Academic Databases (captioned)

Explained by Common Craft
If you need trustworthy sources for research, using the internet can seem overwhelming. That’s why academic databases matter. They can help you save time by quickly identifying the resources you need to complete your work. This video explains academic databases and how to use them.
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Video Transcript:

In research, it’s easy to think that more is better. Access to more books, more papers and articles surely leads to better research, right?

The reality is that quality matters more than quantity. Finding the best, most trustworthy sources is the real challenge.

That’s why academic databases matter. These resources make it easier to find the most useful, high quality and relevant information available.

Usually academic databases are accessed through your school’s library and include access to journals, newspapers, magazines, reports, newsletters, images, ebooks, and more.

Using an academic database means you can save time by quickly identifying resources that matter for your research.  

The most popular academic databases cover a wide variety of subjects. Others may focus on specific subjects, like science, history, or business. Let’s take a look at how they work.

Once you’ve selected a database that relates to your research, you’ll likely be able to use search to find what you need.  

Consider using quotation marks for words that appear together. You can also use synonyms along with the word “Or” to see broader results.

You might see thousands of results, so you’ll need to do some filtering. You may be able to filter the results based on the type of publication, publication date, language and more.

When you find a resource that seems useful, open it and review the title, author, publish date and publisher.

You’ll often see an abstract at the top that summarizes the content of the article and helps you evaluate if it is relevant. The abstract may also help you identify more useful search terms for finding additional resources. The full article may be available by clicking “Full Text”.

The database may also provide a button for creating a citation if you use the resource.

The next time you need to do research, don’t waste time digging through piles of materials to find a few good sources.  

Instead, ask your librarian about academic databases and you’ll discover a resource that makes your research more efficient and effective.

 

 

What it teaches:

Research can feel overwhelming when it is difficult to know what sources are useful and trustworthy. Academic databases help solve this problem by making sources easy to search, filter, and evaluate. This video explains Academic Databases and teaches:

  • Why quality matters more than quantity in research
  • Where to find academic databases
  • What types of publications and subjects are available
  • How to search an academic database effectively
  • How to filter search results

Video Info:

  • Duration:  02m 19s
  • Captions Available:  YES
  • Lesson Plan:  YES
  • Category:  Study Skills
  • ISTE Standard:  Knowledge Constructor 2a
  • ACRL Info Literacy Frame:  Research as Inquiry
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