Examines use of the World Wide Web on public-access computers at the American University Library (Washington, D.C.) to identify the most frequently accessed Web sites, the frequency with which library-owned Web resources were accessed, and Web-usage patterns in the library in relation to the time of day and day of the week. (Author/AEF)

Discusses ways to improve and standardize intellectual access to electronically published historical documents. Highlights include metadata; information retrieval; the need for user studies; the need to assess implications for change in publication management; and the need to compare empirically various technological approaches to access to…

Uses continuous-time stochastic models, mainly based on semi-Markov chains, to derive user state transition patterns, both in rates and in probabilities, in a Web-based information system. Describes search sessions from transaction logs of the University of California's MELVYL library catalog system and discusses sequential dependency. (Author/LRW)

Examines the relationship between information science and information-systems (IS) research through analysis of the subject literature of each field and by citation and co-citation analysis of highly cited researchers in each field. Subfields of user studies and information-retrieval research were selected to represent information-science…

The paper reports the results of a preliminary study of interpersonal information seeking (IS) interactions between a user and a human information source. Study showed that users specify their information needs (uncertainty) largely in terms of what they know (certainty) during the interaction. (Author)

Examines the information use environment--information needs and behaviors--of the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS). Discusses a method for more effectively disseminating information throughout the campus, as well as implications for the development of information seeking models and a model of the NPS information environment. (AEF)

Reports on a longitudinal study of public-library borrowing that shows that high-volume borrowers are both consistent and persistent in their borrowing. Topics include identification of high-intensity borrowers; exploration of behavioral consistency; persistence of use; and personal and behavioral characteristics. (Author/LRW)

Describes a research project designed to provide baseline data on the relationship between people's use of the public library and use of the Internet. A national survey was conducted to estimate the number of people using the library, the Internet, both, or neither, and to describe behaviors of people in each segment related to use or nonuse of…

Presents a framework for modeling the content of information objects such as documents and video programs based on observation of how users interact with those objects in the course of information seeking and use. Identifies four categories of potentially observable user behaviors: examination, retention, reference, and annotation. (AEF)

The White Paper "Valuing People" [Department of Health (DoH) (2001) "Valuing people: a new strategy for learning disability for the 21st century," London, HMSO] indicates that people with a learning disability need to become more actively involved in the decisions that affect their lives. This includes being offered active choices in access to…

Interest in strengthening the impact and value of education research has been growing around the world. Here I outline a view of the nature of "impact" and point to instances where research has had a positive impact in education, but always within a larger social and political framework. A three element "model" of research impact is developed and…

Ten children's views from New Zealand were investigated on the use of physical discipline in a small study that was an adaptation of a larger study conducted in 1998 by Willow and Hyder in the United Kingdom. This paper reports on children's views of smacking as a method of discipline in New Zealand families. A significant finding is that…

European education today is characterized by two dominant trends. First, e-learning has made impressive advances in the past five years. Second, European higher education has become increasingly internationalized. The authors wanted to determine how e-learning is used in higher education in The Netherlands, their home country, to increase and…

Long considered four-letter words by many in education, "data," "testing," and "assessments" have come to signify more than additional burdens and distractions from instruction for most educators. Although many educators are still wary of data, many top-performing school systems have embraced data as a means to drive educational decision making…

The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 places a strong emphasis on the use of student achievement test scores to measure school performance, and, throughout the United States, school and district education reform efforts are increasingly focusing on the use of student achievement data to make decisions about curriculum and instruction. To encourage…