Carmichael Library
How Do I...
Class Handouts ~ EDF 500 Monday Evenings
The library research component of EDF 500 teaches the skills necessary to locate and access appropriate professional literature, including primary research articles, secondary research articles and ERIC Documents.
Students enrolled in EDF 500 are expected to successfully complete a Literature Review paper and to locate relevant journal articles for the paper. The following list of research sources, particularly ERIC and other Library Databases in education, will assist you in your research.
Contact Mrs. Kathy Lowe
Reference and Instruction
Librarian 665-6109
lowek@montevallo,.edu for additional assistance
Library Component for Course Requirements
ERIC Ebscohost
ERIC (Institute of Education Sciences)
Education Databases
Discussion of Resources
Primary Research
Secondary Research
ERIC Documents
ERIC Thesaurus
Education journals in the Library
Primary Research
These are articles in which
the authors present a new set of findings from
original research after conducting an
experiment, survey, or a case study . These articles usually contain the
following parts:
Methods: This section describes the techniques used to execute the research, including the collection of data, and the statistical procedures used. This is usually full of technical jargon, so it can be difficult for non-specialists to read.
A detailed explanation of the method is necessary for two reasons:
(1) other researchers may wish to repeat the experiments to test the findings
(2) the validity of the results depends in part on the techniques and types of analyses used
Results: This section is typically a very technical presentation of the outcome of the research. The results are usually described with the aid of tables, statistical tests where appropriate, and figures and diagrams if necessary.
Discussion: This is where the authors interpret their results in light of previous work in the area. Here the authors must convince the reader of the validity and importance of their findings. Sometimes, ideas for future or follow-up research are included.
References cited: The authors must list all the articles they cited within their own article as the last section of the paper. This is an excellent way to find citations to other related articles.
How do I locate primary research in Eric?
Refine your search to ERIC Publication Type: Research / Technical
Reports- Research / Technical to locate primary research.
| Reports - Research | Original research, technical research, reports, studies, empirical results, experimental statistical studies, surveys, case studies, theory testing, systematic scientific investigations, seeking facts and/or generalizable principles. Emphasis on materials utilizing a formal research design, but may include informal reports and verbal presentations of such efforts. Includes proposals for needed research. |
Secondary Research
Secondary literature
presents an overview of a topic by summarizing
the research and data from many different
sources. It is not original research, but an
excellent source of background information.
How do I locate
secondary research in ERIC?
Refine your search to ERIC Publication Type
: Report - Evaluative
In ERIC you can limit your results to Report
- Evaluative
| Reports - Evaluative | Studies evaluating research, alternative courses of action, or the merits of a particular process or program. Studies of feasibility of a given course of action. Evaluations of programs. Studies oriented toward decision-making and concerned with judgments rather than generalizations |
ERIC Documents
Always a Document
Never a journal article
ERIC Documents always have an ED number
Example: ED 466 788
Refine your search in ERIC (Ebscohost) to
Documents
ERIC Thesaurus
The Thesaurus Authority File is an extensive
alphabetical list of terms encompassing a wide
range of topical subjects. Subject headings
which describe the major focus of a document are
preceded by an asterisk (*) in the ERIC record.
The Thesaurus is arranged in a hierarchy that
permits searching various levels of detail from
the most general level to more narrow levels to
find the most precise concept. Thesaurus entries
include 'Use', 'Broader Terms', 'Narrower
Terms', and 'Related Terms'
Education journals in the Library
The Library subscribes to
professional journals in the field of Education.
Search the Find Books
Catalog to locate specific formats
and locations of particular issues you need.
A complete list of journals ordered by the
Curriculum and Instruction Department and the
Counseling, Leadership and Foundations
Department is located in a binder on the Main
Floor in the Unbound Periodicals area. For
assistance ask a Reference Librarian at the ASK
HERE desk.
- FOR EXAMPLE
Microfiche
Microfilm
Bound
Unbound and the various years and volumes the Library holds.
Characteristics of Research Journals
(what to look for to be sure you have a
professional journal article)
- Scholarly journals generally have a sober, serious look. They often contain many graphs and charts but few glossy pages or exciting pictures.
- Scholarly journals always cite their sources in the form of footnotes or bibliographies.
- Are written by and for faculty, researchers or scholars
- Uses scholarly or technical language
- Tend to be longer articles about research
- The main purpose of a scholarly journal is to report on original research or experimentation in order to make such information available to the rest of the scholarly world
- Are often refereed or peer reviewed (articles are reviewed by an editor and other specialists before being accepted for publication)
- Book reviews and editorials are not considered scholarly articles, even when found in scholarly journals
- Many scholarly journals, though by no means all, are published by a specific professional organization.
APA resources
3 Print copies of the Publication Manual
of the American Psychological Association
are available in the Library on the Main
Floor.
Ref. BF 76.7 .P83 2001
See page 257 number 43 for an example of how to cite and ERIC
Document
Carmichael Library Research Guide
for
APA citation style
Time Management. Locating the minimum amount of sources required for your Literature Review may involve asking another library for material. Often it takes weeks to receive the sources you request. Please work with Mrs. Lowe or Mrs. Patsy Sears early on in your research to assure that material you request from another library arrives in a timely manner
