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ENG 110 Prof. Juan Soto Franco Spring 2022

Getting started: narrowing your topic

By now, you've read Ta-Nehisi Coates' article "A Case for Reparations", have summarized and discussed it, and have generated ten questions about a topic in the article. You may also have some good starting key terms. 
 
If you are having trouble finding good sources, please take a look at these two videos, which can help you refine your topic and key terms. 

 

You're also always welcome to contact me or any other librarian for more help! See contact info and library hours on the side. 

How to create effective keywords

Good keywords save you time as you search!

Three steps for developing keywords:

(1) Pull out the important words from your topic, sub-topic, and questions above.
(2) Look at each word: is it a KEY CONCEPT? Does it DESCRIBE my idea, by itself?  If it's not clear, come up with a better word that does describe that key concept.
(3) Think about words that people who write about these issues might use.