This week’s module included another amazing tool that you’re going to want to utilize for those papers, so listen in college kids! Many of us obviously jump to Google when it is time to start researching for our lengthy papers. However, it doesn’t always generate resources that are reliable enough for academic writing. Most students don’t realize this, but Google Scholar is a separate search engine that displays results of only scholarly literature. In the slides for this week, there is a video by Tom Nichols on how to use this site and its tools to get the most out of your research (Slide 25).
Link to slides: https://osu.instructure.com/courses/91565/pages/lesson-module-6?module_item_id=4997009
I personally found this very useful because it makes my habitual Google searches more reliable and backed by evidence/research. I have already begun using it to compile the references I need for my final research paper in Sport Sexuality studies and I have over 15 solid sources. It is a good alternate search engine/database to using OSU Libraries, so if you want to remain on Google check it out! This module included many skills related to scholarly writing, which is surely needed in your college work but it may be beneficial beyond that. Scholarly writing will be demanded in your professional career as well, so I would advise you to put these skills to the test now!
You can practice them by going over the verbiage in your work, following the correct writing formats, and use resources like Google scholar to ensure your research is credible. Eventually, that practice will become a habit, so you are can consistently write like a scholar 😉 .