Get your research questions answered through chat, email, phone, drop in at the Information desk or make an appointment.
Reference sources are a great way to start your research. They will help you define key terms, identify important themes and individuals in the field, and find keywords for further searching in catalogs and databases. Reference sources also include bibliographies that will help you identify important primary and secondary works in your subject area. Select one of the reference source types below to get started.
Two recommended places to start your research are Gale Virtual Reference and Credo (see the "Credo, Gale, & Online Encyclopedias" tab).
References sources of UMCP can be either in print or electronic. In the area of education, the print Reference Stacks are usually located on the first floor of McKeldin Library; unless the catalog record gives a different location.
UMCP Online Resource is available to UMCP faculty, staff and students only.
Two recommended places to start your research are Gale Virtual Reference and Credo (search below). Additional online encyclopedias are listed below to help you continue your research.
Credo is an easy-to-use tool for starting research. Use this box to search hundreds of full-text reference titles, as well as 500,000+ images and audio files and over 1,000 videos. It may take a moment to load the results of your search.
Click the button above to visit UMD's portal to the Gale Virtual Reference Library. Once you're there, click the Name link (highlighted in yellow), and then log in with your school ID to access the whole Gale collection.
Below is a selection of general reference sources. If the title is blue, you can click on the link to view the item online. Some items require a UMD Directory ID to access. Otherwise, go to the holding library to use a paper copy.
Encyclopedia of American Education by
The only comprehensive reference to the development and present state of American education, ""Encyclopedia of American Education, Third Edition"" includes more than 2,000 entries spanning the colonial period to the present. This authoritative three-volume reference provides a wealth of information on virtually every aspect of education, from the evolution of school curriculum, education funding, and church-state controversies to the latest debates on multiculturalism, prayer in school, and sex education. Author Harlow G. Unger, one of the country's foremost education experts, has substantially updated existing entries and added more than 40 new entries. Appendixes include significant federal legislation, important U.S. Supreme Court decisions, and lists of undergraduate majors and graduate school programs. More than 10 new photographs have been added to this edition, and more than half a dozen experts in education served as editorial consultants for this encyclopedia.
Encyclopedia of Education by
This 8 volume encyclopedia set provides a comprehensive overview of education within the United States and throughout the world. With over 850 cross-referenced entries, the entries address such items as K-12 education, higher education, international education, educational policy and legislation, learning and instruction, teacher preparation and testing. In addition, the encyclopedia has 121 biographical sketches of influential educators. Vol. 8 provides detailed entries for court cases, legislation, and international agreements, as well as a substantial index. This e-book is available to UMCP faculty, currently enrolled UMCP students and UMCP staff. This book is also available in print at McKeldin Library Reference Stacks LB 15 . E47 2003
The Greenwood Dictionary of Education by
The first of its kind since the 1980s, this book provides authoritative definitions for more than 2,600 terms that apply to educational research, practice, and theory. The overall focus is on the most critical terms in education as used by current practitioners, yet references to significant historical events in education are also included. Each of the definitions is 25-250 words and has been written by a knowledgeable practitioner or researcher in the field. Included are acronyms and initialisms commonly used in the field, names and descriptions of relevant organizations, and important legal decisions relating to education. An extensive bibliography provides useful sources for further research. This reference work will be valuable for professionals in the K-12 setting, students of education, and educators and researchers in colleges of education. Librarians at academic, public, and school libraries will find the dictionary immensely useful in interpreting education terminology.
A Handbook for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education by
First published in 2008. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.
Handbook of Distance Education by
This handbook provides overviews and summaries of the research and practice of distance education in the United States. The last three to five years have seen an explosion of interest in and discussion about distance education, driven by the potential applications of interactive computer-based technology. Despite the impact of this new technology, this book is not about technology, but about the consequences of the separation of learners and teachers, one of which is the need to use technology. The volume provides a broad review of the research, complemented by commentaries based on practical experience. It addresses such questions as how distance education is best practiced at the level of the teacher, as well as the administrator, and it examines the public policy implications of shifting a greater proportion of educational resources to this method. Finally, it looks at how the expansion of distance education affects educational research and theory. The Handbook has been recognized by the University Continuing Education Association's Distance Learning Community of Practice as the "Outstanding Book of 2003." Announcing the award, Elizabeth Houdek, Chair of the Awards committee wrote: "The Handbook has both breadth and depth and brings together the best thinking of the most noted practitioners in distance education and framed their contributions in an inspired format and structure."
Handbook of Online Education by
This resource book provides a range of practical, innovative ideas to promote active learning online. It will offer teachers, trainers, and course writers a selection of ready-made, adaptable activities which can be used as a basis of elearning activity on a course or as a departure point for development, independent work and/or discussion. Sections of the book will include Resources for Building Confidence, Resources for Learning to Learn Online, Resources for Assessment and Active Learning Online. Each section will be prefaced by a general theoretical overview and suggestions for further reading and personal action research.
Handbook of Prosocial Education by
Handbook of Prosocial Education is the definitive theoretical, practical, and policy guide to the prosocial side of education, the necessary second side of the educational coin. Academic teaching and learning are the first side of education; however, academic success depends upon the structures and support of prosocial educational efforts from promoting positive school climate to fostering student and teacher development to civic literacy and responsible and critical citizenship participation. The Handbook of Prosocial Education chapters, written by highly-respected researchers and outstanding educators, represent the wide range of research-based prosocial interventions from pre-school through high school. The chapters explore and explain how prosocial education helps teachers create effective classroom learning environments to support the development of the whole student, principals encourage positive school climate, and superintendents work to improve the health and well-being of their systems. As readers will learn, when done well, prosocial education develops the capacities and competencies of students, teachers, and school administrators that lead to a more autonomous, positive self-concept, greater sense of purpose, more socially responsible behaviors, and increased connections between families, schools, and communities. This book pulls together in one place for the first time the various threads that create the prosocial education tapestry, making a compelling case for the necessity of changing national educational policy that continues to be ever-more oriented to only the academic side of the educational coin, thus jeopardizing the foundational and historic purpose of educating our children for their full human development and participation in our democracy.
Handbook of Research on Multicultural Education by
In this second edition, twenty-nine classic chapters have beenrevised and updated and twenty new chapters have been added toreflect how the field has evolved since the first edition of theHandbook was published in 1995. This landmark volumedescribes and analyzes changes such as increased immigration to theUnited States and new developments in theory and research relatedto race, culture, ethnicity, and language. It addresses new issuessuch as findings on the increase in the number of interracialchildren and the characteristics of children of immigrant families.The educational implications of new research and trends are alsodiscussed. The Handbook's forty-nine chapters are divided into twelveparts that clarify the meaning and boundaries of multiculturaleducation. Topics covered include trends and developments, ethnicgroups in historical and social science research, language issues,academic achievement, higher education, and internationalperspectives on multicultural education. The volume also offerscomprehensive and balanced analyses of key controversies anddebates in the field.
Handbook on Digital Learning for K-12 Schools by
This book guides the adoption, design, development and expectation of future digital teaching and learning projects/programs in K12 schools. It provides a series of case studies and reports experiences from international digital teaching and learning projects in K12 education. The book also furnishes advice for future school policy and investment in digital teaching and learning projects. Finally, the book provides an explanation of the future capacity and sustainability of digital teaching and learning in K12 schools.
Higher Education: Handbook of Theory and Research by
The Handbook series provides a compendium of thorough and integrative literature reviews on a diverse array of topics of interest to the higher education scholarly and policy communities. Each chapter provides a comprehensive review of research findings on a selected topic, critiques the research literature in terms of its conceptual and methodological rigor, and sets forth an agenda for future research intended to advance knowledge on the chosen topic.
International Encyclopedia of Education by
The field of education has experienced extraordinary technological, societal, and institutional change in recent years, making it one of the most fascinating yet complex fields of study in social science. Unequalled in its combination of authoritative scholarship and comprehensive coverage, International Encyclopedia of Education, Third Edition succeeds two highly successful previous editions (1985, 1994) in aiming to encapsulate research in this vibrant field for the twenty-first century reader. Under development for five years, this work encompasses over 1,000 articles across 24 individual areas of coverage, and is expected to become the dominant resource in the field. Education is a multidisciplinary and international field drawing on a wide range of social sciences and humanities disciplines, and this new edition comprehensively matches this diversity. The diverse background and multidisciplinary subject coverage of the Editorial Board ensure a balanced and objective academic framework, with 1,500 contributors representing over 100 countries, capturing a complete portrait of this evolving field.
The SAGE Handbook for Research in Education by
Research is increasingly becoming more influential in the field of education and this Handbook brings together a range of top academic experts who represent diverse fields within and outside of education, as well as quantitative, qualitative, and mixed method approaches to provide an upto- date, advanced analysis of all relevant issues involved in educational research. The Handbook is written in lively, welcoming prose and central to the handbook is an intention to encourage and help researchers place ideas at the epicenter of inquiry. In addition explicit discussion of the fundamental challenges that researchers must consciously address throughout their inquiry are identified and solutions provided to help future researchers overcome similar obstacles.
The Special Education Handbook by
'What a terrific resource: comprehensive and current, this Handbook is a vital acquisition for all involved in special education programs. Dr Farrell writes clearly and with a practical flair ... Highly recommended.'nbsp;- Michael Arthur-Kelly PhD, Associate Professor and Director, Special Education Centre, University of Newcastle, Australia This acclaimed, bestselling and comprehensive guide, now in a fully updated fourth edition, is an essential reference book for anyone involved with special education. All entries have been reviewed to reflect current practice and the book is enriched with extra resources, including references to useful Internet sites. Focusing on current educational frameworks in the United Kingdom and the United States of America, the author has gathered into one A to Z volume a wide range of information essential to good practice in mainstream and special schools. A thematic index helps the reader plot a course through topics of interest. The broad themes and areas covered are: basic terms, ideas and values venues relating to special education, and school organisation roles and responsibilities individual differences among learners with disabilities and disorders curriculum and assessment, resources and technology pedagogy and classroom organisation therapy and care. Presented in a handy quick reference format The Special Education Handbook also provides a coherent account of the complexities of special education, combining a wealth of practical guidance with the latest research findings. This clear and concise Handbook is indispensable for all those involved in special education, including teachers, teaching assistants, parents, administrators and others.
World Education Encyclopedia by
This e-book provides country-by-country survey of educational systems provides detailed essays on the histories, legal foundations, and primary and secondary educational systems of 233 countries. This e-book is available to UMCP faculty, currently enrolled UMCP students and UMCP staff. This encyclopedia is also available in print at McKeldin Library Reference Stacks LB15 .W87 2002.
