Digital research involves gathering online information through repetitive searching, filtering, and citation of sources with a critical mindset. It requires skills like effective searching, resource management, and distinguishing primary and secondary sources. Surveys have shown that many 21st century learners struggle with formulating queries, evaluating results, and determining a source's value. For students to thrive in today's digital world, educators must help them develop strong digital research abilities through practice.

1. Digital Research
Wilbert C. Jenkins, Jr.
American InterContinental
University Online
Unit 3 IP

2. Digital Research
 Definitions
 Looking something up using the internet
(IR, n.d.)
 Gathering information for further
understanding (IR, n.d.)
 Repetitive & continuous searching, filtering,
& citing sources with a critical and skeptical
mindset to discern useful content (Gil, 2012)

3. Digital Research. A
21st Century Skill
 Content is digital, voluminous, &
ubiquitous in this 21st Century
 Success is linked to quick successful
separation of useful information
 Digital research skills are acquired the
old fashion way—Practice use daily

4. Digital Research & Education!
What’s the Connection?
 The 4C’s-and 3R’s are involved
 Discerning worth and relevance of information is
at stake
 Surveys of 21st century learners identify:
 an inability to formulate sound search queries,
 have poor to no strategies for poor results,
 have difficulty deciding value of resources discovered
(Moran & Firth, 2011)

5. Research Context Sources
 Web sites
 Pages of mixed-media content-text and media

http://www.allabouthistory.org/native-american-history.htm
 Blogs
 Single or group of authors write about an interest subject
 http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetorch/2012/07/23/156913101/lighting-the-torch-
 Wiki’s
 Multi-author pages easily edited which allow easy publishing

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:Technology
(Unit 3 Activity, 2012)

6. Research Content Sources
(cont)
 Pod Casts
 Audio recordings posted to web to be accessed by
computer or mobile device
 http://www.npr.org/rss/podcast/podcast_detail.php?siteId
=9911203
 Resource Data Bases
 Online collections of content
 http://eric.ed.gov/
(Unit 3 Activity, 2012)

7. Digital Research Components
 Data Sources
 Primary & Secondary
 Resource Management
 RSS & Atom
 Research Process
 Search Engines
 Strategies

8. Data Sources--3
 Primary
 Document/artifact created at time of occurrence—inside view/actual
source of information
 i.e. Autobiographies, Films, Clothing, Manuscripts, Raw Research Data
 Secondary
 Interpretive/analysis of primary data—1 step removed data
 i.e. Encyclopedia’s, Political Commentary, Text Books
 Finding Tools
 Research tools leading to discover primary & secondary sources
 i.e. Online Library Catalog, Specialized Data Bases
(Primary Sources, 2010)

9. Resource Management
 Really Simple Syndication RSS
 Service to Push change data to subscriber
 Web page services indicator (RSS, n.d.)
 Atom—2 Standards
 Syndication standard=XML language for
Web feeds
 Protocol standard=HTTP protocol to create
and update web resources (IR, n.d.)

10. Research Process
 Search Engines:
 Standard/Common
 Google.com, Live.com, MSN.com, Yahoo.com
 Meta Search Engines

Dogpile.com, Metacrawler.com
 Comparative Search Engines

Pandia.com, Searchenginewatch.gom
 CreativeCommon Search Engine

Not a search engine; access point to search engines

11. Research Process (cont)
 Strategies for Effective Searching
 Boolean Search
 Phrase Search
 Homonyms, Synonyms, & Variations
 Search within results
 Domain & Site results
(Web Search, n.d.)

12. Research Process (cont.)
 Strategies for Effective Searching (cont)
 Trimming a URL
 Title & URL Searching
 Advance Searching
 Alternative Search Engine
 Meta Searching
(Web Search, n.d.)

13. Digital Research and Learning
Digital Research
Skills are essential
skills to create a
culture of learning to
acquire and
maintain the 21st
century learner a
competitive ability in
the global economy
of this digital time (Unit 3 Activity, 2012)

14. Conclusion
 Digital Research is an ability of
essential skill for the 21st Century
 Learners of the 21st Century need
strategies to acquire research skills
 A culture of learning is a cyclic process
 Research skill acquisition is a
competitive edge for 21st Century
learners in every regard

15. References
 Atom (Standard) (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atom_%28standard%29
 Creative Commons Search (n.d.) Retrieved from http://search.creativecommons.org/
 Gil, P. (2012). How to properly research on the internet. Retrieved from
http://netforbeginners.about.com/od/navigatingthenet/tp/How-to-Properly-Research-Online
 Internet research (IR) (n.d.) Retrieved from http://
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_research
 Moran, M. E. & Firth, S. (2011). Sweetsearch web research tutorial. Retrieved from
http://www.slideshare.net/sweetsearch/sweetsearch-web-research-tutorial
 RSS (n.d.). Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rss
 Unit 3 Activity (2012). AIU Course Materials. Retrieved from https://mycampus.aiu-
online.com/Classroom/Pages/multimediacoursetext.aspx?
classid=451340&tid=207&uid=329981&HeaderText=Course%20Materials:
%20EDU639-1203B-01%20:%20Twenty-First%20Century%20Learning
 Web Search (n.d.). Retrieved from http://student.dcu.ie/~emmetty2/websearch.htm
 What is a Primary Source (2010). Retrieved from
http://knowledgecenter.unr.edu/help/using/primary.aspx