Academic Writing

A guide to the academic writing process

For strategies for academic writing, click here: On Academic Writing

For Students, Staff, and Faculty: 

Need help finding sources?

Schedule a Research Consultation to discuss your topic and the best way to find sources.

To schedule a research consultation in person or via Zoom, click here

For Faculty: 

To schedule a class session, contact the Masland Library at library@cairn.edu.

Examine Sources

Examining Sources involves diving into the resources you have found relating to your topic or research question. 

  • Critically read and understand the content of your sources.
  • Identifying the main arguments, evidence, and conclusions.

Watch a short video here: Evaluating Sources.

Investigating and verifying sources

To get a deeper understanding of the criteria above, explore the following videos and tutorials from the Information Literacy Module:

What is Authority 

Introduction to Bias

Types of Basis 

Understanding Misinformation

Evaluating Digital Sources Using Lateral Reading

 

Reading and note-taking tips

Outlining common Themes or threads throughout the research can help in the later parts of the research process. Awareness of the common themes in the sources will also help highlight any missing pieces where more research may be needed. 

Feel free to start with this video to explore the Anatomy of a Research Paper or learn How to Read Scholarly Materials

General tips: 

  • Read articles more than once. 
  • Read for the big picture first, then reread for the details. 
  • Look up words/concepts that are unfamiliar. 
  • Take notes in your own words, perhaps as answers to the questions below.

Reading smaller portions specific to the questions you want to answer can be helpful when reading peer-reviewed or academic articles. 

Subjects: Writing Helps