Background Information
Three online resources that you can use to find general or background information about a topic are:
Each of these resources can give you information about your topic, as well as provide you with additional sources to begin your research. Read below for more information about each resource, including how to search for information.
An encyclopedia, such as the Encyclopedia Britannica, can provide you with background information about a topic, and can also provide you with additional sources to read to get more information.
The information in the Encyclopedia Britannica is reliable because it is written and edited by experts.
Select elementary (easiest text to read), middle (more difficult to read), or high school (most difficult to read) to begin your search.
Enter a search term in the SEARCH box or explore the topics on the website. Once you find an entry to read, you can adjust the reading level, translate the text, and listen to the text read out loud.
If you want to save the entry to read later or to annotate, click on the arrow (Send to) and select your Google Drive.
Gale in Context - Opposing Viewpoints is a source that provides information in the form of data, facts, and arguments to support both sides of a debated issue, such as criminal justice reform, climate change, and government spending.
Enter your topic in the SEARCH bar or look through the issues by clicking the BROWSE ISSUES button.
After you find your issue or topic, read the Overview section for background information, and then scroll down for different types of sources about the issue. Notice that Viewpoints lists many opinion or editorial articles, which express the writer's opinion. The resources under Reference, Statistics, and Infographics are more fact-based. There are links to videos and audio materials, as well as news and magazine articles about this issue.
Finally, there is a list of academic journal articles or research conducted by scholars about the issue.
Wikipedia is an encyclopedia that is created and maintained by volunteers. You can access entries in multiple languages and there is also a version with easy-to-read text.
Although Wikipedia is easy to use, read, and understand, there is a signficant downside related to reliability. Since anyone can create or edit a Wikipedia entry, you may be reading an article written by someone who is not an expert on the topic. You can verify the information in a Wikipedia entry by checking the sources that are cited and/or using other sources for background information.