Analyze your research needs. Get an idea of what types of research you will use. Is this a timely issue that is changing daily? If that is the case, consult current newspapers and periodicals for source material. Are you writing about a piece of literature and need to cite what scholars have said about it? For that type of subject, look for scholarly articles and texts. Are there Internet sites that discuss your topic? Find online resources that add credibility to your paper.
Gather research sources. Start at your school's library. Search the books that are available. It is usually best to use the most recent texts available. If you discover the title of a book that would be helpful but that is not available at your library, try to get it through interlibrary loan. Journals and other periodicals are sometimes available in hard copy and sometimes can be viewed online. Check with the librarian to see how to access them.
Ask your librarian or your professor about databases. Many school libraries subscribe to information databases, such as GALILEO and JSTOR, that are accessible to the students using a password. Your teacher or the librarian will be able to give you that information. If you want to search for academic-level articles outside of the library's systems, try using Google Scholar. This search engine has abstracts of scholarly articles available, but it is harder to find full-text articles.
Assess your research sources. You want to choose sources that have credibility. When using online sources, avoid sites such as Wikipedia, blogs, or any website that is trying to sell anything. Sites ending in "edu" or "gov" are credible sites. For text and journal sources, choose works written by people who are considered experts in the field. Look at their credentials and see if they have professional degrees or have obtained expertise in the subject. Check to see if the book came from a major publisher.