DESIGNING A RESEARCH STRATEGY

EXPLORE YOUR TOPIC

WHY USE THIS ASSIGNMENT?

Students new to the research process often have difficulty knowing where to begin. Using the worksheet for this assignment, they'll learn to begin at the beginning: with a research topic! This two-part assignemtn frist asks a series of questions to help the student define and focus a research topic of their choice; then, the student walks through the process of creating a research strategy for their topic by completing tasks, from selecting important keywords for the search, to choosing appropriate databases to conduct searches.

OBJECTIVES

Students will:

Define and focus a research topic
Develop a research strategy for a research topic

INSTRUCTOR PREPARATION

Adapt or copy the accompanying worksheet and distribute to students

ASSIGNMENT DIRECTIONS

Students first review the Library guide "Effective Library research". The focus is selecting and defining a topic.

Instructor discusses with the class the process of choosing a researchable research topic, choosing one of the student's topics for demonstration.

Instructor discusses with the class the process of choosing a researchable research topic, choosing one of the student's topics for demonstration.

Students are given an opportunity to revise their worksheets and then turn them in for the instructor's review.