This Basic ERIC tutorial covers:
Running time: about 5 minutes
Begin on the library's home page. Choose the "Find Articles and Journals" link.
You could pick ERIC from alphabetical list of databases, in the "E" list. But let's look at the databases by subject. Scroll down the menu, and choose "Education."
This "Databases by Subject" page lists library databases and other online resources for the field of Education. ERIC is first on the list, because it's the most comprehensive education research database.
Here's the main search page for ERIC. Survival Tip! ERIC requires the use of Boolean operators (AND, OR, NOT) in your search. No idea what that means? Consider the OLLIE tutorial: Advanced Online Searching
Short Version:
So if your topic is: "ways to teach math to esl students" you might try this
search:
mathematics and teaching and esl
I'll type it into the search box.
We found 134 total results. Tabs sort the total results by type of material. For articles from peer-reviewed (or scholarly) journals, we have only two results! Clicking the number from that tab displays them.
The "peer-reviewed journals" tab is now highlighted. These two articles might be great, but what if you need more than two? Take a look at the "Descriptors" ERIC uses....Here are several different terms related to the topic of ESL, such as "Limited English Speaking," "English (Second Language)," and "Bilingual Education."
I'll change my search to use one of these terms, second language. In the search box at the bottom of the page, I'll replace the term ESL with the term second language, and re-run the search.
Much better this time! For peer-reviewed journals, we got 39. You can find out more about any article by clicking on the title.
At the top of the page is the full citation for the article. Below the "Descriptors," the "Abstract" is a brief summary of the article, to help you decide if you really want it. I'll use the "Return to Results" page to go back to my list.
So, if you've found an article you want, how do you get a copy of it? Use the "Search for Full Text" button, which is found next to each result on your list. We'll try this example result, "Maths in the Grammar Classroom," from ELT Journal.
Search for Full Text opens a new window. It first looks for copies of this article available online.
Good news! This article is available online. I can click GO or the database name to go to it. (Note: The message states, "Full text available via Oxford University Press Journals." If you use a screen reader and read only the links, the first link on the page will be a database name, in this case, Oxford University Press Journals.)
The article will open in a new window. Here it is, but I don't see the whole article yet.... Sometimes, you may need to click one more time to display the full text. Always watch for a "PDF" or "HTML" full text link. Both are available for this example.
I chose the PDF link. A PDF file is like a photocopy of the original printed page. It can be viewed, saved, or printed. Let's head back to ERIC...
Let's try this article, "Making Connections through Math-Related Book Pairs" from the journal Teaching Children Mathematics.
Here's the Search for Full Text window. Bad news! This article is not available online. (The message states, "Our quick search did not find the full txt online, but...") The next option is to check the Library Catalog, to see if we have any other copies of this journal. Note: If you use a screen reader and read only the links, the first link will say "Pfau Library Catalog (check all our print resources in one search)."
The library catalog search opens in a separate window. Good! The library does have at least some copies of this journal. The journal title appears as a link on the list of results. We'll click the title for more information.
The article I wanted was from 2006 (vol. 13, n. 4). The "Holdings" information says the library has 2006, volume 13, issues 1 through 7 in the Current Periodicals section, on the 3rd Floor. Not sure how to get there? Just click the location link for a map. The map page lets me know the current periodicals are behind the elevators on the old side of the building, and they are shelved in alphabetical order by title. Let's close these windows and head back to ERIC.
Now let's a try a "Search for Full Text" for this article, "The Influence of Second Language Teaching on Undergraduate Mathematics Performance," from the Mathematics Education Research Journal.
Search for Full Text says it is not available online...And the catalog search tells us it is not available in paper. (Message near the top of the screen says "No matches found, nearby ISBN/ISSN are:") In that case, I could order a copy through Interlibrary Loan. The Search for Full Text page offers this as the third choice on the list. (The link begins, "If we don't have it....")
Log-in to the "ILLiad" Interlibrary Loan system to fill out a request for your article. Interlibrary Loan is usually free, but allow at least 1 week for delivery!
There's much more to ERIC! We recommend the ERIC tutorial, Part 2.
You've reached the end of this tutorial lesson.