LIS 6603
--Basic Info Sources / Services--
Annotated Bibliography Entry
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I.a. Students are able to evaluate critically, reflect, and problem-solve individually as well as collaboratively.
II.b. Students evaluate and select print and digital information resources and systems to meet needs of users.
II.c. Students understand and use appropriate information technology for information services.
III.a. Students analyze, organize and describe various formats of information objects.
*Instructor Comments*
"Great job! Jose."
--Hong Huang
While it's not uncommon for people from all walks of life to read for information, the process of reading deeply and comprehensively for information is a skill practiced by considerably less. This assignment takes that notion and applies it to the field of library science. When researching information for personal use or for patrons, it's imperative to go beyond the content that's immediately in front of one's eyes and seek to place that content within the greater context of its creation. The author of the content, the source and time of its publication, its level of objectivity, its employed rationale and stated purpose--all of these facets play into the value and integrity of the informational content being examined. This assignment emphasizes just how powerful this surrounding data can be, and can even, in the case of my experience, lead one to discover new information about themselves in the process.
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(View)
I.a. Students are able to evaluate critically, reflect, and problem-solve individually as well as collaboratively.
II.a. Students identify and analyze diverse information needs of individuals and communities.
II.b. Students evaluate and select print and digital information resources and systems to meet needs of users.
II.c. Students understand and use appropriate information technology for information services.
III.a. Students analyze, organize and describe various formats of information objects.
III.b. Students identify and apply best practices in the use of different technologies for knowledge representation.
*Instructor Comments*
"Great job! Jose."
--Hong Huang
Just as other assignments throughout this program have sought to answer the question of "why" as it applies to various aspects of library science, so too does this assignment seek to have the student discover what their internal rationales are with regards to employing the use of online catalogs. By providing a series of dummy patron queries, the assignment had students use the USF Libraries catalog and various research databases to fulfill these requests. But perhaps more importantly than the answers themselves was the reasoning students applied to finding those answers. What keywords from the patron's question did we select? What other alternative phrases might we have used? What is the thing that the patron was *actually* asking for? We must always be asking these questions of ourselves during reference transactions. The good researcher has not one way to find the needed information but many ways that are all adaptable to the given query. Assignments like this one allow us to begin building up that repertoire of methods.
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