Home - EDU 420 - Advanced Topics in Education

Explore your topic

Tips for persistence in searching

The key to successful research at an advanced level is persistence. Some tips to employ persistence in your research include:

Search using multiple keywords
Allow your keywords to evolve as your knowledge of your topic expands
Search in multiple databases
Don't just search for articles that support your argument. Search for articles that expand your argument and search for opposing viewpoints.
When you find a good article, pay attention to the works it cites. They may also be useful.
When you find a good article, use a tool like Web of Science or Google Scholar to find articles that have cited it. They will help you see how the scholarly conversation has evolved.

Find Books

To find books in the library catalog related to your research topics, use Library of Congress Subject terms such as:

Find Peer-reviewed articles

ERIC (EBSCO) This link opens in a new window
Provides access to information from journals included in the Current Index of Journals in Education and Resources in Education index. Includes the 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.
APA PsycInfo This link opens in a new window
The most comprehensive international database of psychology. APA PsycInfo includes relevant materials from related disciplines such as medicine, psychiatry, education, social work, law, criminology, social science, and organizational behavior. It provides indexes to journals, dissertations, book chapters, books, technical reports, and other documents from 1887 to the present. Many journals are available in full-text.
Search tips
PubMed This link opens in a new window
An online database of citations to biomedical and other life science literature, created by the US National Library of Medicine. Its largest component is the MEDLINE bibliographical database. PubMed Central is a digital archive of literature drawn from biomedical and life science journals and linked to the PubMed database.
Web of Science This link opens in a new window
Web of Science provides access to the world's leading citation databases in the Sciences, Social Sciences and Arts and Humanities, covering approximately 12,000 of the highest impact journals, as well as 160,000 conference proceedings. Centre has access to coverage from 1999 to present.
Video tutorials