RED 4552
Library Research in Reading Diagnosis & Remediation
Ken Frankel

I. Locating books in the Library:

1. WebLUIS (the Library's catalog): click on "Catalog" or "Books." The following types of basic searches are available:

A. Keywords: This search looks for a word anywhere in the record. Keywords can be truncated with a ? E.G. read? will search for read, readers, reading, etc.
B. Author's Name: last name first, you don't need to capitalize
C. Title: if a title starts with The, A, or An, omit that and skip to the next word.
D. Subject: This search looks for items classified by a subject heading and organizes the results into sub-topics. Subjects must be entered in a specific manner. If you're not finding anything with a subject search, try a keyword search instead
E. Journal/Magazine Title: be sure to check the "Library Has" link to see which dates the Library owns. (Note: not all electronic journals we have are cataloged in WebLUIS. There is also a link to a list of all electronic journals available at FAU.)

Note the location box, which can be used to limit your search to the Children's Literature or Curriculum Collections. These collections are located on the 3rd floor, west side of the Library, between the call numbers starting with L and M. Many of the  records for books in the Children's Literature Collection have one sentence summaries which may be searched by keyword.

II. FAU Libraries Children's Literature Research Guide:
This website lists print and electronic resources useful for researching children's literature.

III. Literature for Children:
This database contains the full text of historical children's books, predominantly from the United States and Great Britain, from the 17th through the 20th centuries.

IV. Searching for articles in databases:
To search for articles click on "Indexes/Databases" or "Articles." There are both alphabetical and subject listings of databases. The Library provides access to the two major education databases: ERIC and Education Full Text. It's estimated that there is about a 60% overlap between the two, so to be thorough, try using them both. In addition, the Kraus Curriculum Development Library (KDCL) database may be accesses through the Library's homepage.

Note: when using these databases from off-campus you must log in through the EZ-Proxy link. You will need to enter the number from your Owl Card in order to do this.

1. ERIC (Education Resources Information Center):

ERIC is a combination of two databases: Cumulative Index to Journals in Education (CIJE) and Resources in Education (RIE). RIE covers non-journal education documents, such as reports, conference papers, curriculum guides, etc. Several versions of ERIC are listed on the database list. The FirstSearch version is easiest to use. By using the Advanced Search screen, you can limit your search by document type (e.g. guides-teaching), source, format, or date. Many of the more recent ERIC documents and articles can be accessed online by clicking on the "Full Text"  link. Older ERIC documents are available on microfiche in the Library, and are arranged by the six digit ED number. To check for availability of journal articles, click on the "See more details for locating this item" link and then on SFX.

2. Education Full Text:

Education Full Text is the online version of the paper Education Index. This database covers periodical (magazine and journal) articles only.

3. Kraus Curriculum Development Library (KCDL Online):

This searchable database of curricula, frameworks, and standards brings together educational objectives, content, instructional strategies, and evaluative techniques for all subjects covered in PreK-12 and Adult Basic Education. Searches may be limited by subject, grade level, educational content, etc. Documents with a "page" icon are available online. The other documents are available on microfiche in the Library (LB 1570 K72). The Library has the microfiche for 1983-1994 and 1997-2000.

4. InfoTrac OneFile:

A very large interdisciplinary database that allows searches to be limited to refereed journals and/or full text.

V.  Citing your References:

MLA  style is the way to format research papers based on the MLA handbook for writers of research papers (New York: Modern Language Association of America, 1999) The Library has this book available in the Reference area and on 3 hour reserve (call number: LB 2369 G53 1999). Many quick reference guides to MLA style are available on the Internet. An example from the University of Mississippi Library is:

        http://www.lib.usm.edu/~instruct/guides/mla.html

VI.  Plagiarism:

Plagiarism: What it is and How to Recognize and Avoid It: a web site from Indiana University Writing Tutorial Center:

        http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/pamphlets/plagiarism.shtml

For further assistance contact:  Ken Frankel, FAU Library (297-0079) or frankel@fau.edu