Transcript Slide 1

English 10
Research Paper
2011
WONDER

Start with a question
 What is compelling about this work of literature?
 What did you like or hate about this character?

Use those ideas to develop your research
question
 Why did Elie Wiesel survive the Holocaust?

THINK - What do I already know?
 Night was depressing.
 I hate research papers.
INVESTIGATE

What do I need to know?
◦ Anything about Night

How do I find out?
◦ Start broad, then narrow
◦ “Night and Elie Wiesel” as a search

Databases, databases, databases
◦ http://blackbirdlibrary.pbworks.com/
KNOW YOUR DESTINATION
INVESTIGATE

Important things to know:
◦ General only goes so far, then you need specifics
◦ Continue to think about your WONDER
question (it may change)
◦ Answers aren’t always there – you WILL need to
make connections using the resources, the book
and (gasp) YOUR BRAIN!
EVALUATE,
NOT REGURGITATE
What Is a Database?
It is…
• A collection of information organized in
a standard format
It
includes…
• Reference books, journals, newspapers,
video, audio, images
• Organization by theme, major topic
It covers…
• Many topics including biographies,
health, science, history & literature
• Scholarly, academic, expert information
I Can Get the Same Stuff on the
Web

Yes…But No
◦ Databases are targeted, accurate, and
appropriate for academic resources
◦ Databases are a private, subscription service
that our school buys for academic resources
◦ Contains information that is not available on the
web
When Should I Use a Web Site?

Generally, web sites are not acceptable for
academic resources except
◦ Unique topic
◦ Current news
◦ Government agencies, businesses, nonprofits
◦ Pre-Search, Pre-Search, Pre-Search

Always check with your teacher first!
◦ Remember, information hasn’t been evaluated
so check for inaccuracies, bias or if it is current.
Using a Database is Hard

Databases & email accounts – they all have
the same functions they just look different
◦ Yahoo vs. Gmail vs. AIM
◦ Student Resource in Context vs. ABC-CLIO
History

Keywords not sentences

Citations included
INVESTIGATE

Create a search plan
◦ Keywords – Elie Wiesel, Night, Holocaust,
“literary criticism”
◦ Where am I starting to look for information?
 REMEMBER, you will do the same search in several
different databases!
PICK, DON’T CLICK
All Databases are
on the library
website. The
most useful ones
will be on the
project wiki link
Blackbird Library.
Biography in Context
Contains biographical information on your author,
mostly reference books with some criticism &
magazine or newspaper articles
Rating: General information, Easy to use
Day 1: Find a resource on your author
Available through the
Voorheesville Public
Library. Just type in
the person’s name.
Keep scrolling
down for more!
There are Videos,
Images and Audio
clips.
Keep going down farther! Reference
Books, News and Magazines,
Academic Journals & more!
ALWAYS, ALWAYS,
ALWAYS use the tools
section to save, email or
print!
REVISE
What did I learn?
 Skim & scan for information
◦ Scan the article, not reading & note-taking
◦ Answer the questions:
 Do I think this would be useful?
 Why do I need this information?
 Where will it fit in my rough outline?

Can I answer the research question based
on the information I’ve found so far?
REVISE, RETHINK, REWORK

Did your search plan give you results?
◦
◦
◦
◦

Look for your author (Elie Wiesel)
Look for your character (Elie)
Look for your title (Night)
Look for the time period (1940s) and important events
(Holocaust, concentration camps)
Revise your search plan
◦ Do I need historical info, too?
◦ Is this enough information on my author, character..?
◦ Have I used this resource to its fullest?
Gale Virtual Reference Library
A digital reference book or eBook that is
cross-searchable, may include Plot Summary
Rating:Very useful, Easy to use
Day 2: Use 1 of these sources to begin looking for
critical information on your book
Gale Virtual
Reference Library
This is a digital
reference book or
eBook.
Enter Search Here
Look at the types of
results you have –
What do you need?
Would a biography or
plot summary be
useful?
Look at the title
of your results –
What would work
best for your
topic?
Are you looking
for World
Literature
criticism or would
excerpts about
the Holocaust be
better?
Look at the
Related Subjects
column for ideas
on search terms!
Different spot,
same thing –
Use it!
eBooks look
exactly like
it would in
print but
searchable
in a
database!
Use the
Bibliography in
the articles .
Look for other
sources of
information that
may be helpful!
REVISE
PICK,
DON’T CLICK
TeachingBooks.net
A great place to go for author interviews & book
guides
Rating: General information, Easy to use
Day 2: Use 1 of these sources to begin looking for
critical information on your book
Author interviews are great for personal history &
experiences not available in other places. Don’t
forget the book guides to help you organize your
ideas.
The links will take you off of the database.
REVISE
What did I learn?

Skim & scan for information
◦ Scan the article, not reading & note-taking
◦ Answer the questions:
 Do I think this would be useful?
 Why do I need this information?

Can I answer the research question based on the
information I’ve found so far?
◦ Did your search plan give you results?
◦ Ask the questions everytime!
PICK, DON’T CLICK
DIRECTION
•Go to the library or wiki homepage
•Look at the databases we went over:
•Gale Virtual Reference Library
•TeachingBooks.net
•Find resources that will help your
paper
•Skim & scan to determine if it is
relevant
•Email or print the article
Literary Criticism
WORDS, WORDS, WORDS

Go back to your I WONDER questions
(p.14)
◦ What were the words listed in
INVESTIGATE? - author, character, time
period?
Use these words to search the
databases for information! CHANGE your
search words!

SKIM for information
◦ You may only need 2,3,4 paragraphs of an
article BUT those can still be important
pieces of information
What is It?
It is not a book review
 Someone with academic credentials (scholar,
researcher) interprets & evaluates the work of
literature based on their research & knowledge


It should contain:
◦ Challenging writing not intended for a general
audience
◦ An abstract, a bibliography, endnotes, footnotes,
little illustrations
◦ Narrow focus with in-depth, highly detailed
analysis
Parts of a Scholarly Article

Abstract –at the beginning of the article, provides a summary of the
research, including its purpose and significant results. Read the abstract to
quickly gauge if the article suits your paper’s topic.

Introduction – introduces the topic, the thesis, and tells you why the
research is important. Focus in on the thesis – usually found in the first and
last paragraph of the intro. The introduction is sometimes combined with
‘Literature Review’ below.

Literature Review – describes any previous research or discussion. This
section can help get you up to speed on the topic.

Conclusion, Implications or Summary – details the key issues
resulting from the research and makes recommendations for future research,
policy or practice in the relevant field.

Bibliography – lists sources used in the article; usually quite extensive and
helpful to identify additional sources to research.
REMEMBER – SKIM the article – PICK, DON’T CLICK
Remember to SKIM!
Read the title
 The introduction paragraph & 1st paragraph
completely
 Read the headings or subheadings

◦ Then read the first and last lines of each paragraph.
Check the illustrations and images.
 Run your eyes over quickly, to get the gist or
basic meaning

◦ Look for words that answer who, what, when, why,
how

Read the final paragraph completely
Student
Resources in
Context will also
have literary
criticism but
Bloom’s is the
best!
Enter Search Here
Pay attention to
the results – Do I
need a biography
or literary
criticism?
The article is
going to sound
scary – Don’t let
that stop you
from skimming &
scanning for
information.
ALWAYS,
ALWAYS,
ALWAYS use the
tools section to
save, email or
print!
Student Resources in Context
Contains journals, criticism & reference books, may
include Plot Summary
Rating: Highly useful, easy to use
Day 2: Use 1 of these sources to begin looking for
critical information on your book
Enter Search Here
History is a HUGE
part of
understanding your
character & author
Look at the listing of results!
Do you need a Reference Book? Critical Essay?
Look and think before you click!
Try A LOT of different ways to access the
historical time period information –
Holocaust, Race and 1950s, Great Depression,
Thirties, 1930s and Economy – ALSO try
context and the title
Don’t be scared off a great article by the freaky, long, weird
titles!
Try it! Ask for help understanding it! Remember, you may
only need to use 2-3 paragraphs of the article!
Citations are
available on the
bottom of all
databases
I Have an Article, Now What?

Pay attention to passages that are confusing
◦ Have a dictionary nearby, don’t ignore difficult vocabulary
◦ Look for key terms & language

Write up notes immediately after reading
◦ Summarize the main lines of the argument & key
questions/answers posed by the authors
Write up your notecards on the article
immediately, add thoughts/ideas to your outline
E VALUATE, NOT REGURGITATE
 Read & re-read the article

◦ Writing is not going to be as accessible as fiction & may
require more than 1,2 or 3 times reading to understand
Intensive Reading?

Extracting specific information, accurate
reading for detail

Used when you are reading closely,
highlighting & taking notes

Best off of paper, NOT a computer screen
WE NEED TO READ,
NOT SPEED
HELP! HELP!
Questions with
Writing, Citing,
Tips & Tricks