LibGuides: ED 537: Research in Schools: Your Research Topic

Structured Thinking About Your Topic

Researchers in nursing use the PICO(T) [pee-ko] format to identify the elements that compose their research question; this helps to break the topic down into manageable parts to make searching easier. Education researchers might find that this format translates well to their topic.

Nursing	Education equivalent
P = Patient Population	Study Population (student / teacher, grade, subject, etc.)
I = Intervention or area of Interest	Curriculum, teaching technique, support method, etc.
C = Comparison or Control group (can be nothing)	This one might not translate
O = Outcome	Desired effect
(T) = Time frame (e.g. how long does it take for the intervention to reach an outcome?) Not always included	Might not be included

Turning a Topic Idea into an Effective Search

Identify the key elements of your topic
Search for 1 element (keyword) at a time
Watch for the preferred terminology for each element of your topic by watching the database subject headings (or look for the Subject list on the left sidebar)

Keep a list of the best search terms (different databases may use different terms)
Not finding enough? Broaden your topic (e.g. instead of Grade 3, try elementary education)