The boxes below provide more information about the different types of research sources.
A primary source is created by someone with firsthand information about an event, location, discovery, or creation--or it contains their direct, firsthand knowledge.
Primary sources may include:
A person who witnesses a battle and writes about it is creating a primary source because that person has direct knowledge of the battle. An interview of that person is also a primary source because the interview contains the witness' firsthand knowledge.
A secondary source is created by someone without firsthand information of an event, location, discovery, or creation who attempts to analyze or reinterpret primary sources.
Secondary sources may include:
A person who reads firsthand accounts of a battle and then combines them or interprets how they are connected is creating a secondary source because that person has no direct knowledge of what happened at the battle.
A tertiary source is created by someone who assembles lists of information from firsthand or secondary sources to provide an overview of topics and create reference materials that do not contain new analyses or interpretations.
Tertiary sources may include:
A person who creates an encyclopedia of military battles containing brief overviews of each battle is creating a tertiary source as long as that person does not include any new analyses or interpretations of the battles.
Got a research assignment? Take a few minutes to review your assignment prompt. Not only will this step save you from making mistakes, it will also provide valuable clues about the type of subject you should choose and the type of research you should conduct.
This video explains how to use your research prompt to make decisions about your research assignment.
In addition to the requirements discussed in the video above, you should also pay attention to the following items:
Ask your instructor if you have questions. It is best to ask your instructor instead of your classmates or other college staff because only your instructor knows exactly what they expect.
Have you ever struggled to find research on a topic? Well, choosing your research topic is a process! Learn more about that process by watching this video.
After reviewing your assignment, you should know what kind of research sources you can use for your assignment, but you might have questions about each or need to know where to find them.
This video will give you a bit more information about popular research sources.
The boxes below provide info on where to find help.
Rachel Kramer
Research Librarian
she/her/hers
MCC Learning Commons
rkramer@mclennan.edu
254-299-8390
Are you struggling to find research materials, use our library databases, or write citations and references? Our research librarians can help!
Just need a little help? Visit the Learning Commons' third-floor desk in the Learning Technology Center (LTC), or contact us via live chat or email. You can also call us at 254-299-8325.
Need a lot of help? Schedule a research consultation with one of our research librarians. It's their job to help you succeed!
Image courtesy of Adobe Stock.
Academic Support and Tutoring (AST) provides free tutoring to MCC students (including writing and citation assistance) and free support and tutorials for college-related software.
AST offers in-person support in the Learning Commons, located on the 2nd and 3rd floors of the Learning Technology Center (LTC). You can also reach out to AST via phone, Zoom, or email.
Use the link above to learn more about AST and locate its contact information and hours.
Image courtesy of Adobe Stock.
The video below will teach you the basics of using the MCC Library's search engine (which is located on the library's homepage).
The video below will teach you to use the cite, share, and save button's on the item-preview screen.
The video below will teach you to find more information about a search result by accessing its record page.
