BOth ERIC and Academic Search Elite are searchable by keyword, like Google. However, they operate differently from Google, and the information found in them is more specialized. Because of this, it's a good idea to plan your search ahead of time. This plan will help you to identify keywords or specialized terms, keeps your searching focused, and helps you to assess the usefulness of the articles that you find. It will also give you the flexibility to change your search if the results aren't what you expected.

For example, if your thesis statement is: "Living in residence has a postive effect on student grades", you would break it down into the main concepts or keywords:

• residence
• effect
• student
• grades

You should also think of alternate terms/keywords. For example: "residence" could also be referred to as dorms or dormitories or student housing. "Success" or "marks" might be another way to describe grades. American articles tend describe "college" while Canadian or British ones will refer to "university".

There could be other variables that will influence your search. For example:

• Do you need current or older information?
• Do you want studies from the U.S. and Canada only?
• Are you interested in first year students or more senior years?
• Does the age or gender of the students make a difference?

Key Resources
How to Search ERIC
How to Search Academic Search Elite
Guide to Finding Journal Articles at the University of Manitoba Libraries
Chat with a Librarian