AAAS 110, Sec. 5 : Introduction to Contemporary Africa

Penn State Libraries' Research Guide helpful starting places for finding country information:

African Studies [Penn State Libraries' Research Guide] — Scroll down to:

• Country Information resources
• Reference Books (Gale Virtual Reference Library, etc.)
• Call Numbers for African Studies and Subjects
• Articles and Databases (General/Interdisciplinary, Humanities, Social Sciences, Gender), etc.

1. Choose a Topic: e.g., gender roles in Africa

2. Identify Keyword(s) about your topic: e.g. gender and roles and Africa

3. Use identified keywords in The CAT [Penn State Libraries' online catalog] to find encyclopedias and other reference materials [print or online], general books, videos, dissertations, etc. in various formats. Encyclopedias, dictionaries, and other reference works provide background information and overviews of a topic — a good starting point for researching your topic.

• use Advanced Search in The CAT
• enter your keywords "gender roles and Africa"
• limit your search to format, year, library, etc.

OR

Use Quick Search and simply enter your keyword(s) and click the Search button.

See the Libraries' Research Guide: African Studies [click the Reference Books link for a list of encyclopedias and other reference works (print and online).

Use identified keyword(s) to find articles in these databases:

• JSTOR

• America: History and Life

• Historical Abstracts

• Project MUSE

• International Index to Black Periodicals

• Race Relations Abstracts

• Women's Studies International

Newspaper articles can provide context as well as current information about your topic. Use the Libraries' Newpapers and News Sources Research Guide to find appropriate new sources for your topic.

• Country Studies : Africa [Library of Congress]

• Africa & Middle Eastern Reading Room [Library of Congress]

• Africa South of the Sahara [Karen Fung, Stanford University Libraries]

• United Nations

• Foreign Government Information [Penn State University Libraries' Research Guide] provides strategies for researching information about foreign countries.

• African Government Websites

Citation and Writing Guides [Penn State Libraries' Research Guide] provides links to online citation guides as well as citation management tools that will help you correctly format your bibliographic references.

Instructor: Ahmed Banya

Librarian: Sylvia Nyana