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TSL500 Research Guide: Library Databases pt.2

Your guide to conducting secondary research in TESOL & finding appropriate professional & scholarly resources!

Working with Results in EBSCO Databases: 2 Videos

Image of EBSCO databases

Once you've watched these 2 videos, go back to the top 3 education databases & try yourself. Any questions? Just ask a librarian.

Effective Searching: Step-by-Step

2 Guides on Using our Databases:

2 Videos on How to Search Using Keywords:

Scholarly vs. Trade vs. Popular Articles: A Review

What's the difference between articles from scholarly, trade, & popular journals? Not sure? Find out below:

Scholarly articles = in-depth research articles, which are published in scholarly, peer-reviewed journals 

Example: TESOL Quarterly

What's Peer Review? (3-min. Video)

Trade articles = articles in trade journals, which provide best practices, trends, and tips in the field, as well as current stats and facts

Example: ESL Magazine

Popular articles = articles in popular magazines meant for a general audience

What if...?

Here is what an effective search strategy for researching a topic looks like:

  • Your search brings back relevant results
  • You've focused on the type of articles you need
  • Your relevant results number around 30-100
    • Too many = your topic may be too broad OR your search terms need to be changed
    • Too few = not much may have been published on your topic OR your search terms need to be changed

For more information, be sure to view our Step-by-Step Guides on this page.

Look for a link that reads " HTML Full Text," "PDF Full Text," "Full Text in ERIC," "Find It via Full Text Finder," or any other reference to Full Text. The first 3 options are guaranteed full text, and the fourth option will also most of the time get you to full text--it tries to find full text outside of the database you are in.
If you can't find full text using the links for "HTML Full Text," "PDF Full Text," "Full Text via OhioLINK EJC," or "Find It via Full Fext Finder," you may be able to request a copy via Interlibrary Loan
You'll need to use your last name & the last 7 digits of your ODU ID number. Read more about off-campus access & troubleshooting tips.