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AP Seminar/AP Research Guide

Basics

Source Credibility Tier List. Try to have at least 4 sources that are tier 1. : r/APSeminar

Select source types that are most appropriate for the information need.

For Example:

Information Need Source Types
Current information on political issues Current Newspapers & Magazines
Background info in order to develop a question for a research project Reference, Wikipedia, Topic Overview Videos (Crash Course)
Current research on solar and wind power Academic Journals/Original Research & Government Websites/Docs
Information to help make an argument about the impact of U.S. westward expansion on indigenous people Primary Sources from the time, Academic Journal Articles by historians, & Books on the topic

 

 

Shop for a topic that interests you, and read background information.

Topic Shop & Read Background Information in the in Context Databases:

  • Click "Browse Topics" in the top left.
  • Browse the list and select any of interest to further investigate
  • Focus on "Reference" sources to gather background information.

Topic Shop & Read Background Information in the New York Times 

  • Click "Science."
  • Click a narrower topic of interest, or simply search the science articles.

Example Articles

Topic Shop & Read Background Information in Google and Wikipedia

Science

Primary Source Secondary Source
DEFINITION:  A document that fully describes original research written by those who conducted that original research.   DEFINITION:  A document that contains commentary, interpretation, and/or analysis of original research. 
EX:  Academic journal article where researchers describe their own research and experimentation regarding enzymes in bovine liver. European Journal of Biochemistry EX:  Popular magazine blog post that comments on multiple studies regarding the impact of sleep on regulating emotions. Psychology Today

Humanities

Primary Source Secondary Source

DEFINITION:  a document, image, or artifact that provides us with direct evidence about the past. 

 DEFINITION:  A document that contains commentary, interpretation, and/or analysis of a primary source(s).
EX:  the "I Have a Dream" speech by Martin Luther King Jr,  EX:  an academic journal article analyzing King's speech.

 

 

Examples of Primary and Secondary Sources

 

Primary Sources Secondary Sources
  • Academic journal article of original research
  • Conference Papers
  • Correspondence
  • Dissertations
  • Diaries
  • Interviews
  • Lab Notebooks
  • Notes
  • Patents
  • Proceedings
  • Studies or Surveys
  • Technical Reports
  • Theses
  • Newspaper/magazine articles written soon after event (not historical accounts)
  • Popular magazine articles 
  • Academic journal article
  • Criticism and Interpretation
  • Dictionaries (may be tertiary)
  • Encyclopedias (may be tertiary)
  • Government Policy
  • Public Opinion
  • Reviews
  • Social Policy

adapted from University at Albany Library

Create your research question.

  • After conducting background research, determine what aspect of your topic to investigate.
    • Consider the issues, mystery, debate, problem, or controversies.
    • What interests you?  What needs to be solved?
  • Create a concept map or a list of ideas.
  • Use the six Ws (& How), if needed, to help create a question: 
    • Who
    • What
    • Why
    • When 
    • Where
    • Which
    • How
  • Be sure it is neither too broad nor too narrow.
  • You will eventually develop sub-questions that support your primary question.
  • You may find your primary research question changes after doing research.  That's okay!

Select and brainstorm your keywords.

*Keywords are the words and phrases typed into a database or search engine in order to retrieve relevant sources.*

How to select keywords:

  1. State your research question:

    • EXAMPLE: "How do cigarette companies target children with their advertising?"

  2. Identify main concepts:

    • EXAMPLE:  "How do cigarette companies target children with their advertising?"

  3. Brainstorm synonyms, related terms, broader terms, scientific/technical terms, and more specific terms based on your own background knowledge:

    • EXAMPLE:

      • Cigarette companies:  Philip Morris, Camel, Imperial

      • Children:  child, adolescent, teen, teenager, students, youth

      • Advertising:  ads, marketing, commercials, promotions, product placement

  4. Avoid the following:

    • Abbreviations - spell them out

    • Relationship words - words like compare, contrast, causation, etc.

    • Judgement words - words like best, worst, pro, con, etc.

  5. If needed, search Wikipedia and other reference sources to further develop your list of keywords.