Begin the research process
The research process is more of a research cycle, so to begin, your own questions are essential.
1. Questions
Use the Question Formulation Technique from the Right Question Institute by beginning with a Focus Idea to begin.
For example: If you're assigned a project on climate change, you might use a focus such as "Without intervention, climate change stands to severely impact global economies, human health and the environment," or "Environmental waste reduces water quality in Puget Sound."
With your Focus Idea, then begin the four steps outlined below. You must follow the four directions exactly.
Give yourself 15 minutes to complete this initial step.
Once complete, prioritize the top three, and from that choose your strongest question.
1. Questions
Use the Question Formulation Technique from the Right Question Institute by beginning with a Focus Idea to begin.
For example: If you're assigned a project on climate change, you might use a focus such as "Without intervention, climate change stands to severely impact global economies, human health and the environment," or "Environmental waste reduces water quality in Puget Sound."
With your Focus Idea, then begin the four steps outlined below. You must follow the four directions exactly.
Give yourself 15 minutes to complete this initial step.
Once complete, prioritize the top three, and from that choose your strongest question.
2. Encyclopedia
Using your question, think generally about the topic, and find introduction articles in the encyclopedia. We HIGHLY encourage you to begin with a print encyclopedia such as World Book Encyclopedia in our library collection. The librarians will help you find them. We also have subject encyclopedias such as The Encyclopedia of Native American Religions, Encyclopedia of Global Health or even The FBI Encyclopedia.
Below are links to other kinds of introductory database resources. Off-campus access requires a login and password. Please ask your librarian for this information.
SPS Online Database Encyclopedia SPS Online Library Catalog: search subject + encyclopedia
Using your question, think generally about the topic, and find introduction articles in the encyclopedia. We HIGHLY encourage you to begin with a print encyclopedia such as World Book Encyclopedia in our library collection. The librarians will help you find them. We also have subject encyclopedias such as The Encyclopedia of Native American Religions, Encyclopedia of Global Health or even The FBI Encyclopedia.
Below are links to other kinds of introductory database resources. Off-campus access requires a login and password. Please ask your librarian for this information.
SPS Online Database Encyclopedia SPS Online Library Catalog: search subject + encyclopedia
3. Search
To search, whether it's with Google or an online database or even a library catalog, having different words or terms will help you uncover more of what you want. Using Visual Thesaurus is a great tool to find different words that mean almost the same thing, also referred to as a synonym.
Non-Fiction Books
Consider looking for a Non-Fiction book first. It seems counter intuitive, but investigating a book's table of contents and the index is often much more efficient. You'll save time, and find exactly what you need. Try our NHHS Library, Seattle Public Library and King County Library System.
To search, whether it's with Google or an online database or even a library catalog, having different words or terms will help you uncover more of what you want. Using Visual Thesaurus is a great tool to find different words that mean almost the same thing, also referred to as a synonym.
Non-Fiction Books
Consider looking for a Non-Fiction book first. It seems counter intuitive, but investigating a book's table of contents and the index is often much more efficient. You'll save time, and find exactly what you need. Try our NHHS Library, Seattle Public Library and King County Library System.
SPS Online Databases
Seattle Public Schools' Online Databases are a second source of efficient and targeted information. Again, it seems like it might be faster to perform a Google search for a webpage, but online database allow you to search more powerfully for the exact content you need for your questions. Even better, each database creates a citation. Again, this is a time saver.
Ask the librarian for the login and password for off-site access:
Seattle Public Schools' Online Databases are a second source of efficient and targeted information. Again, it seems like it might be faster to perform a Google search for a webpage, but online database allow you to search more powerfully for the exact content you need for your questions. Even better, each database creates a citation. Again, this is a time saver.
Ask the librarian for the login and password for off-site access:
How to Read (and Understand) a Social Science Journal Article
-Inter‐university Consortium for Political and Social Research
-Inter‐university Consortium for Political and Social Research
Seattle Public Library Databases (Requires a SPL library card)
Statistical Abstract of the United States
Summary of US social, political and economic statistics.
Statistical Abstract of the United States
Summary of US social, political and economic statistics.
Academic One File
Peer-reviewed scholarly articles on a variety of subjects.
Peer-reviewed scholarly articles on a variety of subjects.
Encyclopædia Britannica
For HS/MS Librarians via Ballard HS Librarian - Information Literacy Toolkit
Free JSTOR Account - http://about.jstor.org/rr
Free JSTOR Account - http://about.jstor.org/rr