GS 2060: Adult Learning Theories

Starting Research: Finding Books

To find books, films and other items in the North Park Library, use the online catalog. For help in searching the online catalog, see here.

If the Brandel Library doesn't have the books that you want, search I-Share to see which other libraries have them. Make sure that when you request these books, you use your library borrower ID (starts with 2701200) in the form provided. This is the long number in small print above the barcode on your i.d.

Specialized encyclopedias are a good place to begin your research for an overview of a topic, learning terminology, and finding references for further reading. Articles are written by specialists in the field. The following titles are in the reference section on the first floor of the library. For more reference books in education, go to the "LB" and "LC" call number sections.

REF LC5215 .H245 Handbook of Adult and Continuing Education
REF LB15 .E47 Encyclopedia of Education
REF LC1099.3 H35 Learning Theories A-Z
REF LB1028 .H315 Handbook of Research on Teaching

Starting Research: Finding Database Articles

Begin by searching the list of databases in your subject area.

Education Research Premier provides full-text articles from hundreds of education journals, including many in the field of Adult Education. Click here for more information.
PsycInfo provides access to psychological literature -- articles from scholarly journals, chapters from books, and dissertations. Click here for more information.
ERIC indexes educational journal literature as well as unpublished material such as conference papers, curriculum guides, and masters' theses.
Academic Search Premier indexes and provides access to the full text of scholarly journal articles as well as popular magazines in all disciplines. It is a good database to start with. Click here for more information.

Evaluating your Sources: Popular or Scholarly?

Scholarly Journals are sometimes referred to as "academic" or "peer-reviewed." As college students, your professors will expect you to become familiar with the scholarly journals in your field and to use academic resources in your papers.

Scholarly journals generally:

Are written by experts in their fields. The author's credentials are usually given.
Include a bibliography or works cited list.
Have longer articles.
Are published less frequently. Many scholarly journals are released quarterly.
Include few if any advertisements.

Popular magazines generally:

Are written by staff writers.
Might mention sources, but do not include bibliographies.
Are written for the general public.
Include more pictures and advertisements.

Trade publications are a periodicals that are written for a profession audience with expertise in the field, but they do not include in depth articles with citations.

Websites can be unreliable because anyone can create them regardless of their authority on the subject matter. When writing a research paper, the use of websites should be kept to a minimum and limited to those sponsored by well-known authorities or organizations. Always check with you professor to find out if s/he allows the use of websites. When assessing a website, consider the following:

Like a scholarly journal, does it cite credible sources?
When was it written or updated?
Are the authors and their credentials listed? Don't forget to check their credentials in a secondary source.
Is the website listed in the bibliography/works cited list of another credible source?

Getting Help

If this information doesn't answer your questions, please ask for help. You can contact a librarian by our email reference form or call the reference desk at (773) 244-5587. We will be happy to work with you to answer your questions.