Unlike search engine, which support natural language or question searching databses like more specific terms. Therefore, stay away from small words such as: the, a, my, an.
These terms are just suggested starting points. You may already have a topic in mind for your research.
Often professors will specify writing topics for assignments, but sometimes you may have the freedom to choose a topic for yourself. It is important that this be a topic that will sustain your interest, but it is also important that you identify a topic:
Collect keywords about your topic. Off the top of your head, write down a list of relevant terms to your research question. Consult a dictionary or theasaurus if needed. These will be used as your search terms.
Combine search terms using AND/OR.
To narrow results, use AND (example "school AND violence"). This finds resources containing both terms.
To increase results, use OR (example "school OR college"). Use this with synonyms.
Keep track of these keywords as you continue your research and highlight the ones that produce the most useful results. Keep trying the most useful keywords as you research your topic using different tools.
