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College English ENGL 180-5

Professor Yvette Kisor

November 5, 2007

Guide for finding sources at the George T. Potter Library

Marcia Sexton

msexton@ramapo.edu

x6749

 I. Library Homepage: http://library.ramapo.edu

• Provides access to the catalog (OPAC), databases, interlibrary loan forms, etc.

II. Finding Books at the Potter Library

• Catalog: use this to find books, periodical titles (NOT articles ), government documents, reserve items, music,and movies owned by the Library. You may limit a search by language, year(s) of publication, type of material, etc. This may take a few seconds to load.

• Use the Basic Search to find material using Keywords
  • For example: search for child soldiers and Africa to locate a broad range of materials the library has on these keywords
  • Use quotation marks around a multi-word phrase so that the catalog system will treat it as a single word, for example "Black English "
  • When you find an appropriate title, click on the Related Records or Subjects, etc. tab located at the top of a catalog record to see which Library of Congress subject headings are discussed in that particular book/DVD/periodical to get to more titles that deal with that subject

  OR

• Search the catalog using Subject Browse feature if you know the relevant Library of Congress subject heading, for example:

• Black English
  • see subheadings
• Child soldiers or Children and war
  • see subheadings

Tips

1. Start with broad searches. It is much easier to discard too much rather than start with too little.
2. If you don't know the Subject Heading, use the Related Records or Subjects, etc. tab located on the top of a catalog record to get to the headings. This will help you focus in on more relevant material.
3. Can "virtually" browse the shelves by clicking on the call number in a record.

III. Reference Material

• The reference stacks are located on the 3rd floor (this is also the library's entrance).
• Some useful materials for your projects:

Juba to jive : a dictionary of African-American slang	PE3727.N4 M34 1994
African American English : a linguistic introduction	PE3102.N48 G74 2002
Wounds of war	JZ6530 .L35 2004

IV. Electronic Resources

• Some useful Databases for your projects:

• Interlibrary Loan: allows students to borrow a book or article that the George T. Potter library does not own. There is a link from the Journal Finder page.

Both of these links can be found under QUICK LINKS on the library's homepage.

Tips

1. Always switch to the Advanced Search page in a database. This will give you more control over your results.
2. Always use Boolean Operators--AND, OR, NOT and Quotation Marks when running a search. For Example: "child soldiers and Africa"
3. Always check your Spelling if the database results are zero.
4. Use the Subject Terms or Thesaurus link, if available, to find the best terms to use in a database.

V. Using Web Sources

• Subject Resources
  • Amnesty International - Working To Protect Human Rights Worldwide

• Use Evaluating Websites to determine if the site is authoritative enough to use in your paper.

VI. Bibliographies

• Use the Citing Websites and Print Sources for "Works Cited" citation style guidance
  • Follow the examples given for the MLA citation style

Need more help? Visit or call the Reference Desk: 201.684.7574

Use QandANJ.org a 24/7 virtual chat with a reference librarian.