While UAGC librarians CANNOT select or recommend resources for you to use in an assignment, here are some are some tips to assist you in determining whether you may want to use an article for your assignment.
1. Read through your assignment prompt and make note of the type of resource you are being asked to use. It will usually be either a Scholarly, Peer Reviewed and/or Credible source. If the assignment dictates that you can only use a Scholarly/Peer Reviewed source you’ll want to check the Scholarly/Peer Reviewed box in either the basic or advanced option of the database you are using. By clicking this box you’ll only retrieve these types of resources in your search results.
2. Once you retrieve your results take note of the article titles as well as the terms in the subjects section near the bottom of the result’s information. Does the title of the article contain your search terms? What about the subjects section? If the answer is yes, you may want to look into the article further. It is also good to note any additional terms in the Subjects section that relates to your topic and add them to your list of keywords so you can use them in a future search.
3. Check out the abstract of the articles you may be interested in using in your research by selecting the View Details link associated with the article, then scrolling down the new page that opens till you locate the abstract. The abstract is a summary of the article and can help you decide if the article is relevant to your topic and worthwhile to click on and read in its entirety.
4. Once you have chosen an article and accessed the full text you can use the magnifying glass in the toolbar at the top of the article or CTRL-F to review the article for relevance by searching for keywords related to your topic within the text. If your keywords appear multiple times within the article this is a good sign that it will provide you enough information on your topic. Please note that you should read the article in its entirety if you plan on using it in your research.
If you still have questions you can chat in real-time with a librarian here.