What is the NCELA Resource Library?
How do I search the Resource Library?
What information is included in Resource Library records?
How do I find full-text documents?
I still need help. Who can I contact?

What is the NCELA Resource Library?

The NCELA Resource Library is a comprehensive collection of over 24,000 items concerned with the education of language minority students. These materials consist of a wide variety of resources in multiple formats including: research reports, classroom materials, books, curriculum guides, conference papers, journal articles, literature reviews, newsletters, fact sheets, posters, educational kits, and multimedia products. The Resource Library is a comprehensive knowledge base on the instruction of English language learners. It should not be seen as a single prescriptive voice on how to educate English language learners, but as a descriptive collection of the many voices, needs, and experiences of the education community.

How do I search the Resource Library?

The Resource Library search page can be found at http://www.ncela.gwu/rcd/ or by clicking on the “Resource Library” link on every page on the NCELA website.

Use the dropdown search menu for basic searches in the Resource Library.

Using punctuation characters will restrict your search further.

Use the date of publication menu to limit items to restricted publication dates.

What information is included in Resource Library records?

A successful search will yield a list of citations returned in chronological order, with the most recent year first. By selecting an item, you are directed to its document resume—an extensive description of the document's origin and characteristics. By reviewing a document resume, you should be able to understand the basic contents of a document, when and where it was produced, and how to get a copy of it.

Some of the information included with the document resume is explained below:

• The Acquisition Number is a six digit number (beginning with BE) that is sequentially assigned as each item enters the collection. (These are commonly called “BE numbers” by NCELA staff.)
• If the item is available on the Internet, the Online field contains its URL. Note that links to external websites are current at the time the document is added to the library.
• Descriptors are keywords assigned to the document, noting the subject heading(s) which the document falls under. These descriptors are chosen from the ERIC Thesaurus and are a controlled vocabulary: terms are used consistently in identifying and describing items, to facilitate search and retrieval.
• Identifiers are terms specific to language instruction and language acquisition which have not been made part of the ERIC Thesaurus (e.g., “dual language programs”) or proper nouns (e.g., “San Francisco Unified School District”) that are of importance to the document.

How do I find full-text documents?

Many of the items in the Resource Library are available as full-text documents within the NCELA library database. To restrict your search to full-text documents, check the box labeled “Find only items available full-text on (or via) the NCELA website” on the search page.

Please note that for some items, NCELA provides links to full-text items hosted on other websites. While NCELA makes every effort to ensure that these links are up to date and correct, we are not responsible for external organizations moving or removing documents.

NCELA is not able to provide full-text accessibility for all of the items in the collection. To locate an electronic version of the full-text of an item, we suggest:

• searching for the item in the ERIC database
• searching for the item on the website of the publisher
• searching for the item in your local university, college, or public library
• In select cases, NCELA staff may be able to provide a scanned copy of the item. Contact askncela@gwu.edu to submit your request. Please include the BE number of the item you are requesting.

I still need help. Who can I contact?

NCELA staff are available Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. (ET) to help you with your searches and requests for information. When you are emailing, mailing, or faxing a request for information, please provide as much information as possible: What are you looking for? What is your purpose? This information helps us better determine the depth, type, and amount of information you need. And please provide us with full contact information (email, telephone, fax, and address), so we can deliver the information in the most effective and appropriate method possible.