For assessment 1, you need to write an academic essay on how a contemporary healthcare strategy can improve a health issue experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
This page will help you through the process from understanding your task, planning your search, finding and evaluating information, writing your assignment, and referencing correctly.
Please refer to your learnonline course site for assessment instructions.
View the Student Engagement Unit's Academic Skills website for help planning your assignment and making sense of the assignment and instruction words.
You may find it useful to make a mind map to organise your thoughts about the topic:
Start by identifying the concepts (main ideas) from your assignment topic prior to searching.
Then consider alternative words for these concepts which, together with the concept term, become your searchable keywords.
Have a look at the example question below to see how to start preparing your search strategy:
You can use quotation marks (“ “) to find an exact match, e.g. “healthcare professional”
Combine your terms to form your search strategy (you'll type this in the search box):
This list doesn't show every possible search term, just a few examples.
You can search for information using a range of tools, including the Library Catalogue and databases, Google Scholar, and internet search engines. Choose the sources that are best suited to your need.
Select the plus symbols below to learn more about different search options.
Basic search
This is the default option when searching in the Library Catalogue.
1. Add in one keyword for each concept, combining them with AND.
Note: Searching for more general terms will find more results.
2. Select Search.
3. Swap your keywords with your alterative terms to see different results.
Advanced search
If you would like to do a more comprehensive search, use the Advanced search.
1. Put each concept on a new line
2. Add your alternative words, combining them with OR.
3. Select Search.
Filters
Use the filters on the left to limit and refine your results.
You could try limiting to:
Peer-reviewed journals
Full text online
Resource types
Publication date range
Medline
Searching in Medline is different to searching in the Library Catalogue.
1. Type your first concept and alternative words into the search box.
2. Untick the box labeled Map to Subject Heading.
3. Select Search.
4. Repeat steps 1-3 for your next concepts.
5. Tick the boxes next to each of your concept lines.
6. Select Combine with AND.
7. Scroll down to see your results.
Scopus
You can do a basic or advanced search, just like in the Library Catalogue.
1. Type all your keywords for your first concept into the search box.
2. Select the plus symbol to the right to add a line for your next concept.
3. Add all your keywords for your second concept into the search bar.
4. Repeat steps 2-3 until you have used all your concepts.
5. Select Search.
More useful databases:
Google Scholar
You can search Google Scholar in the same way as a Catalogue basic search.
Relevant websites
To find relevant websites that are recommended for your area of study, have a look at the Find evidence: government and organisation information tab in this guide.
You could also visit the following resources:
Google
You can use Google to search for information from professional bodies, governments, and non-government organisations. This might include reports, clinical guidelines, professional standards, codes of conduct, and more.
Google has a number of useful search features that can make your searching more efficient:
LibKey Nomad
If you are looking for information on the internet, it's worth downloading LibKey Nomad. It's a browser extension for Chrome that will look for full text PDFs of journal articles from websites outside of the Library Catalogue. This is helpful when looking on pages such as Wikipedia, because you can easily access and read the articles from the reference list. Instructions to download LibKey Nomad are available here.
For a High Distinction, your assignment must use a comprehensive range of sources of evidence. The Feedback Rubric provides further information for the marking criteria.
The Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet website is a great place to start. They have a range of resources and reports which will be helpful for your assignment including:
You can also look at other resources available at Google Scholar.
You should critically evaluate all resources found to determine their appropriateness for your assignment. The video below explains more.
View the Student Engagement Unit's Study Help website for help writing your assignment, or to make an appointment with SEU staff.
You must appropriately cite (‘acknowledge’) all references used in your assignment to avoid plagiarism.
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