Mater Christi Learning Commons: Effective search strategies

Join State Library Victoria

Members can access academic databases for free.

Add State Library to Google Scholar to get direct access to articles.

[source: Deakin University]

Add State Library Victoria to "Library links" in Google Scholar.

Now, when you search, Google Scholar will show you which articles are available through State Library Victoria. Neat, huh?

Tip 3 tips for Googling more effectively for your research.

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Is Wikipedia a reliable source?

It depends. Some articles are better than others -- all are a work in progress. If you are doing research on a topic, you need to take the time to also find other sources, compare the information that's in there to Wikipedia, and do further reading.

If you just need a quick idea of what something is about, Wikipedia can be a great source!

DO...

• use Wikipedia to become familiar with a topic or as a starting point for research
• use Wikipedia to find more search terms or keywords for your research topic
• examine the References at the bottom of the page - they may give you some great research leads!
• maintain a level of skepticism when reading Wikipedia articles

DON'T...

• use Wikipedia articles as sources in your bibliography for assignments or papers - always find more reliable sources instead
• assume Wikipedia is correct. Verify everything by checking against additional sources!

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