Kick into Reading (KiR) aims to support literacy work among families and professionals such as teachers, librarians and other community workers by using male role models from football clubs to nurture an interest in reading and storytelling. The main planned outcomes are to deliver 18 KiR projects based at football clubs, bringing high-quality…

In this article, the author discusses how her sixth-grade students gained writing skills and learned to "dream big dreams." She wanted to celebrate literacy, and also create something that could raise funds to support literacy projects, so she challenged her students to write to their favorite authors and ask each for a recipe. The end result of…

In an attempt to gauge the effectiveness of their information literacy program, librarians at Stephen F. Austin State University began comparing average course grades in course sections that receive IL instruction to grades in sections that do not. The results varied, revealing no clear benefit to information literacy instruction. We discuss…

Social technologies such as Weblogs, wikis, and social bookmarking are emerging both as information resources and as tools for research. This paper reflects on these technologies and suggests they may be well placed to build fluency in the higher-order thinking skills outlined in various information literacy frameworks, particularly in an…

Three years ago, the author was a newly minted library media specialist, a bit green, but excited, enthusiastic, and ready to educate her middle school students. Once she learned that four out of the twenty-five sixth grade classes she was required to teach were bilingual "Dual Language Classes," the author was determined to use her background in…

According to the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (2006), "Accomplished library media specialists are instructional leaders who forge greater opportunities for learners" (55). As one of the few school personnel responsible for all students, the media specialist can serve as a coordinator and an advocate. They can ensure equitable…

This study examines international student information needs and whether education level, age, and gender affect their information use. An e-mail survey revealed that international students need information that supports their academic courses, and those with higher education levels use databases, remote access to library offerings, and e-journals…

It was a banner year for women in 2006. Their average annual starting salary finally cracked through the $40,000 glass barrier, increasing to $40,566 for all women and with a substantial gain of 11.3% for women in the Southwest. There was small, but solid, growth in salaries overall. Another surprise was the substantial leap in graduates reporting…

Graduate schools have been admitting more and more students older than the "traditional" 18- to 24-year-old campus population. These adult learners may come to their programs of study without formal training in library use in general or literature searches in particular. By examining various successful and unsuccessful strategies used by…

This research paper addresses the information needs of Kent State University's (Ohio) Master's of Business Administration (MBA) students. Data was collected from the students using a focused information needs questionnaire, and then summarized. The results were analyzed to determine which tools were being used by MBA students when they research…

School media centers are at a critical juncture. Over the next decade, schools will undergo fundamental technical, economic, societal, instructional and administrative changes. Current uses of computers in education include drill and practice, word processing, simulation exercises, database management, and computer-based graphics. When the use of…

The National Survey of Desktop Computer Use in Higher Education was conducted in the spring and summer of 1990 by the Center for Scholarly Technology at the University of Southern California, in cooperation with EDUCOM and with support from 15 corporate sponsors. The survey was designed to collect information about campus planning, policies, and…

ERIC and PsycLit are two of the most frequently searched CD-ROM databases at the Indiana University-Bloomington campus. Training has been developed to help students use these popular resources. This includes classroom presentations on ERIC in the Education Department and training workshops in the library for ERIC and PsycLit users. In 1990 a…

Arkansas is a rural state with diverse educational needs. To help meet these needs, the Arkansas Academy for Leadership Training and School-Based Management Technology Committee made a decision to survey all public school library media specialists (LMSs) in Arkansas about technology presently in use in Arkansas schools and to locate educators with…

Designed to aid local districts in implementing local school improvement plans, this three-part curriculum guide begins by addressing the long-range planning of library media programs. The first part suggests a 10-step process for planning and provides an example of a 5-year improvement plan for library media programs, a checklist for evaluating a…