STUDENT PROJECT RESEARCH GUIDE (OR NOBODY TOLD
ME THERE WAS AN INDEPENDENT STUDY IN THIS COURSE NOW WHAT DO I DO????)
NAME: ________________________________________________
topic: ______________________________________________________________________
date assigned: _____________________ date due: ___________________________
type of project: ____thesis essay
____ report
_____display
(Check one) ____ presentation
____ brochure
____ model
____ other (describe) ____________________________________
what should I do first?
1) get organized:
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make up a Portfolio to hold your research (ready made
portfolios are available for a small fee from the librarian)
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create a time-line for yourself so that you will finish various
steps of your project by the due date
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make a time-line for yourself so that you know when you will
have time to work on the project
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if this is a group project, sit down and work out who will do
which part of the assignment
2) prepare for research:
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jot down some ideas to answer the question below:
what do I already know about my topic?
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now do some preliminary reading to get some basic knowledge
about your topic. A good place to start is with an encyclopedia
or other general reference book.
What new information have I learned?
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brainstorm the following:
a) several questions to help focus your research ...
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b) think of a list of keywords to help you focus your research.
They can be used to broaden your search (more general
keywords) or narrow your search (more specific keywords).
These words can then be used in your research by looking them
up in the index at the back of the book or for your internet
searching. For example, suppose your topic was ‘water pollution
in Lake Ontario’. A general keyword might be something like
‘pollution’ and a specific keyword might be ‘Dioxin in Lake
Ontario fish’ (‘keyword’ can also mean a phrase).
More general keywords
more specific keywords
3) now you are closer to starting your research! If this is a thesis
essay you should be thinking of your thesis and the questions
(sub-topics) that you will use. If it is not a thesis essay then you
should determine your specific topic and sub-topics.
Thesis (or specific topic): _________________________________________________
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Questions (or sub-topics): ________________________________________________
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4) you are ready to start your research! You now have questions or
sub-topics to focus your research and keywords to us to help
you find the information you need. There are several places to
look for information...
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reference materials such as...
- General encyclopedias (Americana and world book)
- subject specific reference books
- almanacs and dictionaries
- Atlases (many are also subject specific)
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Books (use the on-line catalogue). We may not have a book about
your specific topic. Use your general keywords to find related
books and then use the index in the back of the book to look up
your topic by the specific keywords.
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Newspapers and magazines (periodicals). These give you more upto-date information about your topic. We have some back issues
of popular magazines. The easiest way to locate the articles is
to do an on-line search of databases such as EBSCOHost or
Knowledge Ontario. (See library handout titled “how do I find
magazine/newspaper articles?” for information on how to use
these databases.
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internet. This can be a great source of information or a source
of incorrect information. How can you tell the difference? You
should refer to the library handouts “the abc’s of internet
searching” and “how do I know if a web site is good?” to find
out. Again use your keywords to help you in your search.
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other resources: there are many other resources that you
could use. Public libraries, businesses, interviews, videos,
community services, government agencies, etc.
5) Time to start collecting information! Now that you’re organized
you want to concentrate your research on finding information
to answer your questions (or support your sub-topics). You also
want to make sure that you collect the information you’ll need
to document your sources. A great way to do this is to use the
green library handout “W.S.S. Research notes worksheet”. You
could use one (or more) for each sub-topic. Don’t forget to
Complete the sections at the top for your sources. If you keep
your research notes organized by sub-topic it will make your job
much easier when it comes to writing your paper. Be sure to take
notes in your own words or use quotation marks to indicate
direct quotes to avoid plagiarism. Keep all of your notes and
papers in your portfolio.
6) Once you’ve finished the research its time to evaluate what you’ve
collected. Consider the validity of the information. Is it
accurate and up to date? Is there enough depth? Are there any
gaps in the information? If you don’t have satisfactory answers
to these questions then you need to go back and conduct More
research. If you’re happy with what you have, then you’re ready
to complete your project. What you do at this stage will depend
on the type of final product you have to produce. See your
classroom teacher for instructions.
7) For documenting your sources there are two library worksheets one for APA style and one for MLA style. Be sure to ask your
teacher which style they prefer.
Good luck on your research. Remember that it’s a process.
Each time you do a project you will have a better
understanding of the steps in the research process and
how to use the library resources to your best advantage.
Your teacher/librarian and subject teacher are always
available to help you through the process. Remember...
Good research + careful writing = success