips about the resource's searching capabilities. The following provides an overview of the search strategies that many resources support.

Boolean Searching: This type of searching is named after the British mathematician George Boole. Boolean logic refers to the way in which your search terms relate to one another. The main operators (or words) used in  Boolean searching are as follows:

•      AND (all caps)   Putting AND between two search terms will result in a search that looks for both terms. Example: A search for Caesar AND "ancient Rome" will yield results that contain both search terms.
•      OR (all caps)     Putting OR between two search terms will result in a search that looks for either term given. Example: A search for racism OR prejudice will yield results that contain either search term.
•      NOT (all caps)   Putting NOT between two search terms will result in a search that looks for one specific search term but not the second one listed. Example: A search for William Shakespeare NOT John Shakespeare will yield results that contain information about William Shakespeare but not his father John Shakespeare.

Truncation: This search strategy allows you to shorten a word or eliminate some of its characters in order to search variations of the word. The asterisk (*) is the most commonly used truncation symbol for most resources; however, the question mark (?) and plus sign (+) are sometimes used in other systems. Examples:

• A search for biograph* will locate results for biography and biographical.
• A search for murder* will locate results for murderer and murderous.

Quotation Marks: If you are searching for an exact phrase, especially one that contains a Boolean operator, use quotation marks (" ") around your search phrase or title to produce search results containing that exact phrase. Example:

• A search for "gateway to the west" will yield more precise results than searching for the words gateway AND west.

Wildcard: This feature allows you to replace letters when you are unsure of spelling, when there are alternate spellings, or when you only know part of a term. The * and ? are used as wildcards. Example:

• A search for wom?n  will yield results with woman and women.

Search Strategy Combinations: Using parentheses ( ) with other search strategies can create very powerful searches. Example:

• (car AND safety) AND (seatbelts OR airbags)

TOOLS FOR THE RESEARCH PROCESS

The Internet Public Library for Teens: Learning to Research on the Web
Provides a step-by-step approach to the research and writing process and tools for your info search, including tips for library research, tips for online research, and search strategies.

EVALUATING WEB SOURCES

The basics of evaluating a source on the Web are simple, but you must always remember that anyone can put anything on the Web. Some sites provide you with accurate information, but others can sabotage your work with inaccurate information. You must become a responsible consumer of information. Sometimes it is very difficult to determine the credibility of a Web source, so if you need guidance, please be sure to ask your information media center staff or teacher.

Here are some basic questions to consider:

1.  Is the site authoritative? Have you ever heard of the author or sponsoring organization? Can you link the pages back to a credible authority?
2.  What is the site's purpose and intended audience? Is the Web address .edu, .gov, .org, or .com? Is the site trying to educate, inform, or sell something?
3.  Does the site's content illustrate objectivity? What is the point of view, and does the information seem biased?
4.  Is the site current? What is the date of creation? When was the site last updated?
5.  How did you access the site? Did you link from a reputable site or an ad?
6.  Does the site provide accurate information? Are the sources of the information provided so that you can verify them? Does the information conflict with information that you have gathered elsewhere? Is the site free of grammatical and typographical errors?