Databases are a great starting point to find out how much research already exists on your topic. Databases provide access to scholarly articles, research reports, magazines, newspapers, and more. Below are some "best bets" for education research. You can also explore all of our databases through Databases A-Z on the library website. Use the search tips on the next page of this guide to get the most out of library databases.
ERIC
1. ERIC (Education Resources Information Center)
ERIC is a database of education research and information, sponsored by the Institute of Education Sciences within the U.S. Department of Education. Although it's a freely available, public resource, many of the articles found within do not have full-text provided. Instead, ERIC often links to the article's page on the publisher's website. The link below connects these resources to full-text resources available from HPU Libraries.
The video below is an excellent introduction to ERIC, produced by ERIC. You can find more tutorial videos on the ERIC Multimedia webpage.
- ERIC This link opens in a new window
The premier database for education research, ERIC provides access to over 1 million journal articles, curriculum guides, dissertations, reports and other resources.
ERIC Thesaurus
Another useful feature is the ERIC Thesaurus, which is a standardized collection of terms used to categorize all the sources within the database. This can be extremely helpful in developing search terms and finding exactly what you need. The video below explains more about what the thesaurus is, how it works, and how to use it in your searches.
ProQuest Education
2. Education Database on ProQuest
This is your best bet for full-text articles from education titles, including “1,000 full-text journals and 18,000 dissertations, supporting research on the theory and practice of education. Covers primary, secondary, higher education…also special education, home schooling, adult education, and hundreds of related topics.” –ProQuest.
Related Databases
Related databases:
- Child Development & Adolescent Studies This link opens in a new window
Current and historical research related to growth and development of children through the age of 21.
- Google Scholar (HPU-specific link) This link opens in a new window
Use this link to connect Google Scholar with HPU's collection of full-text journals. You will be asked for your HPU username and password if off-campus.
- PsycALL Search via EBSCO This link opens in a new windowPsycALLis a collection of materials containing PsycArticles, PsycTESTS, PsycINFO.
- JSTOR This link opens in a new window
This database provides access to historical coverage of scholarly journals in a wide range of disciplines. Coverage goes back to the first issue (some as far back as the 1800s), but does not include the most recent issues (usually last 3-5 years).
- Scopus This link opens in a new windowA citation search tool that indexes over 75 million articles and records. Each citation contains a detailed abstract and links to its references, along with links to resources cited by. Scopus provides links to full-text articles HPU Libraries already subscribes to, as well as links to publisher pages.
- Sociology Database in ProQuest via NC LIVE This link opens in a new windowCovers the international literature of sociology and social work, including relevant titles from related fields such as social policy, social care, social services, social anthropology, gender studies, gerontology, social psychology and population studies. It includes hundreds of full-text scholarly journals, as well as dissertations and other sources.
Checking for Full-Text
Have you found an article on the web that you can't access? Does one of the references in an article you're reading look interesting?
Watch the video below to see how to 1.) check if HPU Libraries has full-text access to the article and, if we don't, 2.) request a copy to be emailed to you for free.
Journal Finder
Search Journal Finder to locate journals by journal title.
Core Scholarly Journals
Trade & News Publications