Reviews design factors to consider when planning library media centers. Highlights include planning teams; planning for more than one kind of learning; considering community as well as school use; planning for existing technology rather than future possibilities; considering ease of supervision; traffic patterns; lighting and sound damping; and…

Describes a program developed at Winona Middle School (Minnesota) to integrate the state standard for information literacy into the curriculum. Explains the role of the school library media specialist and discusses the final product which is a student portfolio, a HyperStudio multimedia presentation that incorporates the newly acquired skills.…

Reports the results of three statewide studies in Alaska, Colorado, and Pennsylvania, which show that a school library media program with a full-time library media specialist, support staff, and a strong computer network leads to higher student achievement as evidenced on standardized achievement tests. (LRW)

Discusses the role of the school library media specialist in student assessment. Topics include guidelines in "Information Power" (1998, American Library Association); formative and summative assessment; the role of classroom teachers and students; collaboration between teachers and media specialists; and the evaluation of…

Discusses ways in which cooking and food can be used to integrate school library media programs into the curriculum. Topics include gender consciousness; family literacy; alternative formats for special physical or learning challenges; history and social studies applications; world cultures; and cookbooks and literature. (LRW)

Discussion of nontraditional entrepreneurial universities and challenges that they pose to library administrators at more traditional universities highlights experiences at the University of Phoenix (Arizona). Topics addressed include adult learning theories; curriculum development; learning resource services; accreditation issues; fair use;…

Discusses the library media program for the Duneland (Indiana) school district, two-time winner of the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) National Library Media Program of the year Award, 1973 and 1993. Highlights personnel, staff development, budgets, student access, library collections, technology, Internet and filtering policies,…

Discusses how to integrate a computer lab with a school library media center. Topics include planning; management issues; printing guidelines; scheduling; instruction and integration; staff development; supervision while classes are in the computer lab; and technical issues. (LRW)

Reviews the top periodical databases for elementary schools, middle schools, and high schools based on the opinions of library media specialists and teachers. Explains the evaluation criteria which include searchability; navigability; help available; appearance, including consistency of page design; reading level; speed; document printing and…

Block scheduling has the potential to affect several aspects of the library media program--information literacy instruction, collection development, access to the library media center, and collaboration between teacher and teacher- librarian. To explore these, two schools--a high school and middle school--that have implemented block scheduling are…

Reports on a case study that focused on journal writing as a means of deepening elementary school students' cognitive and affective awareness of the information search process. Describes the research team that conducted the research and the impact of journal writing on the school library media specialist's reflective practices. (Author/LRW)

Reports on Macalester College's (Minnesota) Learning Center peer-mentoring, speaker, and workshop programs, which were designed to focus on anti-racism activism and reorganization of multicultural affairs. Analyzes ambiguity of terms "racism" and "multiculturalism" and argues that a systematic approach is necessary to move…

School library literature has illuminated several structural barriers (such as lack of time and role perception conflict) that impede many school library media specialists (SLMSs) from fulfilling their student assessment role in practice, and specialists have identified technology as a mediating artifact that could aide in an expansion of that…

"Conversations with California Community College Librarians" is a snapshot in time at a time when colleges are swelling with new students, technology is surging ahead, and campus revenues are not keeping pace with growth or modernization needs. College library collections and services are increasingly technology-dependent. College…

The Learning Resource Services (LRS) department at Austin Community College, in Texas, has developed a procedure for dealing with situations when a library user objects to items in a collection or display or protests that an item is not in the collection. First, three resources have been created to handle challenges. The LRS Materials Selection…