This article introduces a group of teens who become reviewers for the Newbery Awards. A targeted young adult audience of 35 students taught by Jane Hester, a gifted instructor at Kennedy Junior High School, was chosen with careful attention to their reading abilities and willingness to participate in the arduous task of reading critically 25…

Over the past decade, educators have stressed the importance of creating exciting and intellectually stimulating environments where students are actively involved in constructing their own understandings. Whether it's designing a WebQuest to spark curiosity in science or establishing an oral history project to spur interest in local history,…

In this article, the authors share their experiences as librarians, and offer their perspectives on issues critical to the new academic librarian. When the authors sat down to sort through ideas for this article, it became apparent that while their backgrounds, coursework, and experiences differed considerably, their passions and concerns are more…

This article outlines some of the innovative ideas expressed at the December 2005 Gaming, Learning and Libraries symposium attended by the author, as well as his own notions about the potential for integrating gaming with information literacy. The purpose of this article is to recognize the possibilities to engage students in an environment that…

This study investigates the information-seeking behavior of fourteen ethnomusicologists in New Zealand via interviews. The findings shed light on what information ethnomusicologists seek, the sources and services they use, and the barriers they face in information seeking and use. A number of ways in which libraries can create collections and…

Teaching faculty learn to assimilate into their departmental culture as doctoral students; the terminal degree in Library Science, the Master's degree, however, provides training in the day-to-day operation of a library but not experience in scholarly publishing. As a result, library faculty on the tenure track live in a heightened state of…

This article focuses on organizational learning, particularly in the context of evaluation and organizational change. These concepts are discussed in terms of academic libraries. As part of this discussion, a model entitled Processes and Phases of Organizational Learning (PPOL) was developed which is a visual representation of the range of…

Over the past dozen years, the switch from paper to electronic sources of information has been all encompassing. How can technology support the efforts of scholars to find and evaluate information? General-purpose search engines use an obscure mix of advanced algorithms to index, search, match, and rank results. Metasearch software extends the…

It is too easy for teachers and library media specialists to entangle themselves in the multiple strands of standards: State core curriculum content standards, National Educational Technology Standards for Students (NETS.S), National Educational Technology Standards for Teachers (NETS.T), and the Information Literacy Standards (ALA). To prevent…

The authors used pre- and post-testing to determine if print workbooks helped to improve information literacy skills in 175 college freshmen. The results of the study demonstrate that workbooks remain a useful tool for academic libraries lacking resources or expertise to develop and maintain online tutorials.

This document provides a guide on how to properly store and care for magnetic media to maximize their life expectancies. An introduction compares magnetic media to paper and film and outlines the scope of the report. The second section discusses things that can go wrong with magnetic media. Binder degradation, magnetic particle instabilities,…

This study looks at the issue of using alternative databases to support research on historical topics. The literature on online searching in history is not as well developed, nor as extensive, as literature about online searching in other subject areas. In addition, there are only two major databases that are history-specific in terms of subject…

This guide explains how the United Kingdom Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 affects librarians and information workers in professional bodies and charitable organizations, and offers guidance on interpreting the main provisions of the law. The guide begins by providing definitions, clarifying what materials are subject to copyright, the…

These four annual survey reports combined here were published separately as a service to members of the Pennsylvania Library Association's College and Research Division. Questionnaires were sent each year to approximately 150 two-year, baccalaureate, comprehensive, and doctoral degree granting colleges and universities. Libraries surveyed were…

A practicum was designed for parents to acquire the understanding, skills, resources, materials, and wherewithal to support the emergent literacy development of their young (preschool) children. A "Home-School Library" was established for students to have developmentally appropriate books available for parents to read to their children at home…