The Availability of Access Features in Children's Non-Fiction

Abstract

This study analyzes the availability of access features in children's non-fiction as compared to their prevalence in adult non-fiction because such features are an important part of the research process increasingly demanded of younger and younger students in schools. Access features studied include: table of contents, index, bibliography, endnotes/footnotes, glossary, and suggestions for further reading list. This study found that children's non-fiction books were less likely to include bibliographies or endnotes, but more likely to include glossaries or suggested reading lists. Tables of contents and indexes were the two most popular access features in each section. Results are divided by Dewey Decimal Classification classes.