Collections

The MERIT collection supports the teacher certification programs, includes scholarly and PreK-12 print, media, and electronic materials; and is developed in collaboration with the libraries of the UW-Madison and University of Wisconsin System.  We accept collection purchase recommendations.

Professional Collection

The professional education collection includes titles in the areas of theory and practice of education, curriculum development, teacher education, educational psychology, special education, physical education and dance, educational technology, educational testing and measurement, childhood development, adult and vocational education, counseling and guidance, and educational administration related to preschool through grade 12 education.

PreK-12 Collection

The primary purpose of the PreK-12 collection is to support the teacher certification programs in the School of Education. These materials are designed to be used by students as they learn to identify, select, evaluate, and use a multiplicity of resources in developing the curriculum for elementary and secondary students. The reading level of these materials ranges from preschool through secondary, with a strong emphasis on those materials from preschool through the middle school years. Materials are collected in those subject areas in which the School of Education offers teacher certification. The collections are developed to provide a current, not a historical, perspective.

The PreK-12 collection includes materials for preschool, kindergarten, elementary, and secondary education. Textbooks, handbooks for classroom activities, video recordings, sound recordings, and educational kits and games are inter-shelved according to subject area, along with juvenile fiction, non-fiction trade books, and other items that are representative of materials found in a school library media center.

Journals Collection

MERIT Library receives a substantial number of journals in the field of education for use within the library. Full text access to selected articles from many of these journals is available through links in the UW-Madison Libraries catalog.

Reference Collection

The reference collection contains general and specialized encyclopedias, dictionaries, bibliographies, guides, handbooks, and statistical compilations pertinent to the field of education. Materials are available in both print and electronic formats.

Testing Resources

MERIT Library owns hundreds of standardized educational and psychological tests pertinent to PreK-12 education. Some tests are open to all users; others are located in a restricted collection which is only available to users with School of Education faculty authorization. The library does not lend its restricted tests through Interlibrary Loan (ILL). To learn more about the Restricted Test collection, email: library@education.wisc.edu