Copy of EDEX 7220 - Synthesis of Research Literature in Special Education

Schedule a research consultation

Starting with a research question (creating a term table)  

Accessing GALILEO  

Looking up the GALILEO password  

Print books (catalog) 

Isolating terminology (start broad) 

Finding alternate terminology (vary your search)   

Searching keywords vs. phrases    

Combining terminology (narrow your search your search)   

Using subject terms    

Advanced search    

Full text limit    

Scholarly (peer reviewed) journals limit    

Date limit    

Limit by type   

Limit by subject    

Broadening your search   

Evaluating results    

Viewing the abstract    

Using folders to manage references    

Varying your search (OR operator)    

Review: varying your search terms -   

Borrowing items electronically (Interlibrary loan/Find It)    

Retrieving items from the folder (emailing, exporting, and citing)  

Attribution - Noncommercial - NoDerivs 3.0 Unported

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

 

Where to start?

Start by thinking about topics that have come up in class discussions, have been assigned as readings, or that interest you. You can also check popular journals in the discipline for ideas. 

A topic that is too broad will lead to fragmented and incohesive research.

You can narrow a topic by limiting the scope to a specific:

• Consumer topic (behavior, satisfaction, population)
• Aspect of the marketing mix (price, product, placement, promotion)
• Advertising type (social media, traditional media)

If you are having trouble narrowing the scope of your research topic, review background information about your topic using an encyclopedia, Wikipedia, or Google. These sources of background information are not considered scholarly sources, but they can be helpful to find ways to narrow your topic. 

A topic that is too narrow will lead to frustration during the search phase when the "No results were found." message is the only result.

You can broaden your topic by expanding or eliminating limits like:

• Consumer topic (behavior, satisfaction, population)
• Aspect of the marketing mix (price, product, placement, promotion)
• Advertising type (social media, traditional media)

If you are having trouble expanding the scope of your research topic, review background information about your topic using an encyclopedia, Wikipedia, or Google. These sources of background information are not considered scholarly sources, but they can be helpful to find ways to expand the scope of your topic. 

Brainstorm Synonyms for Keywords (Example)

• Organization, Leadership, Motivation, Planning, Information systems, Total quality management, Behavior, Strategy 

• Business Ethics, Business Management, Industrial management, Success in business, Organizational change, Organizational effectiveness, Interorganizational relations

Combine Keywords

• Broad Search: Use only the most predominant term for your topic to find general summary information.

• Specific Search: Combine several key concept terms for a search to retrieve information to support a thesis statement.

Keyword Search Rules for the Library Catalog and Databases

Using AND/OR/NOT (Boolean Search Operators)
AND	Use AND to focus search and combine different aspects of your topic. Example: global warming and agriculture
OR	Use OR to expand your search and find synonyms/related terms. Example: global warming or greenhouse effect
NOT	Use NOT to exclude a word or phrase from your search Example: hurricanes not north carolina

• Limit your search results to:
  • Full-text
  • Scholarly (Peer-Reviewed) Journals
• Narrow the data range for your results to the last five years to locate only the most up-to-date articles
• Limit your publication type to Academic Journals

Quick Guide to Library Locations

Georgia College Library Floor Plans

GALILEO: Search the Georgia College collection for books and e-books, media (videos and audio recordings), government documents, musical scores, plays, print journals and microfiche. Also, search online databases and journals for articles, proceedings, and papers. 

WorldCat: Search libraries outside Georgia. If you find something you need, use Interlibrary Loan to request items from libraries outside the University System of Georgia.

Make an appointment for an online consultation at https://gcsu.libcal.com/appointments/

What students can expect from an online consultation: 

• The consultations are one-on-one appointments (up to 30 minutes)  with a librarian via WebEx, phone or email. 
• Librarians will help formulate search strategies, identify possible sources, and suggest additional relevant library services as needed.