Tools of the trade:

ERIC (Educational Resources Information Center) has a new look

Despite all the choices libraries have for obtaining ILL materials, many libraries would rather access some materials through the ILL Centers.

Regional ILL Centers Memorial Hall Library (Andover) Phone: 978-623-8401 x15 Fax: 978-623-8406 E-mail: region@mhl.org http://www.mhl.org/ill NOBLE (Danvers) Phone: 978-777-8844 Fax: 978-750-8472 E-mail: noble_ill_center@noblenet.org http://www.noblenet.org/ill

One of these is the ERIC database for educational resources. The ERIC database can be searched to find education-related journal articles, research reports, curriculum and teaching guides, conference papers, books, and more.

ERIC has a new look. Check it out at: http://www.eric.ed.gov/ There is information at this site that explains the ERIC database, the ERIC clearinghouses and other resources in ERIC.

ERIC documents: These are numbers prefaced by "ED". Nearly 100,000 ERIC documents published from 1993 to the present are available through the ERIC Document Reproduction Service (EDRS). They are available in paper and microfiche. You can order documents at (1-800-443-ERIC), fax, e-mail, mail, or electronically through the EDRS Web site at http://www.edrs.com.

The ILL Centers are available to help navigate through the searching and interpretation of documents listed in ERIC since documents can be compilations of journal articles into a "document" or a book. If a patron submits a citation from the ERIC database we recommend searching your local catalog, the Virtual Catalog and then WorldCat. The ILL Centers can get access to the documents with an OCLC request.

ERIC Journal: Theses are citations prefaced by 'EJ". They are treated like any other journal article request. They can be sent to Boston to be filled. Please contact the ILL Centers if you have questions about ERIC or other ILL issues.