Steps 1 and 2 : Initiation and Selection
Step 1 - Initiation : When you receive a research assignment, read it carefully. Make sure you're understanding what types of sources your professor wants you to use - scholarly/peer reviewed journal articles, scholarly books, primary sources, etc. Refer to the definitions on the home page to get a clear understanding of the different types of sources.
Step 2 - Selection : Decide on a topic that you'll research. Your topic likely will change somewhat as you progress in your research as you learn more about your topic and find a particular area of focus.
How to Get Started With Topic Selection
The best topics are those that are meaningful to you. When choosing a topic, reflect on class discussions and readings. Was there any topic that intrigued you, perhaps related to a personal interest? Are you a science major taking a cornerstone history course on World War I? You might be interested in researching advances in battlefield medicine, for example. If you're not sure if your topic will work, check with your professor. A librarian can also provide input on whether the topic's scope is appropriate.
Where Can You Look for Information on Topic Selection
Anywhere! In addition to relying on your course readings and discussions, librarians encourage you to use Google as you explore potential topics. For example, a Google Search for "World War I Battlefield Medicine" turns up an interesting article from The Atlantic, an entry from Encyclopedia Britannica, and a Wikipedia entry. These might not be the types of sources your professor wants you to use for your paper. But they will provide you with background information to develop a topic and come up with key words and search terms you can use to look for scholarly books and peer-reviewed journal articles.
Also consider consulting the library's Subject Encyclopedias/Reference Works - The library's reference collection contains works (both print and electronic) that can give you a broad overview of a topic, provide you with additional information to search for and ideas for search terms to use when looking for resources in the library catalog or databases. For example, if I'm interested in writing about the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States and how it compares to the Spanish Flu pandemic of 1918, I might want to start by looking at reference works that deal with the history of medicine in the United States. The image below shows how you can limit your search for library materials to the reference works by selecting "Reference" as the location.
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