SIRS Training Outline

Total Time: 45–75 minutes

Quick Intro (5 minutes)

Digital Learning Commons Homepage

• Introduce staff to the website and show them how to access resources.
• Point out the Search box (appears on every page) and the About section.
• Explain differences between Students, Educators, and Parents sections.

SIRS

SIRS is a collection of online databases that specializes in social issues, science, history, the arts, and more. This site also has an Educators' Resources section.

Intro Activities (15–30 minutes)

SIRS includes the following databases:

• SIRS Researcher: General reference, social issues, health, science, and business.
• SIRS Renaissance: Current perspectives on the arts and humanities.
• SIRS Discoverer: K-8 reading and research materials.

Search: The Subject Headings search is useful when you have a specific research topic in mind and you want to use a subject index to quickly locate articles and sites related to that topic. All articles in the SIRS databases are indexed primarily according to Library of Congress subject headings. The Keyword search is useful when you want to locate articles and websites based on your own combination of key words and phrases.

Educators' Resources: Curriculum resources and teaching guides are located in this area. To access this feature, click on the Educators' Resources icon at the top of any web page.

Pro vs. Con Leading Issues: Click in the Leading Issues box on the right-hand side of the homepage. Choose an issue to see how this feature works. Then let staff choose an issue to look into on their own. Explain that these issues are often controversial and that SIRS provides student with pros and cons to all issues, as well as many different types of documents to use for research.

Database Features: Click on the Database Features tab near the top of the web page. In this area, the different databases are broken down by their individual features and content areas. Use this feature to locate specific topics and tools or to find in-depth information and do meaningful research.

Citation Guidelines: Click on the How to Cite link in the top right-hand corner of any web page. This feature includes information for students about how to correctly cite articles in their bibliographies.

Digging Deeper (15–30 minutes)

Reference Toolbox: Click on the Toolbox icon on the top of the web page. These mini guides will help students begin to organize and think about presenting their papers in a couple of different formats.

Features: This link is located under the Pro vs. Con box. Features for both SIRS Researcher and Renaissance are spotlighted, for example: Focus on Terrorism, Natural Disasters, Literary Corner, and Curriculum Pathfinders.

PDF Research Guides: These guides are found within a Pro vs. Con Leading Issue. The guides can be useful for both students and educators. Students can use them as a tool to support research. Educators can use them as a guide for discussion or curriculum planning.

Additional Resources (5 minutes)

ProQuest Podcasts: These short training modules can be subscribed to via iTunes. You'll find them in Educators' Resources.

Free Online Training: SIRS offers free online classes to help educators learn how to navigate and use this resource. Click on Educators' Resources to learn more.

Tutorial: A great self-help tool that allows users to familiarize themselves with the basics of the SIRS database. Click on Toolbox at the top of the homepage to access the tutorial.

Help: A comprehensive help system which includes a cross-referenced index, full-text search, and a table of contents. Click on Help in the right-hand corner of any web page.

Assessments (2–5 minutes)

Return to the Digital Learning Commons website. Click on the Training Evaluation link, which appears at bottom of every page on the site.