You can limit your search results in the "free" ERIC to research (empirical studies) by clicking on the Reports - Research option in the PUBLICATION TYPE box found on the left-hand side of the search results page.
For additional Advanced Search techniques such as limiting by publication year, author, or education level click on the Advanced Search Tips option found at the end of the ERIC search blank.
The free version of ERIC uses the command title: focus your search on words found in the titles of articles.
Your search term should be typed immediately after the command. The first word of your search should touch (be adjacent to) the colon in the command.
If you are searching for a phrase in the titles of articles you should put that phrase in quotes and be sure the first quote touches the colon in the title: command (no spaces between the command and what you're searching for).
Search for multiple words in the title by using more than one title: command and placing an AND between each search term.
A powerful alternative to title searching is to search for your topic in the abstracts of articles.
To do this use the abstract: command instead.
Searching by subject (descriptor) is a powerful way to limit your search to only those articles that are truly about your topic.
This type of search uses the descriptor: command.
To determine which words are used by ERIC as descriptors for your topic you can either use the Thesaurus found above the search blank. The Thesaurus can then either be searched or browsed.
Descriptors (subject headings) can also be discovered by first conducted a basic search on your subject and then inspecting the results.
