ENGL 1109: Home

Instructors may provide you with a broad topic to research. Use these tips to help understand the broad topic and then narrow it down to something more specific for your paper or project.

• Find general, background, or introductory information on related topics that interest you. (Explore CQ Researcher or Very Short Introductions to find hot topics.)
• Write down vocabulary from your textbook, in-class articles, and terms used by your professor that you might use to find more information.
• Ask your instructor for examples of topics that students have written about in past courses.
• Look at both sides of an issue, regardless of what position you are taking. (Check out Gale Opposing Viewpoints.)
• READ! Schedule time to read the information you find when you can be focused and uninterrupted.
• TALK! Discuss what you're reading with your friends, family members, coworkers, and teammates.  The more time you spend thinking about your topic, the better you will understand it and be able to articulate your ideas.  If you can't describe your topic very well in spoken conversation, you probably won't be able to write about it well either.

One of the biggest differences between searching in Google and searching in a library database is that library databases require you to use only keywords, not full questions like you could in Google. Keywords are words or short phrases that you can combine in the search blanks, and the system will look for resources that are tagged with those same words. Therefore, keywords should be related to the main concepts of your topic.

PRO TIP:  Avoid using words like "what," "have," "does," "impact," "benefit," or "effect."  These words are too common and will not help you narrow the search results effectively.

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Ways to Brainstorm Keywords

• Doing background research is a great way to learn more about a topic and find keywords, since you will be looking at an overview of major concepts in your topic.
• Search names of key events, key people, etc. related to your topic.
• Some (but not all) databases will list related search terms in the article information. Pay attention to those, since they can be future keywords for searches! 
• Use a Thesaurus to see if there are any appropriate synonyms for your keywords.

Example Keywords

Research Question:  What are the effects of social media usage on teen body image?

Possible Keywords:  social media, teenager, body image

Research Question:  Do school dress codes unfairly target female students?

Possible Keywords:  dress code, female students

Research Question:  Do pesticides contaminate ground water?

Possible Keywords:  pesticides, contamination, water