WR 121 for McDaniel HS: Step Two: Search terms & articles
Research on an Inquiry Question
For this class, you will be incorporating outside sources in your essay writing. Looking for sources involves doing research, but you can think of it more as exploring what others have written or considered important. The idea is to expand the conversation beyond your personal narrative to include other people's thoughts and perspectives in ways that add to and support your own ideas.
Try searching for articles on your topic in the search box to the right (Search EBSCO databases).
Type in 2-3 keywords, not a whole sentence.
If you want more explanation of how to come up with keywords and to see a demo of how to use the PCC Library to find articles, watch the short videos listed below.
Be sure to save any articles you think you might use! Use the database tools to copy a formatted MLA citation and paste it into your tracking document. Or you can email yourself articles or download them. The database provides and will send you the complete MLA citation for the article in the body of the email. Include the URL in your citations.
Videos: Search Terms
- Brainstorming KeywordsCourtesy of Suffolk County Community College
- Developing a Search Queryfrom Portland State University Library
Video: Find Articles through the PCC Library
Reading a Search Results Page from a Library Database
Library databases are great places to find published articles, but the results pages can be confusing, so this video will give you some tips to help you find useful results.
Find Articles with Google Scholar
Before searching, be sure to set PCC as your library in your browser by:
- Visiting the link to set "Library Links" settings for Google Scholar,
- using the search box to search for "Portland Community College",
- checking the check box that appears underneath the search to select “Portland Community College – Find it @ PCC”,
- and then selecting the Save button.
This will ensure that when you search Google Scholar in your browser, you will see Find It @ PCC links to full text if we have the article (Google Scholar sometimes also provides links to other free sources for full text).
You can learn more about setting Google Scholar preferences on the PCC Library Website.
- Google Scholar This link opens in a new windowGoogle Scholar searches the web for scholarly articles, reports, books, and other materials. If using Google Scholar from a PCC campus, you can access full text articles. If PCC has access to an article, a "Find it @ PCC" link will appear to the right of the search result. Click “Find it @ PCC” to go to the library catalog where you will be offered a choice to view the article. From home, you will need to set your Google Scholar preferences to access PCC Library resources. See How to Search PCC Library on Google Scholar for directions on how to set your Google Scholar preferences at home.
What are library databases? Video
This 4:19 video describes what library databases are, why you might want to use one, and how to choose the right ones for your project. It also shows you how to use the PCC Library Articles and Databases page to find databases to use for your project.
Find Articles with EBSCO
Find articles in this search of Academic Search Premier and MasterFILE Premier
More databases recommended for WR 121
- US Major Dailies This link opens in a new windowFull text newspapers from five U.S. national and regional newspapers: New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, and the Chicago Tribune
- SIRS Issues Researcher This link opens in a new windowFull text information on social issues, science, health, history, government, business, and the arts and humanities. Citations include Lexile reading levels. View the SIRS Knowledge Source handout [pdf].
- Gender Studies (Gale OneFile) This link opens in a new windowThis collection of more than 30 journals aims to provide balanced coverage of this significant aspect of our culture, covering such topics as gender studies, family and marital issues, health aspects, and many more.
- Health and Medicine Resources (EBSCOhost) This link opens in a new windowSearch EBSCOhost's Alt HealthWatch, CINAHL Plus, MedicLatina, MEDLINE, and others (including Academic Search Premier and MasterFILE Premier) at the same time. Topics include consumer health information, nursing and allied health, pre-clinical sciences, aging, and more.
- Psychology Resources This link opens in a new windowSearch EBSCOhost's Psychology Collection, Academic Search Premier, and MasterFile Premier at the same time. Topics in the Psychology Collection include emotional and behavioral characteristics, psychiatry and psychology, mental processes, anthropology, and observational and experimental methods.
- ScienceDirect This link opens in a new windowFull text for more than 1,000 peer-reviewed life sciences, Health Science, physical sciences, and engineering journals with citation information for thousands more. Look for the "Full-text available" indicators to view articles online. View the Science Direct handout.
- JSTOR This link opens in a new windowJSTOR has full text of over 1000 scholarly journals in the arts and sciences, as far back as 18xx up to 3-5 years ago. Note: It does not include current issues of the journals. All ARTstor image collections are now part of JSTOR, and can be searched using the "Images" tab then selecting "ARTstor collections".
- ProQuest This link opens in a new windowSearch a wide variety of diverse content across all disciplines. Includes subject area searches for the Arts, eBooks, Health & Medicine, History, Literature & Language, News & Newspapers, Science & Technology, and Social Sciences.
Find Books, Articles, DVDs, and more
Looking for ebooks?
The PCC Library provides access to many ebooks. To find ebooks in the library:
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Enter a search in the main search box on the library homepage.
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On the results page, on the left-hand side of the page, find the Format section and check the eBooks box.
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Click the Apply Filters button.
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To access an ebook, click the Online Access link under the title information.
