Frequently Asked Questions

The HJF Library provides a full access individual subscriber account to any current faculty, staff, or student. All you need to do is click the link below, select Morningside University from the list, and use your Morningside email to sign up. Upon signing up, you should get an activation email that you will need to confirm your email address and you're all set! You will need to confirm your status as a Morningside affiliate annually. 

Our NYT subscription provides full access to the New York Times online, PDFs of the print paper, and full access to the mobile applications.

Sign Up for the New York Times

Interlibrary loan (ILL) is a service offered by the HJF to gain access to specific resources you are not able to access through the library or that are freely available on the web. Please check the library holdings and Google Scholar for the item you are seeking before requesting an ILL.

You are only able to request physical items and electronic articles via ILL. eBooks and streaming video/audio is not available via ILL.

ILL for physical items such as books or dvds can take 7-10 business days for students on campus as these items must ship through the postal service. Graduate students who need the items then shipped to them can expect it to take 10-15 business days.

ILL for electronic articles can be as quick as 1-2 business days as they are sent via email as a PDF attachment. Make sure you check your Morningside email for that ILL request. We do not send to non-Morningside emails.

Interlibrary Loan Instructions

1. To request an ILL, go to the library's website and enter the specific title of the item you are looking for in the discovery search at the top of the page.
2. Once you get the search results, look to the left and notice the limiters. Under those limiters you will see an option for "Library" and see that Morningside University is checked. By default the discovery searches the library holdings first. Click "Libraries Worldwide" to change your search results from only our holdings to all library holdings. If you returned 0 results on your first search, you should see a link to click for searching "Libraries Worldwide."
3. Now you should see your item in the search results. If you do not see it in the first couple of results, try placing "quotes" around your item's title and resubmitting the search. Also double check spelling and make sure you have the correct title. For articles, you want to search for the article title and not the journal title.
4. Once you have your result and have clicked on it, take note of the libraries that own it. Less than 10 libraries means we may not get the item. We are also only able to request from libraries in the US.
   1. Current Morningside students may use their student ID to check out books from the Sioux City Public Library, Briar Cliff University Library and Western Iowa Tech Community College Library. All you need to do is head down to the location with your student ID.
   2. Graduate students may find that their local library has access to the same item and it would therefore be quicker to use the public library to gain access to the physical item than to wait for it in the mail from us.
5. Once you are certain you want to request an item via ILL, click the red "Request Item Through Interlibrary Loan" button and fill out the form on the next page. 
   1. Please include a "Needed By" date that is far enough in the future. This is a date we stop trying to get the item, not the date we start, so give us enough time to get it for you or once the date is reached, it will automatically be removed from our processes.

That's all you need to do. Please contact the HJF Library if you have any troubles, questions, or concerns. We are happy to help. 

1. Go to wsj.com/Morningside
2. Fill out the necessary information. You MUST ENTER YOUR MORNINGSIDE EMAIL. Password can be whatever you want.
3. Click "Create" and you will receive a welcome email, but unfortunately, we're not done yet.
4. Go to wsj.com or follow the redirects. (Usually easier to just type it in the browser manually.)
5. Click "Sign In" in the upper right corner of the site.
6. Enter your Morningside email and your password you just created and click "Sign In".
7. Click the top blue button to send an authentication email.
8. Check you email for an email from Dow Jones or WSJ. There will be a link to authenticate your email. Click it and you should now be able to sign in and view the content.

All Morningside students, faculty and staff have access to our database content from off campus. To gain access to this content, you will need to do the following:

1. When navigating to your desired databases, make sure you are starting from the library's website - library.morningside.edu.
2. When you select the database from the library's website, it will prompt you to log in to continue to the database. To log in, you will need to enter your Morningside credentials. These are the same as what you use for Moodle and your Morningside email.
   1. If your username and password do not work, make sure to check that you are using the correct information and do not have caps lock turned on.
   2. If you are using a K-12 computer or Internet connection, you will not be able to access the library's databases. K-12 schools will often have firewalls that block access to the databases.
3. If you get an error such as a MaxVirtualHosts error, notify a library immediately so this problem can be fixed. 

If you are having any other problems, please contact the library.

The Gale Literature database aggregates several of Gale's other literary databases together in one interface, making it easier to search for literary information regarding authors and their works. Included in this database you will find biographies, reviews, criticisms, work overviews, primary sources, and multimedia. With Gale Literature you can go beyond your basic keyword search using the People Search and Works Search. These options allow you to find only results that are actually about your author or the title of work you're specifically looking for.

If you'd like to see a demonstration of how to use Gale Literature, please watch the video below. If you have any questions, please speak with a librarian.

Whenever you find a citation or abstract, whether in a database or a list of sources from another source, you can usually get access to that item by following these steps.

1. Copy the article title.
2. Go to scholar.google.com and paste the title in to see if it is freely available.
3. If the article is not freely available, go to the HJF's website (library.morningside.edu) and paste the article title in the HJF Discovery Search box. Use quotes around the article for better search results.
4. If there are no results, it means the library does not have access to it and you will have to interlibrary loan it (ILL). ILL is free to use for students, facutly and staff at Morningside.
5. Click Libraries Worldwide using the link that appears with no search results or the limiter on the left if you got a bogus search result that is not your article.
6. Find your article in the new results and click into the record. You should see a red "Request Item via Interlibrary Loan" button on the right. 
7. Click the button and fill out the form. Hit submit at the bottom. You only need to fill in the fields with asterisks.
8. Interlibrary loan takes 2-3 business days typically for articles and 7-10 business days for books, CDs, and DVDs. Articles will be emailed as a PDF you can keep and do not have to return. Everything else must be a physical copy and can be picked up at the circulation desk in the HJF.
9. We can mail you physical items if you are a graduate student or a student taking online classes at Morningside. We pay for the shipping to you but you are responsible to ship it back to us by the due date set by the library that sent it to us. To get an item to you by mail, we're looking at 10-14 business days instead of 7-10.
10. All these times are estimates. They can be shorter or they can be longer. A lot depends on when you request it and how long it takes the other library to get us the item you requested.

If you have any questions, concerns, or issues, please contact a librarian for assistance. We are happy to help.

Boolean operators is one way most databases allow you to control your search and help limit search results. There are three main operators you will see in most of our databases: AND, OR and NOT.

You can learn more about Boolean Operators in our Research Help Guide.

Normal books can be checked out for 30 days. Reference books cannot be checked out. Oversized books can be checked out for 30 days. DVDs, Blu-rays and films in general can be checked out for 7 days. Players that plug into laptops via USB or USB-C are available for checkout as well. See our Circulation Policies for more details.

To search for a book in the library's catalog, follow the directions below. This method works for DVDs as well.

1. Enter the title of the book you are looking for or any other keyword or author information you have using our Discovery Search on the library's homepage. We recommend putting quotes " " around the phrase to limit search results.
2. After clicking "Search" or hitting the Enter key, your search will be submitted and you will any results that came up for the book. If you find that you have too many results, use the limiters on the left side of the screen to narrow your results. If you do not get any results, check your spelling and eliminate any punctuation in your search. If that does not improve the search results, it is likely we do not have that book and you will have to interlibrary loan it. 
3. Once you found the book you are looking for, you can see if the book is currently checked out, where it is in the building, and the call number of the book.
4. Click on the book to open up the detailed record. From here you can make sure you have the right edition, see alternative editions including ebooks, and place a hold on the book so you can pick it up later.

If you have any questions please contact a librarian.

 

 

To access any article free of charge, you have to access it through the library's website. Finding articles online using Google or Google Scholar does not mean the library provides access to them. To find out if the library has access to an article you found online, please see the following instructions.

Remember, the library does not have separate login information for specific publisher's websites. You must go through the library's website and proxy to gain access to content we have available.

If you would like to have items waiting for you at the circulation desk when you come to the library, you can put items on hold. You can also place a hold on an item that is currently checked out so you are notified when it is back in the library.  When a hold item is pulled and ready for pick up at the circulation desk, you will get an email. 

Here are the instructions for a patron to put holds on items. 

You can use any of the databases listed here to find articles in business & economics, the best option most likely being Business Source Premier from EBSCOhost. Academic Search Elite is also a general database that covers many different topics.

Also check out the New York Times and Wall Street Journal!

All fines and bills are paid in the Morningside University Business Office, and are subject to the business office's terms and policies. To learn more, click on the link below to read about fines and bills in our circulation policy.

You can use any of the databases listed in the link below to find articles in psychology. I would recommend looking at our Psychology Collection with PsycArticles and PsycInfo for sure. Academic Search Elite is also a general database that covers many different topics.

The Writing Center is located on the 2nd floor of the Hickman-Johnson-Furrow Learning Center.

💡 Make Sure to Review the HJF Research Guides. This will get you started in using the HJF resources, basic research skills, and some more advanced tips & tricks that will save you time and make your research more effective.

Education and teaching are incredibly large and complex topics. Please use the guide linked above to learn how to narrow your topics. This FAQ entry will provide general information for topics that are found UNDER education and teaching, but we do not focus on these individual smaller topics.

 

Articles & Databases

💻 See All Databases on Education & Teaching

💻 See All Psychology & Social Sciences Databases

 

Recommended Databases

There are two main databases that focus on the fields and professions of education and teaching.

💻 Education Research Complete (EBSCO)

“Education Research Complete is the definitive online resource for education research. Topics covered include all levels of education from early childhood to higher education, and all educational specialties, such as multilingual education, health education, and testing. Education Research Complete provides indexing and abstracts for more than 2,400 journals, as well as full-text for more than 1,300 journals and 530+ books and monographs” (EBSCO 2019).

💡 Guide on Education Research Complete (EBSCO)

 

💻 ​ERIC (EBSCO)

"ERIC (Education Resources Information Center) is an authoritative database of indexed and full-text education literature and resources. Sponsored by the Institute of Education Sciences of the U.S. Department of Education, it is an essential tool for education researchers of all kinds. It includes more than 1.6 million records, links to nearly 750,000 full-text documents, coverage dating back to 1966, and an education-specific thesaurus containing over 11,700 terms" (EBSCOhost 2019).

💡 Guide on ERIC (EBSCO)

 

Education Journals

The following list of journal titles the HJF provides access to is not exhaustive and can change at any time based on subscription status with individual databases or journals. To find out if the HJF has access to a specific journal title, use the Full Text Finder and search for the journal's name.

Suggested Journal Titles

• American School Board Journal
• Art Education
• Childhood Education
• Early Childhood Research Quarterly
• Educational Researcher
• Gifted Child Quarterly
• Harvard Educational Review
• Journal of Collect Science Teaching
• Journal of Learning Disabilities
• Journal of Special Education
• Language Teaching
• Learning & Behavior
• Remedial and Special Education
• Review of Educational Research
• Science and Children
• Science Scope
• Science Teacher

The HJF also has numerous journals that came through our many databases. Using subject terms, we have provided a short list of possible subjects that will produce results for journal titles in those areas. ⚠️ Remember, there are many more than what will show up here in these searches. Make sure to check subject headings for each journal you go into. If you're not sure what subject terms/headings are, please review the HJF Help Guides on subject terms.

Suggested Subject Terms

• Curriculum Planning
• Psychology of Learning
• Special Education
• Science, Study & Teaching
• Teaching

 

Books & eBooks

The HJF has a large selection of books & eBooks regarding this topic. A list of subject terms that may be helpful have been selected and linked below. This is NOT an exhaustive list of subject terms, so please review the subject terms given for the different titles you may select to find other books/eBooks regarding the same topics. Need help with subject terms? Check out our section in the help guides. Or if you'd like help with searching the HJF Discovery, check this help guide out.

Suggested Subject Terms

• Active Learning
• Autistic Children Education
• Behavior Modification
• Group Problem Solving
• Early Childhood Education
• Elementary Secondary Education
• Emotions in Children
• Inclusive Education
• Language Arts
• Outcomes of Education
• Problem-based Learning
• Problem Solving
• Problem Solving in Children
• Science Education
• Science - Study & Teaching
• Science - Study & Teaching (Elementary)
• Education
• Educational Technology
• Distance Education
• Educational Psychology
• Early Childhood Education
• Learning
• Teacher Student Relationships
• Psychology of Learning
• Critical Pedagogy
• Social Learning
• Educational Sociology
• Special Education
• Motivation in Education
• Effective Teaching

 

Additional Resources

The following list are some help guides and other FAQs that are often found helpful to those researching areas of education & teaching.

• APA Citation Style
• Zotero Citation Manager
• Lean Library Browser Extension
• How do you request an item via interlibrary loan?
• How long can I check out a book or film?
• How do I find the full text to an article?
• How do I find sources related to children's literature?

Annotated bibliographies are used to assist in research and writing by forcing you to consider the sources you are selecting for your research. Annotated bibliographies contain two parts: the bibliography and the annotation. Bibliographies are a list of sources you intend to use cited using the required citation style for your discipline. Below each citation you include the annotation, a short paragraph covering various topics regarding that specific source. Though annotations can vary wildly depending on need, instructor requirements, etc., they typically have these elements: a summary of the source and the research it presents; an evaluation of that source and how it fits into the general scholarly discussion; and a statement of purpose on how it fits into your research.

To learn more about annotated bibliographies, including specific citation style examples, check out the HJF Help Guide on Annotated Bibliographies.

If you have a complete article citation or at least know the name of the journal in which the article appeared and the title (or author) of the specific article, you may want to start by searching the Full Text Index for the journal. This is how you'll know which database(s) include the journal in which your article appeared, and then you can search by title or author within that content.

As always, if you have any questions or need help finding a specific article, you are encouraged to ask a librarian! 

The fastest and easiest way to renew an item from the HJF is to login to your library account and renew it from there. To do this, go to the library's webpage and click on the "Patron Login" link located just below the Discovery Search bar. Use your Morningside email and password to login and you will be able to see due dates, renew materials and more.

You may also email, call, or stop by the main circulation desk on the 1st floor of the learning center. Our contact information is located to the right on this page.

**Interlibrary Loan items may or may not be allowed to be renewed depending on the library it is borrowed from. Please check several days before the due date if you would like to renew an interlibrary loan item.

Yes, the library has a database available called LearningExpress Tests. The link is below. This database provides Occupational, Graduate and Entrance Exams for the following: Dental Assisting Certification, Medical Assistant Certification, Pharmacy Technician Certification, Physician Assistant Certification, Physical Therapist Assistant Certification, Radiologic Technologist Certification, Surgical Technologist Certification, Veterinary Technician Certification, Air Traffic Controller, Civil Service, Commercial Driver's License (CDL), Cosmetology, Culinary Arts, Journeyman Electrician, Emergency Medical Services (EMT), Firefighting, Homeland Security, Border Patrol, Treasury Enforcement, Law Enforcement, Corrections Officer, Court Officer, Police Officer, Police Sergeant, Probation Officer, Parole Officer, State Trooper, Highway Patrol, RCMP Police Aptitude, Postal Worker, Nursing, NCLEX-RN, Nursing Assistant, Nurse Aide Certification, NCLEX-PN, Real Estate Salesperson, Real Estate Brooker, Plumbers, Teaching, CBEST, MTEL, NYSTCE, ParaPro Assessment, Praxis Core, Pracis II Subject Assessment, TExES, Military, ASVAB, Military Flight Aptitude, Officer Candidate, CFAT, LSAT, GRE, GMAT, MAT, MCAT, PCAT & more.

We also have books for several tests in the reserve section at the circulation desk. 

LearningExpress Exams

Exam Preparation Books