ENGL 0301 @ NLC Library

HANDOUTS

• Library Essentials -  
• Controversial Topics -
• Primary Sources -     
• Evaluating Websites -   
• Citing Sources -     

   

  Want books? Use:

  ALAMO LIBRARY ONLINE CATALOG 

  • Taking Sides series

              Example: Taking Sides - Clashing Views on global issues 

  • Current Controversies series

              Example: Free Speech

  • Influencing Through Argument 

   

   

  PRIMARY SOURCES

  Firsthand, original accounts created at or around the time an event actually occurred

  Examples: autobiographies, original research, letters, memoirs, speeches, works of literature (poems, novels, etc.)

   

  SECONDARY SOURCES

  Interpretation, analysis, commentary, or summary after an event occurred

  Examples: literary criticism, biographies, reviews, analyses, textbook, encyclopedias, etc.

   

  Primary vs. Secondary Chart

   

  Quia Activity - Primary or Secondary?

   

  Library of Congress American Memory Project

   

  Want articles? Use:

  ELECTRONIC DATABASES

     Databases by Subject

  • Academic Search Complete
  • Opposing Viewpoints Center
  • Reference Suite (Facts on File)
  • TOPICsearch
  • Newspaper Databases

   

  INTERNET SITES

   NLC Library Hotlinks 

   Try government websites for agency web pages and statistics - Google site:.gov

   

  SEARCH STRATEGIES

  • Boolean - AND, OR, NOT
  • Field searching - Subject, Author, Title
  • Quotation marks for exact phrase
  • Truncation - root + variants (*) 
  • Database Limiters: date, publication type, type, peer-reviewed, etc.

   

  OPTIONS FOR FULL-TEXT - Where is the actual article???

  •  PDF or HTML in database
  • A to Z Online Journal Locator
  • IDB & ILL

   

  NEED HELP? Contact Us!

  Call: (210) 486-5388

  Email: nlc-reference@alamo.edu

   

  Library Instructor: Sarah Garrett