EBSCO my new best friend.

I watched the tutorial for EBSCO - it made it so easy. It really shows you the possibilities for using tools for learning within your own library! AND yet the Informit tutorial was inferior. Perhaps it is the inherent difference between the two databases, but the tutorial was not easy to follow - I felt like I would have to take detail notes, it was too fast and confusing for my tiny mind. So the technology and the tools for achieving learning outcomes is highly dependent on its execution.


And I quote Ann Clough who is much more eloquent that I on this matter - I concur 100%


This was my first attempt at searching for journals in such a large library database as EBSCO and Informit. I was relieved that the EBSCO "How to" tutorial was simple, quick and easy to follow. On EBSCO, I was able to narrow the results with relative ease by refining my choice of key words. I discovered that SU (Subject Terms) does not always help. The search topics we were set allowed me to expand my knowledge of our key terms. For instance, I learnt that teacher librarian and media specialist are the same but different titles apply to different countries. . I have set up some folders in EBSCO and stored a few relevant resources in them already. Overall, I found the EBSCO database was the most user-friendly of the databases that I tried.

Informit was not easy to use. The tutorial was too fast and required too many steps. I got lost in no time. I learnt that Informit requires very specific search parameters. I struggled to narrow the results below 200 records! So I was not very successful using Informit. I feel like I have only scratched the surface of the possibilities on offer within these database sites. I clearly need to investigate library databases furthers. I am at least capable of performing a basic search now. Practise is definitely necessary....

A tip I need to remember: always tick the Full Text Records Only box!!!