Searching using LexisNexis

Searching using LexisNexis
1. Unique features of this database
*being able to do either an easy search or a power search
*when using the power search setting-the user can choose natural language or terms and connectors
*being able to limit results by names of newspapers and dates of publications
2. To find the answer to the patron’s question, I started off with an easy search-children and computers. This brought up 999 hits. In order to narrow these overwhelming amounts, I chose to look at geography-Germany. This brought up 5 hits and none of these were relevant to my topic. I then decide to do a power search in terms and connectors-(lower socio-economic and children) and computers. This resulted in 443 hits, I further narrowed the results by geography. This time the area was Europe and it resulted in 44 hits.
The following are articles pertaining to the area of lower socio-economic children and how technology impacts their lives.

Poor kids far behind well-off classmates Study sees links between family status, school performance
The Toronto Star, April 18, 1997, Friday, METRO EDITION, NEWS; Pg. A1, 699 words, By Elaine Carey TORONTO STAR

Tackling the digital divide According to a recent report, increased access to technology training makes little difference in the participation levels of those from lower socio -economic backgrounds, what then is the answer to the digital divide?, asks Padraig Collins
The Irish Times, November 6, 2000, CITY EDITION; COMPUTIMES; Pg. 8, 843 words

We must help our kids navigate the choppy waters of school
The Irish Times, November 13, 2007 Tuesday, EDUCATION; Pg. 12, 1116 words
3.Learning how to use this resource:
-I would recommend that someone who is using this database for the first time to practice with some simple searches, with emphasis on the word simple. Do not try to put to many details in when doing an easy search.
-When looking articles from other countries, narrow by geography. Do not limit by language. After looking for the article from Germany, I tried to narrow by language and imagine my shock when everything was written in German.
-When in doubt about how to use this or any database, do not be afraid to use the tutorials or helps. LexisNexis is very user-friendly in this capacity.