Tutorials and Handouts

Searching & source help

Learn to use the library

• Introduction to the Library Website (Video, 5:25): This 5:25 video provides an overview of the library website and highlights some of the Library’s most popular resources and services.
• How to search for books at PCC Library (Video, 2:17): This 2:17 video shows how to use Portland Community College Library’s search to find books and other items at PCC Library.
• How to request a book from another library through PCC Library (Video, 4:04): This 4:04 video shows how to request a book or other item from another library or another campus through Portland Community College Library.
• How to find Course Reserves through PCC Library (Video, 1:53): This 1:53 video shows how to find items on reserve for your course through PCC Library.
• Finding Articles Through the PCC Library (Video, 5:53): This 5:53 video reviews how to find articles using the PCC Library article search on the front page of the Library website.

Research process

• Turning an Interest into a Research Question (Video, 5:11): In this 5:11 video, you’ll learn how to turn something you find interesting into a researchable question for a college research project.
• What are library databases? (Video, 4:19): This 4:19 video describes what library databases are, why you might want to use one, and how to choose the right ones for your project. It also shows you how to use the PCC Library Articles and Databases page to find databases to use for your project.
• Finding Quality Sources with Google Scholar (Video, 7:32): This 7:32 video will help you find and cite quality sources using Google Scholar and to connect Google Scholar to the PCC Library so you can access full-text articles available through PCC.

Evaluating sources

• Evaluating Sources: How PCC Students Do It (Video, 7:39): In this 7:39 video, three Portland Community College students talk about how they consider, evaluate and use sources for their own research assignments.
• Reading a Search Results Page from a Library Database (Video, 5:11): Library databases are great places to find published articles, but the results pages can be confusing. This 5:11 video will give you some tips to help you find useful results.
• Evaluating Sources to Find Quality Research (Video, 5:27): This 5:27 video discusses three questions you should ask in of any source you find in your research.
• Evaluating Sources on the Web (Video, 4:30): On the web, it can be difficult to tell what type of source you’re looking at and whether or not it’s something that would provide quality evidence for your assignment. This 4:30 video will help you look more critically at your own search results.
• Skepticism in the Era of Fake News and Circular Reporting (Video, 3:39): This 3:39 video describes how poor journalistic practices can perpetuate misinformation and highlights the importance of skepticism and verifying information by finding the original source.

Citation help

• MLA 8 Reference Guide (PDF): This reference guide will help you navigate citation if you are an instructor or student who is using the changes to citation and references outlined in the Modern Language Association’s 8th edition (MLA 8).
• MLA 9 Citation Samples (PDF): This reference guide will help you navigate citation if you are an instructor or student who is using the changes to citation and references outlined in the Modern Language Association’s 9th edition (MLA 9).
• CSE Citation Samples (PDF): This is a guide to citation styles from the CSE (Council of Science Editors).
• Chicago Manual of Style Citation Samples (PDF): This is a guide to citation styles from the Chicago Manual of Style.

Database help

• Alt-Press Watch, Ethnic NewsWatch, & GenderWatch (PDF): This PDF tutorial explains how to use the following three databases: Alt-Press Watch (full-text articles from alternative and independent presses); Ethnic NewsWatch (articles from ethnic and minority presses); and GenderWatch (focus in the impact of gender in many subject areas).

• EBSCOhost (PDF): This PDF tutorial explains how to find published newspaper, magazine and scholarly journal articles on a range of topics in EBSCOhost databases.
• Gale eBooks (formerly GVRL) (PDF): This PDF tutorial explains how to use Gale eBooks (formerly GVRL), which helps you get the background information you need to do a well-informed research project. It offers students, researchers, and professionals a wide variety of full-text interdisciplinary content on virtually any subject area to tackle their assignments, papers, projects, and presentations.
• Google Scholar (PDF): This PDF tutorial explains how: to set preferences to get full-text access while using Google Scholar; save articles to your Google account; obtain full-text articles through the PCC library through Google Scholar; and what to do if you are unable to get full text of an article through Google Scholar.
• JSTOR (PDF): This PDF tutorial explains how to use JSTOR, a large collection of scholarly (peer-reviewed) articles strongest in the Humanities and Social Sciences.
• Opposing Viewpoints (Gale in Context) (PDF): This PDF tutorial explains how to use Opposing Viewpoints, which provides opinion essays on current issues, news and magazine articles, court case overviews, and more.
• PsycINFO (PDF): This PDF tutorial explains how to use the PsycINFO database, which has peer-reviewed articles from scholarly journals, book chapters, and dissertations in psychology, behavioral science and mental health.
• Science Direct (PDF): This PDF tutorial explains how to use Science Direct, which provides full text articles for peer-reviewed life sciences, Health Science, physical sciences, and engineering journals with citation information for thousands more.
• SIRS Issues Researcher (PDF): This PDF tutorial explains how to use SIRS Issues Researcher, which is updated daily to provide information on current social issues, economics, business, politics, global issues, scientific developments, health, history, government, culture, the arts and humanities.