IDS291: Library Resources for Tutors

"Tell me more..."

Arguably the most challenging aspect of doing research is finding information that A) is related to the topic/question we have in mind and B) meets the requirements of the information need (for example, meets the assignment requirements).

Often enough, the expert-written materials that we need to find are using words that are different from the words in our heads. Sometimes we don't know very much about the topic so it's hard to even ask a good question or choose a good topic. Sometimes we are focused too broadly (and sometimes too narrowly). Finding the sweet spot can be a challenge.

Here's what tutors can do to help: After students have told you the topic of their project, ask them to say more. Have students note these down, either on paper or in a Google Doc. (Better thinking leads to better searching, and talking with students can help them with their thinking). More specifically, try these approaches when talking with a student about a research project:

1. Ask the student to explain one aspect of the topic. A question like "What do you mean by [choose one aspect of the topic]..."
2. Ask the student to say it another way (with different words, as an exercise). Explaining things in more than one way can help us clarify our thinking.
3. Ask the student to tell you more about how the topic is related to their class. This may help you understand the angle or lens from which the student is approaching the topic and what assumptions they might be making.

Signal your support

Providing research support is not only a matter of what you say, it's also about the non-verbal signals you send to the student you're working with that you are paying attention to them.

• Eye contact: If comfortable for you and the student, make eye contact or look in their direction frequently while they are talking.
• Avoid looking at a screen! If you are taking notes about what the student is saying about their topic, consider writing these by hand.

Be careful to avoid negative closures--physical and verbal cues that make the other person feel like you are not paying attention or want to move on from their question.

Which search box?

Choosing the right search box is even more important than the words you type into any search box. *Where* you search has a huge impact on what you find.

Most searches benefit from exploring two very different kinds of tools: A multi-purpose search tool and a discipline-specific database. This is not an either/or decision. It almost always makes sense (and saves time) to look in a few places.
 

Multi-purpose or interdisciplinary tools:

1. Start with TCNJ's library search tool, which is prominently displayed on the library's home page
   • This multi-purpose search tool searches across TCNJ-owned books, journals, and databases for relevant materials.
   • Once you have some initial results, use the "Peer-reviewed journals" checkbox in the left margin if the project specifically requires "scholarly" articles.
2. Academic Search Premier is a great multidisciplinary database.
    

Subject-specialized tools:

3. Use the Databases link on the library home page (or go directly here) to get to the menu of discipline-specific databases.
   • The advantage of using a discipline-specific database is that they focus narrowly on a relatively small portion of the information universe (in a good way).
   • This menu is a list of all of the majors/departments at TCNJ. So, students in business courses should click Business Databases and search one of the tools on that page. The same is true for students in classes in other departments.
   • What about First Year Writing and First Year Seminar? For these classes, ask yourself: "A professor in *which department* would write a book on the same topic that I'm researching?" Then try a database from the corresponding databases page.
      

The main takeaway about using different databases: For any research project, consider looking with at least two search tools. Spend some time looking with one search tool. After you've done some experimenting with different search words, try another search tool. Changing your search box can have a huge impact on what you find.

• Focus on individual search terms: Don't search using full sentences or questions. (Librarians call this natural language searching.) Get students to focus on the words that are the most important for or most unique about their topic.
• Avoid words like effects, causes, influences, factors, and reasons. These words don't actually add anything to the search because they have a million ways to say them.
• Consider using Advanced Search: Advanced search lets you control in what database fields, or categories of information, the database matches the terms you provide. The options for where to match the term appear in a drop down menu to the right of the search bars in advanced search. A terrific option for searching is to select the ABSTRACT field.