SIRS DISCOVERER BY
PROQUEST
Overview
• Sources and articles are selected for their educational
content, reliability, relevance, interest, ageappropriateness, and level of readability.
• Coverage varies for each source, but SIRS Discoverer
has years 1981 to the present represented in the
database.
There are over 1,900 magazines, newspapers, and
government documents. Editors have also selected over
9,000 reliable and appropriate websites.
Homepage
• Clean look
• Graphics that appeal to
younger users
• Split into 6 sections
- Search
- Browse Subject Tree
- Web
- Reference
- Discoverer’s Top Pick
- Database Features
Searching
• Users can access information by using subject heading,
subject tree, and keyword searches.
• Results can be printed, saved, and e-mailed.
• The user can search by reading level in the categories of
easy, moderate, or challenging based on content, interest,
and readability.
• Lexile Reading Levels are also given for each article.
Searching
• The search box is on the top of the homepage.
• The user can do a general keyword search or search by
subject headings. They can be sorted by relevance or
date.
• SIRS Discoverer offers an advanced search and search
tips on how to improve the user’s search. A dictionary
and thesaurus are also available for the user to access.
Advanced Search
• The advanced search automatically does Boolean
searching with ‘and.’
• Dropdown menus are featured with suggested fields
already filled out.
• Reading and Lexile ranges can be used to locate relevant
information.
Browse Subject Tree
• On the homepage, the user can browse various subjects
to find relevant articles.
• The user clicks on the subject and a list of a variety of
articles from various material types appear.
• After selecting the topic from the subject tree, the left side
of the results page features additional topics and
subtopics that the user can use to organize the
information that comes up
Web
• By clicking on the Webpage section, the user is brought to
another page.
• It searches the database and the web for age appropriate
websites.
• It has abbreviated categories
-Discover WebFind
-Browse Tree Search
-Section to go back to regular SIRS Discoverer
-Top Pick
- Database Features
• The search displays the web results first. The user can
use the tabs to select other categories.
Reference
• The reference section lists four categories:
-Current Events
-Spotlight of the Month
-World Almanac for Kids – uses Table of Contents or
Keyword Search to locate information
-Encyclopedia – brings to main encyclopedia page and
searches that element alone
Top Pick
• Highlights different features that are currently trending in
the country.
• Links to an article about the topic.
Database Features
• The box displays popular categories.
• Links to various topics or activities, such as Science Fair
Explorer that lists experiments or Activities where you can
select what you would like to do from a variety of topics.
• Most of these categories use the browse feature and a
couple have a search box.
Evaluation
• The page is clean and is appealing for students by using
small graphics in the Browse Tree Search.
• Their website claims that “Every SIRS article, primary
source, website, and graphic has been carefully reviewed
to ensure its relevancy, credibility, curricular applicability,
standards alignment, and appropriateness to students
which ensures trustworthy and practical articles”
(ProQuest, 2012).
• The sources where the articles were originally published
are clearly listed in each article.
Evaluation
• ProQuest is the publisher for the SIRS Discoverer
database. It is a well known and reputable publisher that
boasts authoritative information.
• With the six main categories, it is easy for the user to
navigate through the pages. The tabs help the user
locate the type of source would be most helpful.
However, the long list of articles can be daunting for the
users. If they do not use the tabs or advanced search
they may become frustrating sorting through the articles
individually.
• Reading levels are prevalent throughout using two types,
Lexile scores and general categories labeled Easy,
Moderate, and Challenging.
References
Proquest. (2012). SIRS Discoverer. Retrieved from
http://www.proquest.com/enUS/catalogs/databases/detail/sirs_discoverer.shtml