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Conducting the Search: Finding Websites
Description:
This lesson plan is designed to introduce students to search engines and their advanced search options, operating on the assumption that most students are familiar with Google. Students will build strategies to answer practice questions and effectively find websites using search engines, such as Google and Google Scholar.

This lesson plan was originally created to be used in conjunction with Library Online Basic Orientation (LOBO) at North Carolina State University: http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/lobo2/.

Submitted with permission of Dr. Megan Oakleaf. Written by Jillian Robinson, North Carolina State University. Adapted from:

Bolner, Myrtle S., and Gayle A. Poirier. The Research Process. Dubuque, Iowa: Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company, 2002.

Burkhardt, Joanna M., Mary C. MacDonald, and Andree J. Rathemacher. Teaching Information Literacy. Chicago: American Library Association, 2003.

Carla , List J. Information Research. Dubuque, Iowa: Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company, 2002.

Gradowski, Gail, Loanne Snavely, and Paula Dempsey. Designs for Active Learning. Chicago: Association of College and Research Libraries, 1998.

Goals & Objectives:

Information Literacy Objective

 

The student will efficiently search the World Wide Web using Internet search engines.

 

Student Objective

 

The student will use advanced search screens to effectively find websites and limit results.

 

The student will build effective keyword searches for use in search engines with phrase searching and/or Boolean operators.

Materials & Sources:

Materials—Teacher

 

Google Scholar handout

Computer with Internet connection & projector

 

Materials—Student

 

Computers with Internet connections

 

Preparation

 

·        Assign students to complete LOBO section(s):  Find Websites

·        Review applicable section in LOBO: http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/tutorials/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=72&Itemid=117

Procedures:

Introduction (Time = 5 minutes)

 

Discuss search engines. Poll the class to see how many have used search engines, such as Google, Google Scholar, Yahoo, and any others the class might name. Poll the class to find out how often students use search engines (on a daily basis, weekly, etc.). Discuss the usefulness of search engines. 

 

Discuss how incredibly helpful search engines can be in every day use.  Explain that even though they are so useful, we can make them even more useful by using the many search options that they offer. Tell the class, “We often don’t use search engines to their full potential, so today we’re going to talk about how to use them more effectively, focusing on Google and Google Scholar.”

 

Procedure (Time = 30-35 minutes)

 

1. Ask students why they find using search engines helpful. In what situations do search engines help in finding websites? When are they not as helpful (e.g., finding out the weather today vs. writing a paper that requires scholarly information)?

·        Explain that today the class will be looking specifically at search engines and examining their strengths and weaknesses, as well as the most effective ways to use search engines to find websites for academic purposes.

 

2. Now, tell the class that you are searching for information for a paper about the effectiveness of cough medicine, and your professor told you that all of your information must have been published within the past 6 months.  Ask students if they know of a way to get only results from the past 6 months without sorting through the dates individually because you don’t have that much time!  Have students do the search on their own and ask them if they know whether or not you will be able to automatically get only results from the past 6 months.  Poll the class to see if they were able to limit their results to the past 6 months.  Show that there is no way to limit your results from the regular search screen.  Explain that in a few minutes, you will show students how to get better results from search engines.

 

3. Ask students what they remember from previous LOBO lessons about building search statements with the Boolean search terms AND, OR, and NOT, and what they do to search results in databases (e.g., AND narrows a search, while OR broadens results).  Discuss and review.

·        Tell students, “Building proper keyword searches is important in search engines, just as it was in the library’s databases. However, not all search engines use all or some of the Boolean terms.  Some search engines even automatically add AND to searches, or use symbols, such as (-) to mean NOT.  It is always important to look at a search engine’s help screen, or search tips, to figure out how to best approach your search and get the most relevant results.”

 

4. Show chart from http://www.searchengineshowdown.com/features/, which outlines many of the features of some major search engines. Focus on Boolean searching and phrase searching. Explain that phrase searching works more often in search engines like Google than in library databases because of the way information is indexed. “You can phrase search by placing double quotation marks (“”) around words that the user wants to be found together.” Show example in Google: “cough medicine” instead of cough medicine, which may be found far apart from each other in the web page.  Point to the number of search results to emphasize the difference.

 

5. Explain that the class will now look at and practice using Google and Google Scholar for better, more relevant results.

·        Explain that while Google Scholar seems like it should provide the user automatically with scholarly information, the search engine often provides only citations (e.g., author, title, date). This happens because often you are asked to pay for subscriptions to the articles and/or books that Google Scholar indexes because of copyright laws.  If using Google Scholar through the college’s website (or from the campus network), you can often connect to the library’s catalog through Google Scholar to find what you are looking for. (Optional: You might want to mention to the class that you may also change Scholar Preferences, so that Google Scholar searches for links to your library.)  Refer to handout on Google Scholar.

 

·        Explain that these search engines have regular keyword search capabilities.  Show students the search screens for Google and Google Scholar.

 

·        While each screen is open, show how to gain access to the advanced search options, which give the user the ability to become even more specific about the information they want.  Show the advanced options for each search engine one-at-a-time.  Show students how to access Google’s Search Tips, from the advanced search screen. Point out the language limiter, date limiter, and domain limiter. (You may want to discuss the domain limiter and reasons for using it. Discuss the differences between .gov sites and .com sites.)

 

6. Explain that you will practice using search engines with the following example as a class: 

Example: You are writing a paper about…[insert your own topic here].  Or use a sample topic, such as “I am writing a paper about the quality of life experienced by those who are mentally ill.”

 

·        First, model building a sample keyword search. Have students help you determine good keywords that are specific and narrow enough to produce relevant results.  You may want to use words such as “quality of life” and “mentally ill.” 

 

·        Ask students where phrases (with double quotation marks) or Boolean terms should be used or not used. Demonstrate the same search with and without the use of quotations.  While doing the search, purposely make some mistakes and have students participate to tell you what you did wrong and how to fix your mistake.

 

·        Tell students that since you want to use this information in a paper it needs to be current. Have students tell you how to limit your results to the past year. 

 

7. Use both Google and Google Scholar to find results. Compare results between search engines and outline their strengths and weaknesses. Point out the number of search results obtained when using Google vs. Google Scholar, as well as the number of results obtained when limiting a search in “Advanced Search” mode.

 

·        While searching in Google Scholar, refer to the handout to show students examples of an abstract, a book citation and the option for Full Text @ NCSU.  Explain that Full Text @ NCSU links you to our library’s catalog, where you can then find what you are looking for in full text, in print, or have the option of ordering the item through TripSaver (ILL).

 

Closure (Time = 5 min)

 

·        Ask students to summarize the main reason for using specific, good keyword searches with search engines. (Answers should deal with the vast amount of information available on the Web and the need to limit results to only the most relevant web pages.)

·        Ask: “What tools are available in search engines to help you get more specific, relevant results?”

·        Ask students, "what are the strengths and weaknesses of search engines?" Encourage students to ask a librarian if they are unsure whether or not their site is suitable for academic research. 

 

Lesson Evaluation

What worked well for you?

 

 

 

What will you do differently next time?

 

Assessment:
Student Assessment

Informally assess students' understanding of how to use search engines to find websites for academic research through teacher observation and classroom discussion.
Collaborators:
Written by Jillian Robinson, North Carolina State University. See "Description" for full list of credits.
Sources:
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Presented By: S.O.S. Team
Collaborative: Written by Jillian Robinson, North Carolina State University. See "Description" for full list of credits.
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