Reference or Tertiary Sources are a great place to start your research, but it's important to know what kind of information a reference source offers. Print or online encyclopedias may give you a broad overview of your topic and will help you identify search terms. For this assignment, gather background information so you are able to put the Vietnam War into context.

Often referred to as scholarly sources, these books and articles are written by scholars for scholars and in the case of books, for a wider, often academic, audience. They are generally journal articles that are more complex and require closer reading than an encyclopedia or other reference source. You will want to incorporate the views of these experts in your written work to support your claims. Journals may be published online only or they may be available in print and online. Here at Kent, you will find our scholarly journals online.