The Encyclopedia’s back and now it’s online!
Remember when you were a kid and a door-to-door salesman selling encyclopedias showed up at your house? If your parents were like mine, they fell for the sales pitch and quickly signed up for a full set. What a great investment: I used those books for almost every school project, they were conveniently located at home so I didn’t need to travel to the library for quick information, and sometimes I just flipped through them randomly on slow weekend days looking for something interesting to read. But they weren’t perfect. Encyclopedias are big and bulky – my mother was constantly battling to find a suitable spot for them in the house (they eventually got banished to the guest room) – and they’re set in stone – if something changed I was out of luck because my encyclopedia set certainly couldn’t update itself.
Well, it’s now 2006 and thanks to modern technology they can! We’ve all got computers in our home and – most likely – use them constantly to look up everything from movie times to breaking news. But, the computer itself is not an encyclopedia. Sure, a Google search brings up tons of information, but how much of it is accurate and appropriate for your kids? Do YOU have time to filter all of your kids’ searches for them? Of course not…who does?
Britannica to the Rescue…
Britannica, a leading name in the encyclopedia business, is now electronic! Rather than sitting your child down in front of a search engine and letting them go at it, take them to Britannica’s Web Site instead. Once there, you’ll know that they’ll find safe and reliable information whether you’re in the room with them or not. Britannica’s information is updated regularly, full of extra features like video clips and images, and is designed specifically for educational purposes. Breath easy.
Research, Britannica Style…
When you use Britannica’s search bar, you get an assortment of results in an assortment of categories. Britannica organizes your search by type, which makes browsing through these categories a breeze. For example, if you’re looking for pictures, click on “Images;” if you want a video, click on “Media;” if you’re just looking for a traditional encyclopedia article, click on one of three encyclopedia options.
Typing in a search for “The French Revolution,” for example, brought me the results you see to the right…
The three encyclopedia options, “Encyclopedia Britannica,” “Student Encyclopedia,” and “Concise Encyclopedia,” each offer different advantages. The first is the full article as you’d find it in the bound book encyclopedia, the second is designed more for younger students, and the third is a quick entry if you just need a little info (the “Concise Encyclopedia” – along with the Dictionary and Thesaurus - is also all that Britannica offers for free. Everything else is only available to subscribers).
My favorite feature is the “Magazines” link. You may overlook it at first, but don’t underestimate the depth of this resource! If your child is researching The French Revolution, for example, they may read the encyclopedia entries, watch the 1-minute video clip on Versailles, and scan through the images library. But if they really wanted to take their research a step further they’d pack their bags, head for the library, and search through academic journals for professional articles to see what contemporary scholars have to say on the subject, right? Wrong! Britannica Online connects you to 100’s of journals and magazines with FULL access to their articles! (And you only need to subscribe to ONE place – Britannica – to get it!) Searching for articles on The French Revolution, I found over 100 results! This feature alone is worth every penny of the $11.95 monthly subscription price – and then some.
Wrapping Up
At the end of every encyclopedia article, Britannica offers one last cool feature…a citation index:
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To cite this page:
MLA style:
"French Revolution." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2004. Encyclopædia Britannica Premium Service. 1 Jan. 2005 <http://www.britannica.com/eb/article?tocId=9035357>.
APA style:
French Revolution Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved January 1, 2005, from Encyclopædia Britannica Premium Service. <http://www.britannica.com/eb/article?tocId=9035357>
Britannica style:
"French Revolution" Encyclopædia Britannica from Encyclopædia Britannica Premium Service. <http://www.britannica.com/eb/article?tocId=9035357>
[Accessed January 1, 2005].
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Maybe it isn’t flashy, but it is important. If your kids are college-bound, they need to know how to write research papers and how to cite their sources correctly. As a former college English professor, I know that most incoming freshman DO NOT have this skill and that ignoring citations and sources often leads directly to plagiarism. Use this resource and teach your kids how to cite their sources! It’ll be a skill that will lead them directly to the front of the college classroom.
So, How do I Sign Up?
Access to Britannica’s site is free, but like I said before, you’ll only get to see their concise encyclopedia articles and dictionary and thesaurus entries. Full access comes in three packages:
- Annual – pay $59.95 for the full year
- Daily – pay $5.95 for 24 hours of access
- Monthly – pay $11.95 for one month
If you’re interested, subscribing is easy. They even offer a free 72-hour trial so that you can see if Britannica Online is right for your family. Check it out!
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