How does the ERIC search work?
ERIC will look for your search terms across a set of key ERIC fields: title, author, source, abstract and descriptor. You can also enter an ERIC accession number (ERIC ID) to search for the ERIC document itself, as well as documents that mention or cite the document by ID. An ISBN, ISSN or IES Grant/Contract Number may also be entered directly into the search box.
Ranking of results is determined by many factors including the publication date (more recent publications are favored).
This video helps users understand how to find information in an intuitive way and, in most cases, without the need for advanced search logic. The video demonstrates how simple search strategies can be an effective way to search the ERIC database.
How do I create more specific searches?
ERIC field names
- abstract
- assessment
- audience
- author
- descriptor
- educationlevel
- law
- location
- pubyear
- source
- title
- funded:Y
- wwcr:N
- wwcr:R
- wwcr:Y
- Use quotes to group words into specific phrases:
- Use the field:term syntax to limit one or more search terms to a specific ERIC field:
- Add the field:term syntax to limit searches to IES Funded and/or What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) Reviewed documents:
What other advanced options are available?
- You can use AND/OR to limit the search, with parentheses if required. For example, (prekindergarten OR kindergarten) AND literacy will return findings with either the term prekindergarten or kindergarten that also contain the word literacy.
- You can require search terms using the + symbol in front of one or more words or phrases in your search. For example, +title:regression multivariate hierarchical linear would return only results with the term regression, with the terms multivariate, hierarchical, and linear being optionally searched in all fields.
- You can exclude search terms using the - symbol in the same way you would use a + symbol. For example, for information on bullying, but not focused by sexual orientation, search bullying -gay.
- You can combine any advanced syntax into a single search: regression (autism OR autistic) -descriptor:"regression analysis" -descriptor:"regression (statistics)" descriptor:autism