Outcome One: Using the research question they developed in their groups, the student will identify three search terms that can be used to conduct searches in proprietary databases, catalogs and popular search engines.
- Using the “Barack Obama” model from the first class, the librarian will identify possible keywords such as "political participation", "voter turnout", “young voters”, etc. Also, instructor will discuss why vague search terms such as interest, politics, voting, might not be productive search terms.
- The instructor will demonstrate how to run searches using those terms in library catalog, World Cat, Academic Search Premier and popular search engines. Librarian will call attention to subject terms/controlled vocabulary.
- Students will break into groups as in first class. Group members will brainstorm and identify at least three search terms to try based on their group research question.
- Each group member will choose one of the different resources to search – Catalog, WorldCat, Academic Search Premier or popular search engine.
- Each group member will choose one of the different resources to search – Catalog, WorldCat, Academic Search Premier or popular search engine.
- After conducting search, they’ll compile a list of the useful resources they found, problems they ran into and thoughts on whether their search terms were appropriately relevant.
- Observe Librarian demonstration of subject terms/controlled vocabulary.
- While in database/catalog, make note of controlled vocabulary.
- Attempt to run some additional searches using that controlled vocabulary.
- Evaluate those results for usefulness and participate in Librarian/Professor led discussion of their usefulness.
- While still in group work, students will run additional searches using controlled vocabulary terms.
- Students will use a combination of controlled vocabulary terms and their original vocabulary terms and contrast the results.
- Students will participate in Librarian/professor-led discussion of those results.
Technology and Differentiated Instruction:
- The technology involved with SMART goal two is primarily a set of proprietary databases - those providing access to the college catalog, WorldCat and journal collections. While the students will interact with these databases similarly, they have features that can help accommodate different learning styles. Those features include items such as spell check, auto correct, auto completion and "smart searching". Such features will be particularly useful to those who might have reading or spelling problems, but they can be helpful to any student with limited database searching experience.
Library Catalogs
You can use a host of different catalogs, such as the one available at your educational institution or local library. You can also access Worldcat - a catalog of catalogs that provides you with access to catalogs of libraries across the country and around the world. The link to that catalog is provided above.
Academic Search Premier (or other Proprietary databases)
The link above provides access to the list of databases provided by Maxwell Library at Bridgewater State University. Individual educational institutions vary in their database offerings. Additionally, municipal libraries provide access to databases through the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners.
During your discussion of subject terms and controlled vocabularies, you'll have to direct your students to the tools within the databases and catalogs that provide you with information about these terms and phrases. For demonstration purposes, the link above provides you will access to the results of a subject terms search in the Maxwell Library catalog for "United States Presidential Election.
