College Research and Information Literacy
What is scholarly research and how can I do it?
Students responsible for completing research assignments at Mesa Community College (MCC) are required to use credible information resources to support their work. Understanding where to start, what to look for and how to use our results requires a series of critical thinking skills we call 'information literacy'.
The Library Faculty at MCC want to help students successfully complete research projects given by classroom instructors. MCC Libraries provide access to a variety of information in various collections and formats. We house over 70,000 print and media titles at our various locations. The library also provides access to electronic resources including subscription databases, electronic books and select electronic journals. In addition our physical locations offer resources to help students and community members prepare the documents, presentation and reports that allow them to integrate what they've learned from their research.
Most importantly we provide classroom instruction in research skills, point of service Reference instruction to identify and locate quality research sources and virtual tools to help MCC Online students understand the increasingly complex nature of college level scholarly research.
In Seven Steps to Effective Research we outline with written explanations the 7 key steps of the research process. In these pages we review what steps researchers should take and the resources they should use for general research projects. Whether you're a recent high school graduate, exploring a second career or a re-entry student these steps are worth reviewing if you're serious about success at the college level.
To support a range of learning styles this semester we are introducing some multimedia resources. Make sure to select one of them (from this page or via one of the 7 Steps) if you consider yourself an auditory or kinesthetic learner. We've also provided links to printable handouts and worksheets that come in handy to organize your research. If you're ready to start, select one of the options below. The various information literacy tools will take 20-30 minutes to complete, but if you browse the resources featured you might need more time. Again, welcome to the Mesa Community College Library, the place where helping you research effectively is our passion!
Seven Steps to Effective Research
This text based tutorial covers how to:
- identify a topic
- find background material
- find books
- find articles
- find web resources
- evaluate materials
- cite information
Please note: Throughout the tutorial key research terms are linked to online definitions from ODLIS, Online Dictionary for Library and Information Science
CQ
Researcher Screencast
This short 15 minutes media clip demonstrates how to use CQ Researcher a key information resource for locating in depth information on current issues, especially those that give rise to debate about the pros and cons of the various aspects of the topics. The clip references several Tips for using electronic resources efficiently including learning how to 'read the screen'.
Research Your Way to an A
The 30 minute presentation reviews key elements of researching, with a little humor and lots of links to library resources.
Boolean Operators - courtesy of the Internet Navigator tutorial
Refrigerator Magnet Searching Exercise - courtesy of Washington University
Research Log - courtesy of the University of California Los Angeles
Research Terminology - MCC Librarians, adapted from ODLIS
Searching Strategy Handout - adapted from work of Leslie Boyd Vanderbilt University
Web and L.I. Brary - web vs library resources courtesy of Sharon Griffith Ivy Tech Com College
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