Yr 12 introduction to coursework
- 1. Or how to get maximum marks for minimum effort OR What’s in it for you? Yr 12 Introduction to coursework
- 2. What is expected of you? A Level study needs a different approach You have chosen your subjects but… you still need: Motivation Inspiration Dedication As well as FUN High Quality Information that is: Accurate Up to date Relevant Unbiased Effective use of printed sources and search strategies
- 3. Causes of Failure Plagiarism Poor time management e.g. to much time spent finding the information and not enough on writing it up Inability to evaluate the quality of the information Overuse of the internet
- 4. Books are the starting point of all research Authors are recognised experts in their field Editors are recognised experts in their field Examiners will be familiar with all standard works Reading these will clarify your understanding and help you evaluate web information more effectively Ensure you include all standard works in your bibliography
- 5. The Internet: a much tougher problem Information is rarely neutral Anyone can put anything on the web Evaluation criteria includes Accuracy – is the source verified? Authorship – who wrote it? Currency – is it up to date? Coverage – how broad in the topic? Web pages can disappear A mixture of adverts and information Who posted the information? What is its purpose?
- 6. Where to search? Search Engines (eg Google) – Will search every imaginable subject but will return lots of irrelevant and inappropriate information Most search engines are run by US commercial companies Directories (eg Yahoo) – Wide range of subjects, both serious and popular sites but the lists are long and time consuming to search. Again US run with editors selecting the subjects Subject Specialist (eg Intute) – Designed to help a particular audience by specialist organisations with fewer but more relevant returns for serious work or research. (Try a search on either www.bubl.ac.uk or www.intute.ac.uk )
- 7. Interesting Facts – Final Words Most people only look at the first 4 or 5 sites Ranking can be bought by websites – paid per hit! Users can be influenced by clever design Other ways the library can help: Using Bedfordshire Virtual Library Information on selected web sites Journals and Online subscriptions Specialised search help
- 8. Starting Points In this session you will now: Join Bedfordshire Virtual Library Create an online bookmarking site using either: www.delicious.com or www.diigo.com Investigate online Resources Go to www.delicious.com/jennyhorler and click on the ‘Study-skills’ bundle and try the various resources