Find the Education Collection in the General Collections and Humanities Center on the 3rd floor of the Main Library. Our large, well-rounded collection encompasses educational theory and practice for students and teachers from early childhood education through post-graduate study and older adult learning. We collect and maintain books, eBooks and online resources to aid with test preparation, school admissions and financial aid, and study skills. We also offer access to free online courses on a wide variety of subjects including career skills, creative arts, language learning and more.
Our Resources
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- Gale Courses | Gale: Register for free online instructor-led courses. Gale courses start every month and run for six weeks. Please read the Requirements section of the course description for any special software needs.
- HelpNow | (Brainfuse): Live homework help from expert tutors is provided in English, Spanish, and Cantonese, for all ages, in math, science, English, and social studies. Brainfuse also offers writing assistance, practice tests and test-preparation flashcards, as well as resources for cover letters, resumes, and interviewing.
- Language Learning: Advanced ESL and Conversation courses, language learning eVideos on Kanopy, Mango Languages and Rosetta Stone.
- Skill-Building for Adults | (LearningExpress Library): Online courses for mathematics, reading, writing, and grammar. Searchable eBooks on more than 150 career topics are also provided here.
- Treehouse: Online learning platform that teaches coding and web development skills, such as HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and PHP. If you are a first-time user, you must register for an account. Read how to register for a free Treehouse account.
- Udemy: High-quality, on-demand video courses taught by instructors across 75 categories in the areas of business, technology, and design. See Udemy's access requirements.
- The print collection includes test preparation books for the AP, GED, GRE, PSAT, SAT, SSAT / ISEE and other exams. Note: some career-specific text prep books - such as the ASVAB, LSAT and MCAT – are found in other sections of the library. Please check the catalog or ask a librarian for assistance.
- LearningExpress Library 3.0: Online practice tests and tutorials for SAT, GED, GRE, GMAT, ASVAB, Civil Service, and other exams.
- Peterson’s Test Prep: Full-length, timed practice exams and courses include GED, HiSET, ISEE, COOP, SSAT, AP, CLEP, SAT, ACT, ACCUPLACER, GRE, LSAT, MCAT and much more.
- Career Online High School: The San Francisco Public Library offers a fully accredited online high school diploma and career certification program through Career Online High School (COHS). COHS is available via the internet, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. SFPL funds a limited number of scholarships available to SFPL card holders who are California residents and at least 19 years old.
- California High School Equivalency Test: Information about GED, HiSET, and TASC exams
- Peterson’s Test Prep: Peterson's Test Prep is an online tool for standardized test preparation, researching and selecting college and graduate schools, finding tuition assistance and exploring careers.
- California Colleges and Universities:
- California Community Colleges
- City College of San Francisco - Free for San Francisco Residents!
- California State Universities
- University of California
- California Community Colleges
- Student Financial Aid Web Sites:
- California Student Aid Commission
- Federal Student Aid: Click here to fill out your FAFSA.
- FinAid.org: Information about financial aid, scholarships, saving for school, ROTC, and more.
- Scholarships.com: Search here for scholarships, grants, Pell grants, and more.
The library’s databases provide free access to articles, published research, conference papers and other materials related to educational research. See our full list of Education Databases here.
Print Reference materials include:
Proceedings of the National Education Association [1857-2004]
The Reference Shelf [historical volumes]