Student Research
Center by Ebsco
Tutorial Created by Kelly Stanchfield
August 2005
What is the Student Research
Center (SRC)?
SRC is a pathway to several databases
that are a part of INSPIRE, the Indiana
Virtual Library.
 Developed by Ebsco, the interface of SRC
was designed specifically for students in
grades 6-12 to use for research.

Why use the Student Research
Center?

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SRC provides easy access to online resources
because it was designed specifically for students
to use.
Content is age appropriate and can be searched
by reading level.
SRC provides a wide variety of content sources
and can be searched by type of source, such as
newspaper, magazine, primary document, etc.
How to Access the Database
Visit the INSPIRE website:
http://www.inspire.net
 Click on “Search INSPIRE Databases”


Click the Student Research Center Logo
Navigating the
Database
Homepage of the Student Research Center
Basic Search Field
Enter Search
Terms Here
Beginning Your Search
Select a few keywords about the topic you
are researching
 On the basic search screen, enter the
keywords in the find field
 Click the search button

Example of Basic Keyword Search
Basic Keyword Search Results
Tips for Keyword Searching
Be specific! Broader search terms, will
yield general results.
 Try substituting several different synonyms
for the keywords you are searching.
 Check your spelling! If you are getting no
results, consult the dictionary to verify the
correct spelling of your keywords.

Search by Topic
How to Search by Topic
Click on the topic area you wish to search,
for example, “Current Issues”
 Enter keywords in the find field or narrow
search results by selecting a subtopic

 Note:
Leaving the find field blank will return
numerous articles that are broad in scope

Click the search button
Example of Search by Topic
Subtopic
Categories
Results from the Search by Topic
Advanced Search Options
Advanced Search
Options
Advanced Search Screen
Boolean Operators
Document Types
Find Fields
Field Codes
Advanced Searching
Makes it easier to find the exact
information you are looking for by using
Boolean Operators (and, or, not).
 Allows you to eliminate any document
types that you do not want.
 Choose to display only articles that fit
within your reading level.

Boolean Operators – AND
When search terms are combined with the
AND operator, articles that are returned
must contain all terms requested.
 Multiple AND operators may be used to
combine more than two terms.
 When multiple AND operators are used,
only items containing all the search terms
will be returned.

Boolean Operators – OR
When terms are combined with the OR
operator, retrieved records may contain
one or more of the search terms.
 Multiple OR operators may be used to
combine more than two terms.
 When multiple OR operators are used,
records must contain at least one of the
terms to be retrieved.

Boolean Operators – NOT
NOT finds records that contain one search
term but not another.
 The NOT operator excludes some records
which contain the desired search term.
 Don't use NOT unless you are confident
the excluded term always results in the
retrieval of irrelevant records.

Field Codes
Under the advanced search option, field
codes appear in drop-down menus next to
the fields where you enter search terms.
 These codes allow you to specify if a
search term should be designated as an
author, title, subject, geographical or an
all-text (keyword anywhere) search term.

Advanced Search Example
Advanced Search Results
Refine Your Results
If you find that your results are still too
broad, you can refine your search terms
by clicking on the Refine Search link.
 By doing so, you will return to the
advanced search screen, with your search
terms and other preferences remembered.

Ways to Limit Your Results
By limiting your search results, you will be
able to focus in on your research topic.
 Ways to limit your search results include:

 Selecting
a specific Lexile Reading Level
 Selecting a few different document types
 Setting a date range for your articles
 Choosing to display only full-text
About Lexile Reading Level

Lexile Reading Level is a scale that matches
readers to text that is easily understood by
measuring both reader ability and text difficulty.
Lexile Range
Grade Level
800-1030
Grade 6
880-1090
Grade 7
910-1140
Grade 8
1030-1160
Grade 9
1080-1210
Grade 10
1130-1260
Grade 11
1180-1300
Grade 12
Limit Options from the Basic Search Screen
Full Text
Publication Date Range
Lexile Reading Level
Document Types Available
Document types include:
Magazines
 Newspapers
 Reference Works & Encyclopedias
 Biographies
 Radio & TV News
 Transcripts State/Province Reports
 Primary Source Documents
 Photos, Maps & Flags

Selecting a Document Type


From the basic and advanced search screens,
document types can be selected, or deselected
by clicking the checkbox next to the appropriate
document type.
From the results screen, items can be limited by
selecting the radial button above the specific
document type. Only one can be selected at a
time, but you can toggle back and forth between
different types of documents.
Document Types on the Results Screen
Document Displays
Article Document Display
Citation Information
Subject Terms
Abstract
Article Text
Image Document Display
Citation
Information
Image Caption
Best Features
Top Searches
A listing of the
five most popular
searches from
recent weeks
Dictionary
Access to the
American Heritage
Dictionary
Dictionary
The dictionary permits fuzzy searching,
and offers suggestions when you are
misspelling a word.
 Includes a listing of common abbreviations
and foreign language terms for quick and
easy access.
 Useful for checking the spelling of your
selected keywords for your search topic.

Encyclopedia
Access to the
Columbia
Encyclopedia
Encyclopedia
Provides similar search capabilities to the
SRC database, but will search just the
encyclopedia.
 Will search the encyclopedia with related
keywords if the option is selected on the
search screen. This will broaden your
search results and help you find synonyms
to your chosen keywords.

Personal Folder
To Folder
Display
Personal Folder
By setting up a personal folder, you have
the ability to save searches, images,
videos, and specific documents from your
searches.
 After saving to your folder, you have the
option to save to a disk, print, or email the
items that are stored in your folder.

To Set Up a Personal Folder:
Click on the folder icon
 Click the link, “I’m a new user”
 Create your account by filling out the form
 Click submit
 You will then be able to log-in and save
items to your personal folder, and access
them at a later date.

Personal Folder
Folder Icon
Link to
setup new
account
Creating a New Personal Folder
Submit Button
For more information about any of
these features, use the Help Menu
Applying Your
Knowledge
Possible Project Ideas

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Research a current event and create an
electronic scrapbook.
Find biographical information about a famous
person that you admire and give a presentation
as to why you chose them as a role model.
Do the Vocabulary Challenge on the dictionary
page. Three new challenge words are posted
daily.
Database
Application
Activity
The Project
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For this project, you will be writing a letter to
one of your representatives in Congress that
expresses your opinions about a current
issue of concern to you.
The letter must contain a logical, clear
argument that is supported by facts, as well
as recommendations for what needs to be
done in order to resolve the issue.
You will use information you find on the
Student Research Center database to
support your argument.
Find Your Representative

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Visit the website:
http://www.congress.org
Once on the website, enter your
zip code in the box under the
heading “Write Elected Officials”
Click Go
You may be asked to enter a nine
digit zip code, if you do not know
this code, you may enter your full
address and it will be determined
for you.
After entering your zip code, you
will see photos of all of your
representatives and be able to find
out their addresses.
Look for
This Box
Letter Format
Your Name
Your Address
Your Town, State Zip Code
<Date>
The Honorable <Congress Member Name>
United States House of Representatives OR United States Senate
Washington, DC 20515
Dear Mr./Ms.:
Paragraph 1: Introduce yourself and the issues that you have chosen to ask your representative about.
Paragraph 2: Discuss your issue in depth and ask a question for your representative to answer.
Paragraph 3: Close the letter with a polite paragraph. Make sure to say thank you!
Sincerely,
Your signature
Your name printed or typed
Project Criteria
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Use at least three information sources found
through the Student Research Center. Extra
credit will be given to those that cite
additional sources outside of SRC.
The letter must follow the format given.
Points will be deducted for grammatical and
formatting errors.
Along with the letter, you will turn in a brief
report, no longer than one page, that
describes your research process. This report
should include the full citations for the
materials you consulted in writing your letter.
Assessment Rubric
Category
Format
Ideas and
Content
Sources
Citations
Conventions
Excellent
Good
Fair
Poor
Letter begins with a heading and
is followed by a greeting
appropriate for a member of
Congress. A closing paragraph is
followed by a signature.
Letter is coherent and logically
expresses information about a
current issue. Several possible
solutions are suggested for
making improvements to the
situation.
Student used information drawn
from at least three documents
from SRC, and one outside
resource.
Letter is missing one component.
Letter is missing two
components.
Letter is missing three or
more components.
Ideas expressed in the
letter are difficult to
understand. Little attempt
is made to develop a
solution.
Ideas are not clearly
expressed and no solutions
are recommended.
Student used information
drawn from one or two
documents in SRC.
Student did not use any
information resources.
Student includes a complete list
of sources used for background
material with complete
information on those sources.
Letter is moderately coherent
and logically expresses
information about a current
issue. At least one possible
solution is suggested for making
improvements to the situation.
Student used information drawn
from at least three different
documents from SRC, but used
no additional sources for
information.
Student includes all of the
sources used for background
material, but the information on
those sources is incomplete.
Student does not include
any sources or background
information.
Student used the correct
grammar, capitals, spelling, and
punctuation.
Letter contains up to 2 errors in
grammar, capitals, spelling, and
punctuation.
Student includes most of
the sources used for
background material and
the information on those
sources is not complete.
Letter contains up to 5
errors in grammar, capitals,
spelling, and punctuation.
Letter contains more than 5
errors in grammar, capitals,
spelling, and punctuation.