controversies

To have an appropriate argument for supporting a controversial position, it is necessary to develop a clear understanding of the issue by researching all viewpoints. There are many materials in the library in various formats that will be helpful to you in exploring your topic. It is good to keep an open mind when doing your research and to use critical thinking when formulating the rationale to support you case. The following are various resources that should be useful to you in gathering information on controversial topics. You can find other resources for a variety of subjects by choosing RESOURCES in the menu on the library's home page.

LIBRARY CATALOG

You can use the library catalog to find materials on your chosen topic. The easiest way to search for your topic is to perform a keyword search at the first search screen by simply typing in the word(s) you wish to find. If you want the system to find a phrase such as "child abuse" with the words next to each other in the order typed, place the phrase in quotation marks. You can get to the catalog by clicking here or by choosing CATALOG in the menu on the library's home page.

The library catalog is also used to see if the library has specific periodicals (magazines, journals, or newspapers) once you have used a periodical index to find out which periodicals have articles on your topic.

BOOKS

Opposing Viewpoints and Current Controversies are two series of books that discuss controversial topics. Each book contains essays discussing both the pros and cons of the various aspects of one topic. These books can be found in the library’s online catalog by choosing the keyword search and typing in the words “opposing viewpoints” or “current controversies” in the text box. The catalog will display a list of the books in those series. This list can also help you pick a topic to research if you do not already have one.

PERIODICAL DATABASES

ProQuest indexes magazine, journal, and newspaper articles many of which can be printed in full text or full image. Help using ProQuest.

WilsonWeb indexes articles in general science, the social sciences, and the humanities, but there is no full text, so when you find articles that you want, you must then search in the library’s online catalog for the title of the periodicals that have the articles.

OTHER DATABASES AND WEBSITES

NetLibrary has thousands of online books not included in our library catalog. You can search this database in much the same way you search the library’s catalog.

The Public Agenda Online Website provides discussions of about 20 current interest topics. You can read an overview of each issue, and the discussion guides give three viewpoints on each issue along with the pros and cons of each point of view. The “Sources and Resources” section provides a brief description of and links to organizations concerned with the issue.

Debatabase, while intended as a resources for debaters, is just as useful for anyone researching controversial topics. The arguments are written by expert debaters, judges and coaches. Links are provided to websites relevant to the topics.

The Open Directory Project is a comprehensive directory of the Internet organized by issues and developed and managed by a constantly growing community of net-citizens who are experts in their areas of interest. Their goal is to provide only the best content from all that the Internet has to offer.

Five Criteria for Evaluating Web Pages provides a concise guide for choosing Internet information that is accurate and reliable for use by students doing academic research.

IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS PLEASE ASK A LIBRARIAN