Category Archives: database

World Book Student

Posted on November 30, 2012 | 1 comment

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World Book Inc, (2011). World Book Student. Chicago, Illinois. Retrieved from: http://0-www.worldbookonline.com.catalog.sjlibrary.org/student/home

Annotation

World Book has been publishing encyclopedias and reference materials for over 90 years. They boast the most inclusive online content to serve the information needs of young people and educators.

Critical Evaluation

The World Book Student homepage has a lot of information on it. After you login through your library’s website you can do a quick search for the information that you’re looking for with the basic search toolbar. You can also browse content alphabetically or by subject, as well as by way of the dictionary and atlas. The rest of the homepage is divide into topics of high interest. There are popular videos, research tools complete with citation builders, a biography center, quizzes, popular articles and much much more. I prefer to use databases that are less busy, but I think that the display allows young people to quickly access the material that they are looking for.

Curriculum Ties

Grade 9 and 10 reading comprehension curriculum:

2.2 Prepare a bibliography of reference materials for a report using a variety of consumer, workplace, and public documents.

2.3 Generate relevant questions about readings on issues that can be researched.

2.4 Synthesize the content from several sources or works by a single author dealing with a single issue; paraphrase the ideas and connect them to other sources and related topics to demonstrate comprehension.

Grade 11 and 12 reading comprehension curriculum:

2.1 Analyze both the features and the rhetorical devices of different types of public docu-ments (e.g., policy statements, speeches, debates, platforms) and the way in which authors use those features and devices.

Reading Level/Interest Age 

All ages

Reason for inclusion

Database for scholastic research.

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Opposing Viewpoints in Context

Posted on November 30, 2012 | 1 comment

opposingviewpoints

Gale, (2012).Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Ontario, Canada: Gale. Retrieved from: http://www.gale.cengage.com/InContext/viewpoints.htm

Annotation

Opposing Viewpoints in Context is a database tailored to the special research needs of young adults. Covering society’s hottest topics Opposing Viewpoints is your go to source for information for all your homework needs: research papers, expository essays, preparation for current event discussions and debates, and more.  Opposing Viewpoints boasts over

14,000 pro/con essays, 5,000 topic overviews… 300 primary source documents, 300 biographies of social activists and reformers… 775 court-case overviews, 5 million periodicals… 6000 statistical tables… 70,000 images… thousands of podcasts… and national and state curriculum standards

Critical Evaluation

Opposing Viewpoints is laid out nicely and easy to navigate. Once you log in through your library’s portal you can use the basic search option to do a quick search on the topic that you’re interested in. There are also options to browse popular issues, view data maps, and search by resource (viewpoints, academic journals, primary sources, statistics, image, video, audio, news, magazines, reference website, etc). Within the advanced search options users can use boolean search terms, narrow results by peer reviewed and full text, publication date, document type and so on. The database has clean lines and is easy to navigate. There are no extraneous buttons or search options hanging about to confuse anyone. It is an excellent choice for beginning researchers, or those without a lot of experience using databases.

Curriculum Ties

Supports grade 9 and 10 reading comprehension curriculum:

2.2 Prepare a bibliography of reference materials for a report using a variety of consumer, workplace, and public documents.

2.5 Extend ideas presented in primary or secondary sources through original analysis, evaluation, and elaboration.

Supports grade 11 and 12 reading comprehension curriculum:

2.1 Analyze both the features and the rhetorical devices of different types of public docu-ments (e.g., policy statements, speeches, debates, platforms) and the way in which authors use those features and devices.

2.3 Verify and clarify facts presented in other types of expository texts by using a variety of consumer, workplace, and public documents.

Reading Level/Interest Age 

13+

Reason for inclusion

Important database for student research.

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Science in Context

Posted on November 30, 2012 | 1 comment

Gale, (2012). Science in Context. Ontario: Canada. Retrieved from: http://www.gale.cengage.com/InContext/science.htm

Annotation

Another of the In Context databases, Science in Context has been designed specifically for the needs of young academics. SIC content is derived from reference sources such as: Gale Encyclopedia of Science, Chemical Elements, Science in Dispute and the Macmillan Science Library. Additionally the database contains over 22,000 topic overviews, 7,000 biographies, 1.5 million periodical articles, 16,000 images and videos, over 170 detailed experiments, 8,100 biographies, and two dictionaries.

Much like the other Gale databases in the collection SIC is easy to navigate. You can search by keyword or topic, narrow results by year, search by person (by or about), narrow results by peer reviewed and full text, publication date, document type and so on. Gale databases are easy to learn and operate and ideal for students who may not have the time or inclination to spend several hours learning how to navigate several different kinds of databases.

Curriculum Ties

Science, Chemistry, Biology, Anatomy, etc.

Reading Level/Interest Age 

12+

Reason for inclusion

Academic database for science based research.

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LitFinder

Posted on November 30, 2012 | 1 comment

LitFinder

Gale, (2012). LitFinder. Ontario, Canada: Gale. Retrieved from: http://gdc.gale.com/gale-literature-collections/litfinder/

Annotation

LitFinder is Gale’s primary collection of literary works. The collection includes 140,000 full-text poems, 800,000 poem citations and excerpts, 7,100 full-text short stories and novels, 3,800 full-text essays, 2,000 full-text speeches and 1,700 full-text plays. It also includes biographies, work summaries, photographs and a glossary. It is specially suited to the needs of young adult researchers and like all Gale products boasts a simple layout and search process.

Critical Evaluation

I like Gale databases and this one is no exception. The lines are smooth and uncluttered and it is easy to specify your needs with the simple and advanced search methods. Unlike some of the other databases in this collection, there’s no fuss or glamor on the homepage of the LitFinder database. You can search by keyword, person (about or authored by), or all-text. Searches can be narrowed by decade, content type (biography, primary source & literary works, multimedia, and topic & work overview), as well as by type of work. Gale’s easy to learn and use interfaces lend themselves to straight forward searches, but also allowed for more sophisticated methods such as using boolean search terms.

Curriculum Ties

Grades 9 and 10 listening and speaking strategies curriculum:

1.10 Analyze historically significant speeches (e.g., Abraham Lincoln’s “Gettysburg Address,” Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have a Dream”) to find the rhetorical devices and features that make them memorable.

Grades 11 and 12 reading comprehension curriculum:

2.3 Verify and clarify facts presented in other types of expository texts by using a variety of consumer, workplace, and public documents.

Reading Level/Interest Age 

12+

Reason for inclusion

Academic research database.

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