Beyond Wikipedia: Discovering an Alternate Universe

Wiki What?

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Wikis: Hawaiian word for "quickly". Refers to a program that allows users to interactively share and create content. Visit these sites to freely create your own wiki: pbwiki.com, wetpaint.com, wikispaces.com

View CommonCraft's YouTube Video, Wikis in Plain English for more info.

Wikipedia is an example of a wiki. Most instructors won't accept Wikipedia as source for your research assignments. (think website evaluation criteria) Also, review Wikipedia's own advice on how to evaluate their articles found here. And you want more in-depth information than what is offered by an encyclopedia entry (which Wikipedia basically is). Use library databases and authoritative websites instead. Wikipedia IS appropriate for your own personal use, to get you up-to-speed on a topic quickly, to find additional keywords to be used in searching, and ideas for other resources to check out. In other words, Wikipedia can help focus your research.

The Importance of Statistical/Background Info

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Background information is vitally important to find and use because these data will:

o get you up-to-speed quickly and effectively on your topic.
o provide a framework for your issue (good for use in your introduction).
o provide valid and substantive support for your thesis statement.
o lend credibility to your research.

First Things First - A Little Preparation

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Before you begin searching for statistical information for your paper, you will need to finish a few preliminary steps.

1. Choose your topic. Make sure it is appropriate and manageable for the assignment.
2. What question do you want to answer? (ex: is standardized testing unfair to minority students?) What do you anticipate might be the answer to this question? What are you trying to prove in your paper or what side are you defending? In other words, what is your thesis statement? (ex: I believe that the current system of standardized testing in the public school system is unfair to minorities because of cultural bias.)
3. What are the main concepts of your topic? What keywords might you use when searching?
4. What types of resources do you need? Follow your instructor's syllabus carefully. Will you search for articles from MxCC databases, books, websites?

You're in luck! The MxCC Library has a number of resources to help you with these steps - refer to our homepage (or my.commnet.edu - Library Tab) - left hand column - Help with Your Research..

Where Do I Find Statistical/Background Information?

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1. Search the MxCC Library Catalog for print reference books including factbooks, almanacs and encyclopedias.

+ Tip: On the Basic Search screen, select "Book" from the "Limit To" drop-down menu. Sort by date in the results list to see the most recent titles.

2. Search the awesome e-reference databases found under 'Find Articles' - Reference Databases. These include Credo and Gale Virtual Reference.

3. Use our Recommended Websites to find quality information on your topic.

4. If you choose to search the web on your own, remember to evaluate websites for accuracy and currency.

+ Search Tip 1: Consider which organization(s) would be interested in researching your topic. For example, if your topic is 'affordable healthcare', a government agency or insurance association might be interested in tracking the scope of the problem. Limit your google search by site:gov or site:org (ex: healthcare site:gov). Site:edu is another great limiter.

+ Tip 2: If you find a website that is particularly useful and you want to search for web pages with similar content, limit your Google search by related:website address (ex: related:www.census.gov).

+ Tip 3: Try using a web subject directory such as Google Directory or Yahoo Directory where you can drill down your topic to specific websites. (you'll still need to evaluate what you find)

5. Look at the bibliographies (references) included within the text and at the end of the scholarly articles you find during the course of your research. What organizations are mentioned? What additional sources of info can you find?

Citing What You Find

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To create the bibliography, use one of our online citation guides (we also have guides in print at the library, in our Writing & Research Guides section):
MLA
APA
KnightCite - "an online citation generator service"
Additional information found under 'Help with your Research'.