North Seattle Community College North Seattle Community College
Library & Media Services

Research Guide for ENGL&102: Turtle Island

Prepared by Elinor Appel
NSCC Librarian (contact info.)
NSCC Library (this will open in a new window)

February 23: Annotated bibliography work

In-class work:

March 2: Collecting a variety of reputable resources

  • Using Keywords & finding college-level resources
  • Research Kit

Image licensed on Flickr under Creative Commons by Storm Crypt.

Before you Begin

Consider your keywords (search terms) in order to retrieve the results you want. Depending on the resource, you may need to search using broader terms (nature) or narrower terms (forest, desert, wetland, ecosystem, bioregion). If you are researching the work of Gary Snyder, what would be some broader terms you could use to find information about him, for instance, in a library catalog?

Websites

To find reputable information on the Internet, be sure to use strategies like limiting your searches by domain (edu, gov, etc.), and checking for authority, bias and currency. Does the site provide references? Does the author or creator of the website have the credentials to speak as an authority? Evaluate your online sources carefully to ensure that they are an appropriate resource for your research project.

General

Selected

Many times you will find that your Google search for an online article appears to lead to a dead end. Not all journals and magazines provide full text access to their content free and online.

To check to see whether you can find the article in North's library collection look up the article by the title of the journal or magazine (not the title of the article) and by the holding information (months, years, volumes, etc.) using links found under "Search for Articles" on the library website.

  • online in the library databases using the Periodical Locator (top of databases page)
  • in print using the browse list of periodical titles (print periodicals are on the South side of the library, organized in alphabetical order; most recent editions are separate, to the right)

In-class work -- find the full text for

  • Dead End 1 - PubMed reference to an academic article on global warming and Thoreau's Concord
  • Dead End 2 - Wikipedia reference to an article by Solnit on "Iceland's Polite Dystopia"

Articles

Searching the library's periodical databases is your most direct way to find full-text articles online. Refer to Finding Articles for tips on how to search ProQuest using keywords and Topics. Again: think about your keywords. Experiment with related terms, for instance:religion, spirituality.

When searching a database use:

  • and – for combining concepts/keywords; this will narrow the search: snyder and buddhism (limits search to articles with both terms)
  • or – when you are using related terms; this will broaden the search: buddhism or spirituality (broadens search to articles with either term)
  • “ ” – use quotes around phrases if you need to show that the words are together: "deep ecology " (not necessary in an advanced search)
  • Topics - use Topics in ProQuest, Subjects in Academic Search Premier, and other controlled vocabulary links to find related articles

Other library databases:

  • Academic Search Premier - another general database with a range of articles
  • eLibrary Academic - an articles database that includes images, transcripts
  • Ethnic NewsWatch - articles from ethnic and minority publications
  • JSTOR - older articles from academic journals
  • Literary Resource Center - biographical information, literary criticism, and reviews of work by writers

Need a scholarly article? Check the database for a search limit for academic, scholarly, or peer reviewed journals and check the box. For instance, in ProQuest you need to check this box:

Types of Periodicals - if you still aren't sure about the difference between a popular, scholarly, ora trade publication, take this mini-tutorial created by librarians ar Clark College.

To access these databases from off campus, log in with your SID and last name.

Books

Books - use these for both background information (reference books) or in-depth information (circulating collection). Often a good place to start with your research is in the reference collection, where you will find a wide variety of topical encyclopedias.

Selected reference books:

  • Encyclopedia of American Indian Literature [Ref PS 153.I52 E53 2007]
  • Encyclopedia of American Poetry [Ref PS 323.5 .E53 2001]
  • Encyclopedia of the Biosphere, 11 vols. [Ref GF 75 .B5613 1999]
  • Encyclopedia of World Environmental History, 3 vols.[Ref GE 10.E63 2004]
  • Indigenous Peoples and Environmental Issues [Ref GF 50.J65 2003]

Refer to Finding Books for tips on searching the catalog using keywords and Subjects. Keep your starting terms simple and broad.

For example, begin with a Keyword Relevance search:

Then find a title that looks good:

Click on the title to open the record. Check location, call number, and availability.

Locate the Subjects in the record . . .

These subject links will often lead to more material on the same topic. 

Once you find a title or two in the catalog, locate them in the circulating collection upstairs and then browse the shelves in that area for related books on your topic.  

Check out books using your Student ID card. Books can be checked out for two weeks and renewed online.

Annotated Bibliography

For your annotated bibliograpy, you will need to find "8 - 10 high-quality sources" that are relevant, authoritative, and as current as possible.

Use Noodlebib to format and save your sources. Register with Noodlebib while on campus, then use it from any location. or email me for a one-time log in to create your Noodlebib account. (Example of a saved Noodlebib file.)

Your instructor has given you citation information for your bibliography. Here are some additional resources:

And two more online guides to writing an annotated bibliography: