Discussing and Documenting Research

On Purpose


Recognizing that research takes place in a community of learners, this space is offered as a resource for establishing a collaborative knowledge base for research using the University of Manitoba Libraries’ (UML) website, catalogue, databases, and many other independent sources of information. 

Our intention is to explore a holistic approach to the research process, taking into consideration the subjective nature of information and its sources. We are interested in a dialogue that concerns the process of scholarly communications, the construct of information, and the critical perspectives of scholars and students. Pages are moderated by librarians and will be updated as needed. Please feel free to leave comments that are respectful and conducive to learning and collaboration.


Topics



Basic Library Research and Resources


Its hard to know where to look. Whereas in the past research studies were easier to locate because they were confined to print publications, scholarly communications are now published across a range of different platforms. Frequently these resources are overlapping. Library catalogues index their electronic databases and sometimes open access materials as well. The results is researchers need to become accustomed to searching in multiple places and more importantly they need to be able to identify a valid resource from a poor quality one. 

Retrieval Tool
Materials
Physical Collections
Print Books
Print Journals
Archives
Electronic Collections
eBooks
eJournals
Theses & Dissertations
Digitized Primary Documents
Internet Sources
Google & Google Scholar
Open Access Books
Open Access Journals
Academic Blogs


Here is another way to view the information landscape.

Scholarly Communications & Publishing


Scholarly communications are in simplest terms the circle of research and publishing that academics participate in. Of course its never that simple. It is important for students to be able to identify a scholarly publication. It is even more important for students to be able to identify types of research studies and the validity of the information contained. 

What are scholarly journals?
  1. The journal publishes current research in a particular academic field.
  1. Articles are written for an academic audience in a scholarly community.