KINE 460 - Philosophy & Foundations of Outdoor Education
Library Research Guide

Jacquie Foster , Librarian................................................................Reid Cross, Instructor

FACT: It takes time for information to appear in magazines, journals, books and even on web sites. Check the Information Timeline to see why it is hard to find scholarly information about current events.

FACT: The problem in today's "information age" is not finding information, but finding reliable, authoritative, useful information. To do this, you must analyze and evaluate what you find. The CRAAP Test and Distinguishing Scholarly Journals can help you.
 

Information from Books
Use Books & Reference Books for overviews of a topic, for authoritative, key facts and for lists of related sources. Examples:

  • Encyclopedia of Physical Education, Fitness & Sports……..........GV 567 E49 (reference)
    • One volume covers history and foundations
  • Biographical Dictionary of 20th Century Philosophers...................B 104 B5 (reference)
  • Encyclopedia of Environmental Issues........................................ GE 10 E52 (reference
  • Adventure Education.................................................................GV 200.52 M5 (main)
  • Gale Environmental Almanac………………………………...............GE 80 H69 (reference)

Search the Library Catalog for other topics:
For example: outdoor education ethics ... experiential education ... Author: Simon Priest ... Subject: John Dewey
 
Information from Articles
Articles usually focus on a specific aspect of a subject. Articles in scholarly & professional periodicals are written for people in a particular field. They usually provide in-depth information. Articles in newspapers and popular magazines are written for a general audience.

Decide what kind of information you want, then search in one of the databases below to find articles on your topic.
 

PATH to databases: ReSEARCH Station / Finding Articles/ by name (A-Z) or by subject (Physical Education)
ReSEARCH Station

Databases recommended for PHED 260

EBSCO logoAcademic Search covers all subjects and includes popular magazines and scholarly journals.. Check the "scholarly / peer reviewed" box to limit a search to scholarly journals. Follow links to full text or click SFX for library availability

EBSCO logoERIC, the Educational Resources Information Center, covers all aspects of education, including outdoor / experiential education. ERIC includes professional & scholarly articles (EJ) and unpublished reports (ED)

EBSCO logoPsycInfo contains primarily scholarly research sources. Use if for social or psychological aspects of a topic. The SFX links tell you if the article is available, and where to get it..

Sport Discus logoSportDiscus indexes articles on leisure, recreation, outdoor activities, sports, games, & handicapped activities. It includes popular, professional and scholarly publication, as well as media and dissertations. Follow the SFX links to see if the library has the articles.

LexisNexis logoUse Lexis Nexis to find newspaper articles - U.S. and worldwide. Use Quick Search for U.S. and world news. Use Guided News Search to limit to a US region or state.

Other Physical Education / Kinesiology related databases
 

Database Search Tips

OneDecide what words best describe your topic. For scholarly or professional articles use words a researcher might use. For popular articles, use more general language.

Professional
Popular
bicycle bike
adolescents, youth teens, teen agers, kids

 

twoDON'T use "spoken" language. Example: Do bike helmets really reduce injuries
DO use keywords combined with and, or, not: bicycle helmets and injuries

Use and to find all of the words: bicycle helmets and injuries
The more ands, the fewer, but more relevant items you will find: helmets and injuries and children

Use or to find one or the other word: bicycle helmets and (injuries or safety) Use parentheses around words connected with or.

Or expands a search and finds more items.

To Find Fewer Items
To Find More Items
Add another keyword connected with and

Use similar or related words connected with or
Use more specific words Use * at the end of a word: child* finds children too
Search for title words or subject words only Try another database

 

Three Expect to review and refine your search a few times to find the best items. Take time to look for the clues that tell you if an item is popular or scholarly, authoritative or opinionated. Apply the CRAAP test to your sources: Currency, Relevance, Authority, Acuracy, Purpose.

 

four Finding the Actual Articles or Getting the Full Text

LOOK FOR:

  • Full text, HTML or pdf links that take you directly to the online full text
  • A link for Find It (Click it to see if the journal is available online or in the library.)
    • Meriam Library Catalog means some issues are in the library. Click once more to see what years CSU Chico has and what the call number is
    • A database name ( means it is available online. Click the database name to link to it. You may have to search again by date and/or title words.
    • If Interlibrary Loan is your only choice, you must order the article from another library. Allow 2 weeks.
  • If none of the above are available, use the Meriam Library Periodicals List.
    PATH: ReSEARCH Station / Periodicals List. Look for the journal name, NOT the article title

MoreQuestions??? Ask at the reference desk, Meriam Library second floor or
Ask-a-Librarian any time, http://www.csuchico.edu/library/ask.htm