History 217 - Decolonization In Africa: Class Assignment

Goals for today:

Part A: If you don't have a topic idea -

1. Use the reference resources or browse AlllAfrica to come up with some ideas. Find one article or essay that can give you background information on your topic.

Part B:

2. Record one book or book chapter that relates to your topic.

3. Find two articles on your topic in Historical Abstracts database or in a primary source database.

As you are exploring the resources that we discuss today look for keywords, synonyms and words related to your topic.  Note features found in various tools that can help you refine your search strategies to get more relevant results.  In working through these resources, please consider the following questions:

• What subjects have been assigned to the book that best fits your topic?  Under what call number range are these materials located?  What is available in Summit on your topic?
• What subjects does a relevant article in Historical Abstracts focus on?  How would you find related articles?  How can you track down the full text of a relevant article?  

It is a good idea to take a few notes about your experience today as part of your assignment will be to discuss the process you used in researching and creating your paper.