Libraries can be so puzzling? So many words for the same thing! So many ways to find information! Take Journals for instance – this is a descriptive word for certain publications but is also often used as shorthand for the articles inside such publications. Herein lies the confusion but read on for some illumination.
Journals, also known as periodicals or serials, are published at regular intervals e.g. monthly, quarterly or annually, and include articles by many different people. In the Library the journals are shelved in alphabetical order of their title but they are in several sequences: the latest issues (see photo above) are by the entrance to the Library, previous issues (for the past 10 or so years) are on the Journals shelves on the ground floor and older back issues are held in the Libray Office. All of these journals are available to you for reading in the Library. You can find which Journals the Library subscribes to by browsing the Journals lists on the Home page of the Library catalogue or by doing an Advanced seach within the Library catalogue and choosing journals as the Collection to be searched.
Academic journals usually focus on a particular discipline or area of knowledge: for example Biblical Archaeology Review, The Christian Teachers Journal, Journal of Counseling and Development, Studies in Christian Ethics or they publish articles from certain groups: The Australian Wesleyan, The Muslim World, Youthworker Journal. If you have a particular interest in a field of study or a journal has been recommended to you, then browsing the printed copy of the journal in the Library will keep you up to date with articles being written and published.
However the main use of journals for study purposes is to locate specific articles relevant to your papers or research. In previous posts we have considered how to recognise references to articles and how to choose a database. More hints on these skills next time and look out for posts about journals online too.
