The personal computer--with its ability to store, sort, and retrieve large amounts of data, generate reports, and graphically present statistical information--is becoming an integral tool in the administration of the modern media center. The need to share and retrieve information beyond the immediate environment of the media center has always been…

Science teachers nationwide share many of the same aspirations and challenges, such as the increasing pressure to improve students' test scores. No Child Left Behind (NCLB) requires each state to create academic standards and proficiency levels in math, reading, and science that all students must meet by 2014. A testing program to assess…

Describes educational applications for Hypercard, a new piece of software for Apple Macintosh microcomputers. Highlights include programing languages; the development of databases; school media center applications; telecomputing possibilities; use in research activities; and the need for Macintosh computers and educational software in elementary…

High school students often use online databases and the Internet in the school library media center (SLMC) to complete teachers' assignments. This case study used a survey to assess teachers' awareness of electronic resources, and to determine whether their directions influence student use of these resources in the SLMC. Participants were teachers…

Discussion of criteria for use in evaluating telecommunications hardware for a school library's online searching program focuses on modem selection. The differences between internal and external modems are described, and a prioritized checklist of recommended features for external modems is presented. (CLB)

Describes ways in which microcomputer technology can help school media centers with collection development. The need to map the media center collection is discussed, benefits of collection mapping are explained, the need to consider curriculum requirements is emphasized, and setting up a database and spreadsheet is discussed. (LRW)

Discusses the role of university media centers and describes a spreadsheet reporting system for media services developed at Fairfield University (Connecticut). The need to revise the reporting system resulting from a growth in media services is discussed, and cooperation with an information system analyst to develop a new system is described. (LRW)

Describes the database developed by Tulsa Junior College's Learning Resources Center to control its microcomputer software holdings. Describes the college's automated environment; bibliographic and physical difficulties associated with microcomputer software; the in-process database; and software descriptors associated with catalog records. (DMM)

Review of technological advances and emerging information services that are having an effect on Australian schools highlights cataloging, circulation, and information services (Australian Schools Catalogue Information Service, South Australian Education Resources Information System, regional automated library networks); audiovisual services;…

Describes some of the most active school library programs for introducing elementary and secondary school students to online searching. Highlights include searches performed by librarians and students; skills acquired by students (search strategy, choosing appropriate databases, accessing information online); frequently searched databases; and…

Discusses school librarians' use of telecommunications to provide access to electronic resources and information databases outside the school library. Examples are given of services provided through the Internet, including electronic mail, file transfer protocol, Gopher, Wide Area Information Server, and World Wide Web. (five references) (LRW)

Reports an interview with the director of School Match, a firm that has created a database of information on public and private schools to assist relocated families in identifying the best local schools. The firm's finding that library and media services' expenditures relates most significantly to student achievement is discussed. (CLB)

Discussion of school library media center automation resulting from network participation provides a brief overview of the literature that mentions automation in conjunction with networks and a review of several model programs in Indiana, New York, and Ohio. Network participation in OCLC is noted. Twenty-three references are included. (EJS)

Includes three articles that discuss the top stories from "Library Journal", including the demand for librarians, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, library education, database publishers, electronic research services, the Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act (UCITA), Internet filtering, and electronic reference; the school…

Discusses ways in which online searching promotes the development of research, computer, and critical thinking skills, and reviews two databases that offer access to information on elementary school science. Lesson activities for grades four through six are suggested, and information on the vendor, system requirements, and cost of each database is…