Skip to Main Content Research Guides | Library | Amherst College

Education Studies Research Guide

Tip: What are reference sources, and why would I use them?

Reference sources can include encyclopedias, bibliographies, dictionaries, handbooks, and atlases

  • They provide overviews of and background information on a topic
  • They help you identify or refine your topic 
  • They provide quick, reliable facts  
  • They include bibliographies that will lead you to additional sources of information on your topic

You can find the Library's collection of reference books on Floor 1 of Frost. We also have many online databases that include collections of edited scholarly encyclopedias, dictionaries, and other reference sources.

Reference Sources

Below are links to reference sources and collections that are most useful for this subject: