ERIC is the main database to use when you want to find articles, journals or documents in education.  We have access to three versions of ERIC.  All provide access to the same data only their interfaces are different.   ERIC through EBSCO and ProQuest are by subscription,  ERIC Home Page links to the freely available version of ERIC at eric.ed.gov.  For more information on ERIC and help with searching and citing  ERIC Documents see the information tab.

What Are ERIC Documents?

The ERIC database is the world's largest single source of education information, containing more than 1.1 million records. When you search ERIC you will retrieve citations and abstracts about education-related journal articles. Your search results may also include non-journal materials, which are called ERIC Documents. Each ERIC Document has a unique "ED" number, as in this citation:

A Guide to Voucher Programs. For Parents, about Parents. Walls, Charles A.; ERIC Clearinghouse on Urban Education, New York, NY., 2003 (ED482924)

Types of ERIC Documents include books; conference proceedings and selected presentations; literature reviews and bibliographies; Congressional hearings and reports; reports on federal/state standards, testing, and regulations; research reports; U.S. Department of Education and contractor reports; working papers from established research and policy organizations; and lesson plans.

Approximately 107,000 documents that were added to the ERIC database between January 1993 and July 2004 are available for download, free of charge, by clicking on the link in the online database you are using (Full Text from ERIC, Full Text, or ERIC Document Link, depending on the database). If an item does not have a full-text link, it may be a copyrighted book. In that case, check BYU holdings (search the catalog) to see if the Lee Library has a copy. If you cannot locate it at BYU, then you can request a copy through Interlibrary Loan.

For ERIC Documents added to the database before 1993 the Lee Library has a complete microfiche collection located in the Social Sciences/Education Department on Level 1. Just take the ED number from the citation and locate the microfiche. They are in numerical order. Microfiche readers and copiers are available. If you would like help with the microfiche, please ask at the Social Sciences/Education Reference Desk.

Citing ERIC Doucments

The basic format of citing ERIC documents in APA is this:

Author Last Name, Initials. (Date).  Title. (Report No. if available).  Publisher City, Publisher State: Publisher/Sponsoring Entity.  (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No.  ED--------).  Retrieved Month Day, Year, from EBSCOHost ERIC database.  

Please note that:

You need use a  Report Number only  if found on the document resume sheet included at the beginning report. It will be labeled Report No., immediately followed by a series of letters and numbers, e.g. Report No. MHEC-2001-RES-15;  If this number is not there then you need not include it.

The “No.  ED--------“  Is the Eric Document Number, it is found in the AN field.

The information:  “Retrieved Month Day, Year, from EBSCOHost ERIC database” is only necessary if the document was retrieved online, if you viewed the document in paper or microfiche format then this line is not necessary.

Here are some generic examples:

Author, A. A. (1996). Title of ERIC document (Report No. AB-12). City, ST: Sponsoring Entity. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 123 456). Retrieved Jan. 1, 2000, from EBSCOHost ERIC database.  

Institutional Author. (1996). Title of ERIC document (Report No. AB-12). City, Country: Sponsoring Entity. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 123 456). Retrieved Jan. 1, 2000, from EBSCOHost ERIC database.  

Here is a specific example:

Michigan State Dept. of Education.  (1970). Feasibility Studies for Extending the Regular School Year.  Lansing, MI: Michigan State Dept. of Education.  (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED005 634).  Retrieved Jan. 1, 2000, from EBSCOHost ERIC database.