A brief overview of research.

Begin early to allow sufficient time to complete the assignment by the due date.

Choose a research topic that is of interest to you and raises questions.

A broad topic will yield a lot of results, which can be overwhelming when the times comes to write your paper.

By narrowing your topic to something specific, you limit your results, which makes it more manageable to sort through them for the perfect article or book.

Know what types of resources are required, allowed, or prohibited for the particular research assignment.

Know how many sources are required for the assignment.

Become familiar with what the library has to offer and how to use the different types of resources available.

Library Website: http://library.pgcc.edu

Determine if your resources are appropriate. Do they met the requirements of the assignment?

Are your resources credible?
Ask yourself a variety of questions to determine their credibility, for example:
Who wrote the article?
What is their affiliation?
Who is the publisher?
Is the article bias?
Where did you find the article?
How often is the website/publication update?
Who is the intended audience of the website/publication?

...and any other question that can help you determine if the article is from a credible source.

Make sure you are aware of the required length of the research assignment. (How many words, paragraphs or pages)
Don't forget to include citations (parenthetical citations) and facts from the research you conducted to support your writing.

Know which style manual you are required to use: APA or MLA.

Know the general formatting rules for the style you are using, including how to format the title page, your references, font type and size, and allowed margins.

What is the purpose of citing?

- give credit to the authors that wrote and/or produced the materials you used to write your paper
- locate sources: inform the reader exactly where the information was found so that the original items can be found in their entirety

An important reason to cite is to avoid plagiarism.
Plagiarism is using others’ ideas and words without clearly acknowledging the source of that information.

It is an ethical and legal issue and may be punished by the college.

If you need help finding or using resources, don't hesitate to contact a librarian! They can help you find those resources you need.