Research

Longwood High School Databases

Virtual Reference Collection (VRC)

The VRC is a collection of password-protected and reliable research databases, made available only to Longwood High School students and staff.

To access, use the VRC link under "Research" in the menu bar, or the link in the heading above.

Click here for VRC Login Information 🔒🔑

What is a Library Database?

A library database is a searchable collection of digital materials, including articles, images, video, audio files and more from magazines, newspapers, academic journals, books, etc.

Scholarly Sources

How do I find Scholarly Sources?

The Longwood High School Virtual Reference Collection provides access to scholarly and peer-reviewed articles through the following subscription databases*:

*Students and staff can also find highly credible scholarly sources through the many available Open Access initiatives. See below for more details.

Scholarly vs. Non-Scholarly

SCHOLARLY SOURCES

Written by scholars who specialize in specific fields of study
Written for scholars and students
Contain original research and interpretation of data
Usually have no pictures, but may contain charts w/research data
Language is technical and specific to the field
Provides citations and footnotes
Usually longer article length
Generally published monthly or quarterly
Almost never includes advertisements

NON-SCHOLARLY (POPULAR) SOURCES

Author may not be a professional in the field being written about
Written for a general audience
Article may describe a study or research that has been done
Tries to attract reader’s interest with photos and fancy appearance
Language is simple and style may be more ‘newsy’
No citations or footnotes
Usually shorter article length
Generally published monthly or weekly
Advertisements may appear on the page

Open Access Research

What is "Open Access"?

"Open Access" (OA) is the term used to describe academic research that has been made freely available to the public. It is still highly credible, and much of it goes through the same rigorous peer-review process as the academic journals available only through a paid subscription.

Peer-review means that other professionals in the same field of study have reviewed and verified the work of the author.