Background Information

The first step in preparing for any type of speech is gaining a good understanding of your topic. Here are some research tools to start with. These are also great for helping you choose a topic.

Books

Search the Library Catalog to find broad coverage of your topic. Use this guide to help you get started with the Library Catalog.

Here are some books series that are particularly good for learning about your topic.

Understand Both Sides

No matter which side of an issue you plan to argue, you'll have to understand both sides in order to best present a side. These tools are great for easily finding both sides of an issue.

Books

The library has several series of books that look at both sides of issues. Here are a few.

Public Opinion

Here are a few sites where you can find results of polls on all sort of topics. Use the search feature to look for polling on your topic.

Examples

Look for articles from newspapers and magazines to find examples of the points you are making.

Scientific Research

Use the categories of databases on the Research Tools page to find databases that cover your subject. Or try Academic Search Complete. Be sure to limit to scholarly (peer-reviewed) articles.

Use this guide to help you get started with Academic Search Complete.