Category: Pre-assignment

Finding a Book

Title

Finding a Book
Description In post-session feedback, first-year students frequently express anxiety over how to physically navigate the library to find a book on the shelf. This is a simple, pre-session activity to help students try this out before class, so that they can discuss with their librarian any challenges they faced in attempting to complete the task. With the help of the course instructor, students are asked to find a book on their research topic (or course topic) and bring it to class.
Steps
  1. Ask students to use the library’s website (https://library.duke.edu/) to search for a *print/physical* book on their research topic or course topic if they don’t have research topics yet. NOTE: Share the worksheet with students, it lists out all these steps.
  2. Students should then find the book in the library where it is located, check it out, and bring it to class.
  3. Students could write a few sentences about any obstacles they faced, or observations they had about navigating the library, etc.. This will help prime them for a discussion.
Tags beyond-google; in-class; pre-assignment
Time 20 minutes (before class); 10 minute discussion
Attachments Finding a Book (worksheet)

Choosing a Topic Flowchart

Title

Choosing a Topic Flowchart
Description This activity helps students pick or refine a topic that is of personal interest and meets the criteria for their assignment. It is based on the idea that students are more engaged with topics that are of personal interest. It can be used as a standalone worksheet for students to use or can be used as a pre-class activity for them to complete before coming to a library session or other class session.
Steps
  1. Before giving the students the worksheet, model how to use it with your own example
  2. Share the flowchart worksheet
  3. Give students 5-10 minutes to fill out the worksheet if used as an in-class activity; have them complete the worksheet before class if preferred.
Tags refining-topic; in-class; pre-assignment
Time 10-15 minutes
Attachments noun_229116Choosing a Topic Flowchart

Making Connections: Primary Texts to Themes

Title

Making Connections: Primary Texts to Themes
Description This is a brainstorming activity to allow students to make scholarly connections between a primary text and related themes, historical or social connections, and relevant disciplines. This activity works well for research assignments that take a literary, or primary text, analysis approach.
Steps
  1. Prior to the library session, ask students to select a theme and a text that they’re interested in
  2. In the library session, show students an example of a completed connections map on a topic/text that relates to a topic or text that they’ve studied in class. Talk through the sections on the map
  3. Pass out worksheet and ask students to take 10 minutes brainstorming connections between their selected primary text and sub-themes, historical, social, theoretical, and disciplinary connections
  4. As a class, work through one example from a student’s topic. Ask other students to give feedback
  5. Ask students to keep the worksheet, so they can add to it during the class. Remind students that research is a complex, iterative, and messy process, so their topics may evolve as they begin reading sources
Tags  pre-assignment; in-class; refining-topic
Variations This activity could be adapted for works of art, images, ads, artifact, music, etc.
Time  20 minutes
Attachments noun_229116Connections Worksheet; noun_204955Connections (Example)

Mapping a Topic

Title

Mapping a Topic
Description This is a brainstorming activity to allow students to think about aspects of their topic that they may need to explore in their research. The map prompts students to think about the who, what, where, when components of their topic, as well as asking them to think broadly and narrowly on aspects of their topic that they might want to research.
Steps
  1. Show students an example of a completed topic map (see example below) on something related to class
  2. Pass out worksheet and ask students to take 10 minutes brainstorming connections between their core topic area and the related sub-topics & and specific details they may need to explore in their research
  3. As a class, work through one example from a student’s topic. Ask other
    students to give feedback
  4. Ask students to keep the worksheet, so they can add to it during the class
Tags  Refining-topic; In-class
Time  20 minutes
Attachments noun_229116Mapping a Topic Worksheet; noun_204955Mapping a Topic (example)

Pre-search: Preliminary Research

Title

Pre-search: Preliminary Research 
Description This is an activity that asks students to do some preliminary “pre-search” on their topics before their library session. Students can use the web, Wikipedia, or any source of their choosing to identify 3-4 relevant sources on their topic. Students are asked to document the sources they find, their search process, and a rating for the
quality/reputability of these sources.
Steps
  1.  Assign students the worksheet leading up to an in–person library session and ask them to share or bring the completed assignment to their library session
  2. Ask students to share examples of sources they found, how they found these sources, and what they thought of the quality of the sources
  3. Variation: have students pair up and swap their papers with another student to discuss their findings first
  4. Discuss with class what their go–to sources are for presearch & what evaluation criteria they apply when finding sources online
Tags  Refining-topic; In-class
Time 20 minutes (homework); 10-15 minute class discussion
Attachments noun_229116Pre-search Worksheet; noun_204955Pre-search Example