LibGuides: First Year Students' Guide to UW Libraries: Education

Tips for Keyword Searches

What is a keyword?

A keyword is an informative word used to describe the content of a document.
For example, keywords are words/phrases you can put into a search bar that will pull up books, articles, and other library resources with content relevant to the entered word/phrase.

Below you will find some tips related to keywords and searching Education topics!

When searching within Education databases, it is important to consider the age of the population you are researching. It can often be difficult to search by age level, as authors might use a variety of terms.

For example, one article might be specific to a certain grade level, while another article might focus on elementary school students in general. This can make generating search terms difficult, but many Education databases, such as ERIC, allow you to refine your search by age level, which can help you overcome this barrier.

Databases

The three main databases (ERIC, Education Source, and PSYCInfo) that are the best resources for finding scholarly articles related to Education are listed below. You can find a list of all subject databases here: All Education databases

ERIC [Educational Resources Information Center] (Ebscohost) This link opens in a new window
ERIC (Education Resources Information Center) is an authoritative database of indexed and full-text education literature and resources. ERIC contains more than 1.6 million records and links to hundreds of thousands of full-text documents. It includes records for a variety of source types, including journal articles, books, conference papers, curriculum guides, policy papers and more. In addition, it provides an education-specific thesaurus that includes controlled vocabulary to help users find what they need.
Education Source This link opens in a new window
Database that indexes education literature back to 1929, with full text back to 1996. Adds unique content to merger of Wilson Education Full Text & Retrospective and EBSCO Education Research Complete. On the EBSCOhost platform.
PsycINFO (APA) This link opens in a new window
Major psychology indexing database that covers journals, books, and dissertations back to the 1800s. On the ProQuest platform.

Classroom Resources Databases

There are several databases that can help you find resources for use within the classroom, such as books, curriculum materials, and more. Here is a list of all databases related to classroom materials.

NoveList Plus This link opens in a new window
Fiction advisory database that recommends books to read based on previous reading. On the EBSCOhost platform.
Explora Educator's Edition This link opens in a new window
Research portal designed for educators. On the EBSCOhost platform.
Explora Primary Schools This link opens in a new window
Research portal designed for primary schools, grades K-5. On the EBSCOhost platform.
Britannica School Edition This link opens in a new window
Full-text reference database that provides encyclopedia articles at elementary school, middle school and high school levels. Also includes learning materials and teachers' resources. On the Britannica platform.