Information Literacy Instructional Program
Information Literacy Learning Guides
The Research Process
Writing a research paper is a big project, but approaching the process as a series of steps will make it feel less overwhelming and help you do a better job. A lot of students are overwhelmed by the process and don't know where to begin. It's important to stay flexible and give yourself a lot of time to work through the research and writing process. Remember that writing a research paper, like any other kind of writing, is not necessarily a linear process, with one step immediately following another. Sometimes, for example, you must retrace steps or write a section of the paper while still researching information for another part. The following outline should be considered when beginning the process.
| Getting Started | |
| Define your task. | What do you already know? What do you need to find out? Is your topic in the form of a question?
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| Consider the purpose of your research challenge. | What is your end product going to look like? How many sources are you expected to use? What specific types of sources are you expected
to use? (current? primary sources?) Who will your audience be?
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| Develop a timeline for completing your research. | What is the due date? How much time do you have in the library media center? What is the timeline for each stage of your research?
(outline, notes, rough draft, final product)
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| Plan your search strategy. | What sources of information are available? Develop a series of questions relating to the information
you need to find. Use the questions to organize and plan your research. List keywords related to your topic. Is your topic narrow enough for information to be available? Do you need to change your topic?
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| Searching | |
| Locate the resources. | Using catalogs, online databases, and other tools,
search for print, audiovisual, and computerized resources. Determine whether a subject or a keyword search is
the most appropriate for each resource you use. Consider outside sources such as community resources,
government offices, and people who know the subject. Revise and redefine your research questions if necessary.
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| Gather relevant information. | Skim and scan to identify relevant information. What information answers your questions? Evaluate the content of your sources.
: Identify what is fact and what is opinion. Is the information accurate? Is the information biased? Is it current? Does this information answer your original questions? Revise and redefine your questions as needed.
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| Interpret the information. | Summarize information in your own words. Synthesize the information. Organize and analyze the information in a new way. Draw conclusions based on the information. Be sure to record title, author, etc. for citation purposes. |