The primary starting point for our  session is the Lehigh  Library produced  web guide - Infodome. This guide pulls together many of the most pertinent Library resources, both electronic and print. It also has links to websites selected for their research value. It is a good starting point when you are not sure which resources are most appropriate for your general topic.
 

Our review of resources for the Sociology of  Education will begin with the Infodome - Sociology Page. The materials we will review here include:

• Using ASA (the library online catalog) to locate journals and other materials
• CQ Researcher - a database which provides background information and analysis on topics of current interest
• Academic Index - a good general purpose database to scholarly journals with some full-text articles.
• ERIC - the Educational literature database
• Sociological Abstracts - the major database indexing  journals in Sociology
• ChildTrends Databank - a source which reports on national trends involving children and youth.
• Annual Review of Sociology - provides a review of the major research
• Using Infodome to locate web resources

Lexis-Nexis Incorporated provides the following guidance for searching:

 LexisNexis™ Academic allows you to enter search statements that can take advantage of a powerful search and retrieval engine.

• W/S - This finds documents in which specified words or phrases appear within the same sentence
• W/P - This finds documents in which specified words or phrases appear within the same paragraph
• W/N - This finds words or phrases in the same document in any order; the maximum word count between the two words/phrases is specified by N, which can be any number up to 255.
• PRE/N - This finds both words or phrases in the same document. The first word/phrase must be in front of the second word/phrase. The maximum word count between the two words/phrases is specified by N, which can be any number up to 255.
• NOT W/S - Both words or phrases may appear in the same document. However, they cannot be in the same sentence.
• NOT W/P - Both words or phrases may appear in the same document. However, they cannot be in the same paragraph.
• NOT W/N - The first word or phrase is required to appear in the document and the second word or phrase may also be there. However, if the second word/phrase is there, it cannot be within N words of the first word/phrase. N represents any number up to 255.
• AND NOT - This is used to exclude words or phrases from the answer set: Example: IRA AND NOT Irish. Use this connector as only the last one in a search. It has a negative impact on everything that follows it, and consequently, changes the impact of other connectors.
• ATLEASTn - Use this command to determine the minimum number of times a search term should appear in a document. This will help you find more in-depth articles on a topic. The n represents a number between 1 and 255. Example:Example: ATLEAST5 (budget) and ATLEAST5 (defense). ATLEAST5 (budget). You can use more than one ATLEAST command in a search.

• It automatically searches the plural form of most regular nouns.
• Wildcard symbol- Use the ! to replace an unlimited number of letters following a word root .
• Use the * to replace a letter or letters in a word. You can use more than one * in a word, and you can use it anywhere in a word except for the first letter.

Resources for locating Statistical information can be found in the Infodome - Statistical Resources Guide.

Jean Johnson, Lehigh's Education Librarian, has created a helpful guide for the Education: Resource Methods class. Refer to this guide for additional sources specifically focused on  Educational Research.

Both Roseann Bowerman and Jean Johnson are available to assist you with your research on the Sociology of Education.

They can be reached at:

Roseann Bowerman, Social Sciences Librarian
Office: Linderman Library room 100A
Phone:  758-3053, Email : rb04
Call for an appointment or drop in at the Fairchild Library Consulting room hours:  Wednesdays, 1-5pm

Jean Johnson, Education Librarian
Office: 296 Fairchild -Martindale Computing Center
Phone: 758-4889,  Email: jj04
Call for an appointment or drop in at the Fairchild Library Consulting room hours:  Mondays, 1-5pm