Hi! Welcome to your First-Year Experience course.
On this page, there are five different exercises. Use the tabs at the top of the page to move between exercises.
1) The Marx Library FYE Online Tour (Google Doc). Get to know the Marx Library's resources by completing this online tour.
2) Advanced Google Searching (Video). Learn how to use Google like a pro and learn strategies that you can apply to library research.
3) Web Evaluation (Video). How do you know if a source is good or bad, reliable or unreliable? This video will help you figure it out.
4) Popular vs. Scholarly Sources (Video). What's the difference between a magazine and an academic journal? How do you know when to use what kind of source? Learn why scholarly sources are your best bet when doing college-level research.
5) Wait, Wait Don't Google: Getting Started with Library Research (Multi-part assignment). Your professor will guide you through this assignment, which introduces you to library databases.
The first two are intended to orient you to Marx Library, the second pair are meant as tips to improve research on the open web, and the final video walks you through the 5 criteria for determining whether a source is scholarly or popular (something you'll need to know to do college-level research). You may not be required to complete all these assignments, so please ask your professor which exercises to complete and when.
If you have any questions or need any help, please feel free to contact Beth Shepard at erugan@southalabama.edu.
