Assignment Overview
For this assignment, you will:
• practice conducting in-depth research to find some of the information you will need in order to answer your approved research question from the Research Proposal and Background Research assignment;
• practice distinguishing between different types of sources by identifying the sources you find;
• practice evaluating the credibility of sources;
• practice writing citations and reflection annotations by creating them for two in-depth sources
You will find two in-depth sources for this assignment, and add two additional in-depth sources for the In-Depth Research #2 assignment.
Requirements and Tips for Success
• You will need to find the following four sources between your two in-depth research assignments:
o one non-fiction book, in either print or ebook form, from the SBCC Luria Library that is not a reference book or textbook;
o one full-text peer-reviewed scholarly article from a library database;
o one visual media source such as a photograph or video; and
o one additional full-text written source, which may be a website (unless you used Wikipedia or a website for your background research, in
which case you will need an additional book or article from the library for your in-depth research).
Keep in mind that the two types of sources you find for this assignment will determine which two types of sources you will need to find for your In-Depth Research #2 assignment.
• You must be able to examine the full text of all sources you use. For longer sources, such as books and scholarly articles, you don’t have to read the entire source, but you do have to read parts of it and skim the rest in order to write a meaningful annotation. For books, look at the table of contents and index, read the first and last few paragraphs of each chapter and/or read the introduction and conclusion chapters. For scholarly articles, read the introduction and conclusion sections and the first and last few paragraphs of other sections. Take notes as you read, keeping your research question and specific information needs in mind.
• Use what you learned from this week’s course videos and tutorials to guide your work on this assignment, including the What-Where-How Research Strategy grid.
• Use the Library 101 research guideLinks to an external site. as a starting point for your research. The In-Depth ResearchLinks to an external site. page of the research guide includes a search box for the library catalog (books+) and links to several databases. Review the Keywords & Search StrategiesLinks to an external site. and Citations & AnnotationsLinks to an external site. pages of the course research guide for help with those topics.
• Use the Sample Assignment: In-Depth Research (Links to an external site.) as a model. For this assignment, you will complete the In-Depth Research #1 section.
Instructions
Copy the section headings and questions below into your document, and complete each one individually. Your answers to the first two questions will be based on your Research Proposal and Background Research assignment.
Research Question and Information Needs
1. What is your approved research question?
2. What are the specific kinds of information that you will need to find in order to answer your research question (list at least four)?
Source One
1. Source One Citation and Annotation:
o Write an MLA 8th Edition citation* for a source that meets one of the information needs you identified above, or another piece of information that will help you address your research question. Include a link to the full text of the source, even if a link is not required as part of the citation. For sources from library databases, be sure to use the permalink/bookmark/stable URL tool to generate a link (do not copy the link from your browser’s address bar). For print books, use the link tool in the library catalog (books+) to generate a link.
o Write a reflection annotation for this source. Your annotation should be at least 150 words, and must use your own words. Complete annotations include:
A summary of the source, including an overview of its main points, arguments made, research presented, topics covered, etc.
An evaluation of the source, including an assessment of its quality, accuracy, objectivity, purpose, thoroughness, etc.
A reflection on the source’s usefulness for your research, including which information need(s) it meets, how helpful it is, how it affects your thinking on the topic, how well it addresses your research question, etc.
2. What type of source is this (for example, book, scholarly article, magazine article, newspaper article, government document, website, blog post, video, photograph, etc.)?
3. Of all the sources you found during your search for this piece of information, how/why did you choose this particular source and/or this type of source?
Source Two
1. Source Two Citation and Annotation:
o Write an MLA 8th Edition citation* for a source that meets a different information need you identified above, or another piece of information that will help you address your research question. Include a link to the source (see detailed instructions under Source One above).
o Write a reflection annotation for this source. Your annotation should be at least 150 words, and must use your own words (see detailed instructions under Source One above).
2. What type of source is this (for example, book, scholarly article, magazine article, newspaper article, government document, website, blog post, video, photograph, etc.)?
3. Of all the sources you found during your search for this piece of information, how/why did you choose this particular source and/or this type of source?
Research Question Adjustment (Optional)
If you would like to adjust your research question based on what you’ve learned about your topic from the two sources you cited above, write a new proposed research question and include it in this section at the end of your assignment.
Include your name, the instructor’s name, the course, and the date on your document. Double-space the entire document, and save it in doc, docx, or pdf format. Canvas will not accept other filetypes for this assignment.
*If you received permission from the instructor to use a different citation style throughout the course, use that style instead.
