CMNS 110: Term paper research - SFU Library

CMNS 110: Term paper research Sylvia Roberts, CMNS librarian: [email protected] Sources to support term paper

discussion Minimum of 3 academic sources required

What are scholary / academic resources? Scholarly publications:

BOOKS JOURNAL ARTICLES

CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS Scholarly publications: Characteristics Author(s) is an expert in the field, affiliated with university or

research institution Extensive research and analysis written in formal academic style Starts with a literature review of relevant research and theory to provide a context and rationale for their research In-text citations and reference list (APA style) or

footnotes/endnote and bibliography Plain looking: charts, graphs, and illustrations that add meaning to the text rather than photographs and advertising How to recognize a scholarly journal article

Scholarly publications: Characteristics Academic articles are published in peer-reviewed journals

New Media & Society, Journal of Advertising, Journal of Children & Media Peer review in 3 minutes Often include an abstract that summarizes research methodology and findings Scholarly books are published by specialized academic publishers

Oxford University Press, Sage Publications, Routledge, Taylor & Francis Can be one topic or a collection of chapters on related topics Essay topic example: BROAD TOPIC:

Written communication RESEARCH QUESTION: How does removing handwriting

(cursive) from primary school curriculum affect learning in the future? THESIS STATEMENT?

BACKGROUND BACKGROUND How to SEARCH for scholarly

sources? Catalogue search Print & online materials available at SFU Books, book chapters, peer-reviewed articles, news and popular press, media (streaming and analog)

Results may include materials from many disciplines Article indexes usually discipline specific

Timesaver: Read the abstract to assess relevance

Skim the reference list of useful articles for additional sources

Term paper research help: CMNS 110 research guide Ask a Librarian Term paper writing: Student Learning Commons consultations