Wheaton College Norton, Massachusetts
Wheaton  library

English 101 - Writing About Multicultural Lives

Start in ELIZA, our online catalogue.

  • When searching a specific ethnic group, use the term in SUBJECT. (Chinese Americans, Italian Americans, African Americans, Irish Americans, etc.)
  • Use KEYWORDS to combine ideas, and focus your search. Use AND, OR, NOT to combine terms.
  • Truncate words to include various endings. (Immigra* will search immigrants, immigration, etc.)
  • Pay attention to dates of publication. Descriptions of ethnic groups from the sixties might no longer apply!
  • Use SUBJECT HEADINGS as links to other items in the Library on your topic.

Use reference books.

Harvard Encyclopedia of American Ethnic Groups.
Excellent entries include history of immigration and assimilation, geographic areas, etc. Note, however, that the publication date is 1980!
Ref. E184 .A1 H35

Multiculturalism in the United States: A Comparative Guide to Acculturation and Ethnicity.
Organized by ethnic/ national groups.
Ref. E184 .A1 M85 1992

Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural America.
Wonderful, 3-volume set ; dictionary-style organization.
Ref. E184 .A1 G14 2000

Handbook of Family Diversity
Includes diversity in family structure, race and culture, class, etc. Wonderful bibliographies for further reading.
Ref. HQ518 .H1538 2000

Use Databases (online indexes to articles in journals, newspapers and magazines).

The following suggestions should be useful to most of you. However, as we discuss your individual topics, I might recommend other databases that will be even better for your specific topic.

Expanded Academic ASAP


Expanded Academic ASAP is a multi-disciplinary index to articles from more than 500 scholarly and general-interest publications. Coverage varies by title; most reaches back to 1980. EA is updated daily.

In Keyword Search

  • Enter search terms in box, using Boolean AND, OR, NOT.
  • Use truncation (asterisk *) to include all endings.
  • Limit options to articles with text, in refereed publications (scholarly journals), by year, or journal title.
  • Scan results; MARK (click in box to left of citation) those you wish to see, to print, or to e-mail.
  • View MARK LIST (select from left margin).
  • Select BROWSER PRINT or "E-Mail Delivery." Select "Full Article" if available.
Ethnic NewsWatch
  • Select "ADVANCED SEARCH."
  • Analyze your topic. Combine keywords using AND, OR, AND NOT.
  • Use quotation marks to search for exact phrases.
  • Use truncation (asterisk *) to include all endings.
    • "Malcolm X" and "civil rights"
    "chinese americans" and (discriminat* or prejudic*)

N.B.

Note the drop menus to the right of the text boxes. If you leave them at CITATION AND TEXT, your results will be less focused than if you select CITATION AND ABSTRACT. For example, if you enter "biracial families" in keywords, and direct ENW to search in CITATION AND ABSTRACT, you have a good chance of finding articles in which biracial families are the main topic.
If you leave the menu at CITATION AND TEXT, you will find articles in which biracial families are mentioned, but not necessarily the main subject thereof.