Class Guide Repository

Topics often get modified during the writing process. To make sure you’ve got a good topic view the tutorial, Picking Your Topic IS Research!, by NCSU Libraries.

Start your research at least two class periods before the due date so you don’t get stressed out or unable to finish it in time.

If you can’t find data on your topic that could mean it hasn’t been created yet. Ask a Librarian for help before changing your topic, and keep that topic for later so you can do some original research!

When K-State Libraries doesn't own a book, journal article, film or other resource* that you need for your research, we will try to borrow it for you from another library through Interlibrary Loan.

First, create an account and then request materials. Most of the time, it's totally free for you!

When you use the Get It button in our databases, the "Not Available? Request from Interlibrary Loan" option will take you to the Interlibrary Loan request screen.

Interlibrary Loan requests can take:

• 2-5 days for electronically received copies (PDFs of articles, chapters, sections from books 50 pages and under)
• 3-10 days for books, videos, and anything else we get through the mail

*Sorry, we are unable to borrow textbooks through Interlibrary Loan.

How do you know if it's a quality web site?

Look at:

1. Authorship. Who wrote or created the content? The more you know about the site's creator, like their credentials and sources of information, the better idea you will have about the quality of the website.
2. Timeliness. When was it created? Some information is stable, like what countries were part of the Axis during World War II. Other information isn't, like the current economic or political statuses of many countries.
3. Bias. Can you detect a particular bias? Is the site encouraging you to believe something by using emotional language? Does it present an opinion or does it present facts?
4. References. Does the site present references or links to the sources of information it presents? Can you locate these sources so that you can read and interpret the information yourself?

Content Farms

Some websites seem to have all of the answers. If you need to know how to French braid hair or train your dog, you can usually find a web site that provides quick and easy steps to accomplish the task. Are they reliable sources of information and are they appropriate for academic purposes? Maybe not. "Content farms" are websites that actually exist to host ads, and they get site visits by posting "articles" written in response to popular web searches.

Lost in the stacks?

Use Search It's "Map it" tool to find the exact location of a title. 

Reading the Map

When you click the blue "Map it" button, a floor map will open with its call number and a marker where you can find the title. You can print the map with the printer symbol in the top right corner.

Hale: 785-532-3014
Math/Physics: 785-532-6827
Paul Weigel: 785-532-5968
Veterinary Medical: 785-532-6006
Salina: 785-826-2636