CSC 803: Module 1

You will complete activities in which you:

1.  Learn about how scholarship is a conversation and the ways in which that conversation is shared with others.

2.  Learn about EndNote software to manage the sources (articles, proceedings, books) you collect during your research.

3.  Download EndNote desktop software and set up an account in EndNote Web

4.  Meet the librarian behind this guide and its content.

Read the following paragraph.  Then answer the questions below it. [1]

“Imagine that you enter a parlor. You come late. When you arrive, others have long preceded you, and they are engaged in a heated discussion, a discussion too heated for them to pause and tell you exactly what it is about. In fact, the discussion had already begun long before any of them got there, so that no one present is qualified to retrace for you all the steps that had gone before. You listen for a while, until you decide that you have caught the tenor of the argument; then you put in your oar. Someone answers; you answer [her]; another comes to your defense; another aligns himself against you, to either the embarrassment or gratification of your opponent, depending upon the quality of your ally's assistance. However, the discussion is interminable. The hour grows late, you must depart. And you do depart, with the discussion still vigorously in progress.” [2]

Questions (click on question for answer):

1. What would happen if you walked into this parlor, marched right into the center of the room and started spouting your ideas?

You wouldn’t be taken seriously, because you’ve interrupted the conversation without knowing where the conversation has been or where is headed.

2. What if you wandered in, heard one person speak, and then left? What would you be able to say about the discussion?

Not much. You could only describe what one person said.

3. How does the Burkean Parlor relate to writing a literature review?

Think of research in the literature of a topic as if you were JOINING A CONVERSATION -- a scholarly conversation that has been going on for some time. Question 1 is intended to help you understand a situation in which you develop a research question and carry out original research without first doing a literature review. Essentially, your work could not be taken seriously because you would be attempting to enter the scholarly discussion without understanding what anyone else has done or is doing. Question 2 is intended to help you understand the ramifications of carrying out original research after reading only one or two articles. Without a more complete knowledge of the conversation, you may be repeating something that's already been said or done or repeating errors that have already been recognized and avoided by others. When doing a literature review in preparation for carrying out your own original research, you are joining a scholarly conversation. For your research to make a worthwhile contribution to that conversation, you need to be very familiar with what other researchers have done and are doing. Preparing a literature review is a way to familiarize yourself with the work of others and writing a literature review is a way of demonstrating to other scholars that you fully comprehend how your own research fits into and contributes to the conversation.

REFERENCES

[1] Use of the Burkean Parlor and questions was suggested by Erika Bennett (Reference Librarian, Capella University) on the Information Literacy discussion list of the American Library Association, ILI-L, on 13 February 2009.

 [2]  K. Burke, The philosophy of literary form; studies in symbolic action. Baton Rouge, LA: Louisiana State University Press, 1941, pp. 110-111.

Understand how the scholarly conversation unfolds

You were just introduced to the concept of "a scholarly conversation" -- a conversation which a researcher explores while preparing a literature review in order to contribute to the conversation with his or her own research. In this activity, you will learn how the scholarly conversation unfolds.

1. Go to Research Communication.

2. Read the explanation or watch the video explanation of the graphic presented there.

3. Answer these questions.

a. Name 3 information products that come out of formal communication.

b. What is the relationship between a gap in knowledge and a research proposal?

c. Why is abstracting and indexing useful to a researcher?
 

Download EndNote software. Instructions:

BACKGROUND: EndNote provides one method for managing all the articles and sources you'll collect for assignments, projects, and your dissertation. In this activity, you are downloading software for future use.

1. Go to the Library's EndNote guide.
2. In the EndNote guide, read "EndNote:The Basics"
3. Go to the "EndNote Desktop -download" tab.
4. Follow instructions and download EndNote on your computer.

Prepare to use EndNote desktop:

1. Open the EndNote desktop software on your computer.

2. When you open EndNote, you will have the option to "create a new library" or to "open an existing library." As a new user, select "create a new library."

3. If EndNote offers you software updates, go ahead and accept the updates.

• NOTE: After installing you may be asked to install updates.  Kind of a bother to install these, but it doesn't take too long.

4. You will now be able to use EndNote desktop when it's needed.

Create a Profile in EndNote Online (formerly called EndNote Web)

BACKGROUND: EndNote has both a desktop version (which you have already downloaded) and a Web version.  You can use one or the other, or use both and sync them on a regular basis.  In this activity, you are creating an account in EndNote Online for future use.

1. Go to the Library's EndNote guide.
2. Select the EndNote Online tab.
3. Register in order to create an account.

 After you have created an account, you can go directly to EndNote Web and login at: https://www.myendnoteweb.com/

Who is Mary Francis?

The person providing the library activities for CSC803 is Mary Francis, Reference Instruction Librarian.

That's me. I'd like you to feel very comfortable asking me questions about finding research materials.

Remember always, if you need help with your research assignments, DO contact me!

Next week...

In Module 2, we will look at what a literature review contains and go over general concepts to understand before conducting research.