The Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) is a national information system designed to provide users with ready access to an extensive body of education-related literature. ERIC, established in 1966, is supported by the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Educational Research and Improvement, and the National Library of Education.
The ERIC database, the world's largest source of education information, contains abstracts of more than 1,000,000 documents and journal articles. ERIC collects and disseminates a variety of published and unpublished materials on a wide range of education-related topics, such as books, research reports, monographs, conference papers, studies, instructional materials, lesson plans, manuals, bibliographies, and tests.
The ERIC system consists of 16 subject-specific ERIC Clearinghouses and 8 ERIC Adjunct Clearinghouses. These clearinghouses identify, acquire, and process educational information in such subjects as reading and communication skills, science and mathematics, and social studies, and in such areas as elementary, higher, rural, and urban education.