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Spark 001 (Contreras): Using Keywords

Spark Seminar: The Border and Chicana/o Texts

Brainstorming Keywords

The words you type into the search box affect your search results. Not all authors use the same language to describe similar topics, so you will need to try a variety of searches.

  • Create a list of possible words that could appear in a book or article related to your topic of interest.
  • Come up with synonyms or related terms for those.
  • If you're researching a topic from an historical point of view, it may also be helpful to come up with historical terms that may be pejorative today.
  • Stick to using 2-4 nouns when searching.

Activity -- keywords

How to Choose Keywords

McMaster Libraries (2:42)

Activity

On scratch paper, note down your topic's key concepts and brainstorm any related words or synonyms.

Example

How can colleges help Latinas' pursue STEM degrees?

My keywords are:

  • colleges
  • Latinas
  • STEM
  • degrees

What are some synonyms or related words for each of these keywords?