For assistance with research sources and organization, contact the Library Reference Desk (791-5692, 800-543-9440, aclib@averett.edu). For help in planning and writing your paper, contact your professor or the Averett Writing Center.
As you select sources most pertinent to the topic of your presentation, read them to the end and create an outline of your narrative. Rehearse your oral presentation with classmates until you are satisfied that you have a coherent narrative and can answer audience questions about your topic and sources. Your audience will appreciate a handout with an abstract and list of sources. (Speakers often share their slides electronically following a presentation.)
Your study group can reserve the small (307) or large media room (102) in Blount Library to rehearse presentation skills. Contact a librarian (1-5692, aclib@averett.edu) to make a reservation, or ask for a wireless keyboard when you visit the library.
Database search results may include a mix with full content and citations with abstracts. Look for links to full text in HTML or PDF. Most researchers prefer PDFs for references because they are formatted exactly like the original publication, making it easy to cite page numbers. PDFs also include illustrations and tables sometimes omitted from the HTML version.
To determine whether a cited article is related to your topic, read its abstract. Subject headings or "descriptors" are clues to the content of the article. A descriptor will often link to other sources on an aspect of the topic.
If a citation with abstract looks interesting, you can probably obtain the full content with a little more effort, either by linking out to another database or requesting an Interlibrary Loan. Look for "Find it at Averett" or "check for full text."