This guide is intended to assist students performing research in Education. It suggests both print and Internet resources available, but it is by no means a comprehensive list of all materials available either in the Library or on the Web -- it is only a representative sample. You may also wish to consult the guide for Children's Literature.
The Online Catalog is an excellent place to start your research. It will allow you to identify books and other materials in Davis Memorial Library about your topic and is available from any Internet accessible computer. Use the Boolean Keyword search to locate materials. Type in the concepts you are looking for, using "and" to combine terms (e.g. charter and schools).
If you're not sure what topic to research, try the following:
Databases are online indexes to periodicals (i.e. journals, magazines, and newspapers) and they are your best way to locate journal articles on your topic. These indexes allow you to find recent information on a topic or resources on a current issue. When using an index, or any other tool in the Library, always write down the full citation to an article (author, article title, journal title, volume, issue, date, and pages). Electronic Resources are accessible both on and off campus (directions for off-campus use).
Consult the Journal Holdings List to identify which periodicals are owned by the library (meaning that print versions are available). For a list of titles owned by the library in the area of Education, go to the Journal Holdings List By Subject and choose a topic such as:
Use Journal Finder to identify if the journal title you are looking for is available in one of the Library's databases or in print in the Library. Help using journal finder is available at the Reference Desk.
Academic Search
Premier
This database allows
users to access a variety of topics including education. This database provides
full-text articles for almost 4,500 journal titles--3,600 of those are scholarly journals. Over 100 journals have PDF full-text available dating back to 1975. Cited references are available for more than 1,000 journal titles.
ERIC (Educational
Resources Information Center)
"ERIC, the Educational Resource Information Center, provides access to education literature and resources. The database provides access to information from journals included in the Current Index of Journals in Education and Resources in Education Index. ERIC provides full text of more than 2,200 digests along with references for additional information and citations and abstracts from over 1,000 educational and education-related journals." The advantage of ERIC is that many years can be searched at
once, and you can combine terms or use words that might be in the title or
abstract. Also, you can use the "Journal or Document" box to limit to journal articles only.
JSTOR
JSTOR is a full-text journal source that concentrates on providing back issues of journals, all in PDF format. There are more than fifty education journals covered here. Most journals date from their first issue (some as early as 1893) up to a moving wall which is usually 3 to 5 years back.
Project MUSE
"Project MUSE covers the fields of literature
and criticism, history, the visual and performing arts, cultural studies,
education, political science, gender studies, and many others." All articles in Project MUSE are in full-text. The database currently provides sixteen university press journals focusing on education. Dates of coverage: 1993 to present.
This collection is located in Room #123 of the North Wing of the library. It contains materials for education majors such as a children's books, professional activity books, kits, games, realia, and Cumberland County and Fort Bragg school system textbooks. These materials (designed for use with grades K-12) will allow the education student to develop lesson plans and provide other resources for the education methods student. North Carolina curriculum guides are available through links in the online catalog, and activity boxes are available on the Reserve shelves for use in the library. Ask for these materials at the Circulation Desk. A collection of standardized tests is available for closed use by students enrolled in testing courses.
The Reference section of the library is a good place to develop possible topics, begin your research, and find critical pieces of information to finish your project. Just remember that most reference books cover broad subject areas. Try some of the following titles for information. The Reference section is located on the right in the South Wing of the library. Reference books must be used in the Library. A photocopier is available near the library entrance.
| Title | Location |
| Dictionary of Multicultural Education | R 370.117 D554 1997 |
| Education and Sociology: An Encyclopedia | R 306.43 E24 2002 |
| Encyclopedia of American Education | R 370.97303 U57e 2001 v. 1-3 |
| Encyclopedia of Education | R 370.3 E56 2003 v. 1-8 |
| Encyclopedia of Educational Research | R 370.78 E56/5 1982 v. 1-4 |
| Encyclopedia of Special Education | R 371.9 E56 2000 v. 1-3 |
| Greenwood Dictionary of Education | R 370.3 G816 2003 |
| Handbook of Research on Teacher Education | R 370.71 H236 1996 |
| Philosophy of Education: An Encyclopedia | R 370.1 P568 1996 |
| Requirements for Certification | R 371.13 W842r |
| Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing | R 371.26097 A512 1999 |
| World Education Encyclopedia | R 370.321 W927 2001 v. 1-3 |
The Internet resources listed below represent but a small portion of what is available on the Net for teachers. Education majors are encouraged to surf these sites and bookmark the ones that they find most useful.
Education World - This search engine (emphasizing K-12 resources) indexes over 115,000 websites featuring curriculum, lesson planning, educational topics and research on resources by discipline.
Yahoo! Education: Index- Yahoo lists categories by level (early childhood, K-12, etc) and by subject. The K-12 list has over "33,000 links with a menu of items by subject and a regional directory of resources".
Ask ERIC- This site is maintained by Syracuse University for the ERIC database. Users can submit questions on education topics. The ERIC database will be searched and they will receive a personal email response containing database citations from ERIC.
AskERIC Lesson Plans- "This collection contains more than 2000 unique lesson plans which have been written and submitted to AskERIC by teachers from all over the United States and the world."
CEC Lesson Plans- This site sponsored by the Columbia Education Center (Oregon) contains over "600 teacher-created lesson plans. They are organized by subject area and then by grade levels."
Kathy Schrock's Guide for Educators - Kathy Schrock's Guide for Educators is a categorized list of sites useful for enhancing curriculum and professional growth. Some of its sites include a clip art gallery, puzzle maker, school slide shows, bulletin boards, and links to other search engines besides Yahoo.
The Lesson Plans Page - "The Lesson Plans Page is a collection of over 1,000 lesson plans, primarily at the elementary level, that were developed by Kyle Yamnitz, students, and faculty at The University of Missouri. More recent lesson plans were submitted by the users of this website." These are organized by subject and are generally focused on the elementary grades.
North Carolina Department of Public Instruction - This is the main site for public instruction in North Carolina. Here you will find teacher resources, curriculum guides, teacher statistics, programs, employment information, and other useful information. The site below can be reached through the DPI page, but also have its own Internet address:
NC Wise Owl- This site stands for "North Carolina Online Windows for Learning. Teachers and students can access online research resources for K-12 students. Most of this site is password free, but there are some parts of the site that must be accessed from a public school.
Skewl Sites- This site "created by teachers for teachers, attempts to identify the best educational K-12 Web sites". It includes lesson plans, game activities, web-based projects, technology, and school web pages with outstanding student projects featured online.
Teachers Helping Teachers - This is non-profit website offers "teaching tips to inexperienced teachers, new ideas in teaching methodologies, and a forum to share expertise and ideas with colleagues around the world."
Teachnet.com - This site includes "lesson plans, curriculum-related links" and a teacher discussion list for grades Pre-K-12 . Users can sign-up to receive a mailing list of ideas and a weekly newsletter.
Yahooligans - This Yahoo-like site "contains age- and content-appropriate materials on all subjects" for teachers to use to supplement their lesson plans. Other features include an almanac, a teacher/parent guide, and the opportunity to add a Website.
Listed below are websites for major K-12 publishers. Their sites are promoting their learning materials, but they can be an excellent source for lesson plans and other teaching ideas.
Glencoe Secondary Education - Contains online resources for grades 6-12
Holt, Rinehart & Winston - Includes Teaching resources site
Houghton Mifflin Education Place
Macmillan/McGraw-Hill School Division - Includes Teacher Island
McDougal Littell - Foreign Languages
Scott Foresman/Silver Burdett/ Ginn