ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries


October 1 9 9 2 / 5 8 3

Information retrieval and 
evaluation skills for educa­
tion students

W h a t e d u c a tio n  s tu d e n ts  n e e d  tc 
k n o w

T
his document is a complete rewriting of 
the 1981 “Bibliographic competencies for 
education students” that was created by the E

cation and Behavioral Sciences Section-Biblio­
graphic Instruction for Educators Committee 
(EBSS-BIE). Because of changing technologies, 
education reform initiatives, and new  concep­
tual models for information skills instruction, 
the EBSS-BIE Committee decided that a new 
statement was essential. In preparation for this 
task, committee members conducted interviews 
in Spring 1988 with numerous education fac­
ulty to learn their opinions about changes 
needed in the competencies statements. The 
committee also hosted a forum at the New Or­
leans 1988 summer ALA conference, during 
which teaching faculty and a school librarian 
reacted to the document and provided their 
ideas about what information and research skills 
were needed by teacher education and gradu­
ate students. During the next two years com­
mittee members prepared the present docu­
ment, “Information retrieval and evaluation skills 
for education students,” which is based on the 
Bibliographic Instruction Section Task Force’s 
1987 Model Statement o f Objectives. The BIS Model 
Statement o f Objectives has been important in 
establishing a new conceptual foundation for 
instructional objectives designed to teach in­
formation retrieval and evaluation skills in an 
environment of automated catalogs and data­

bases and sophisticated manipulation of ac­
cess points. Information Power( 1988), prepared 
by the American Association of School Librar­
ies, provided the conceptual foundation for Goal 
VI. This document has also benefited from the 
“Information literacy for educators” statement 
prepared at the University of Nebraska, Kearney 

du­(1990).

Purpose
The document’s purpose is to assist instruction 
librarians working with faculty in education and 
related areas of study to clarify precise instruc­
tional objectives.

The committee hopes that the language is 
sufficiently clear to allow practicing librarians 
to share some or all of these goals and termi­
nal objectives with departmental faculty. It is 
designed for the use of librarians as they work 
with faculty in teaching students the concepts 
of searching, retrieving, and evaluating infor­
mation in education and its related fields. This 
document is intended to reflect the important 
role of school library media specialists as part­
ners with teachers in curriculum development 
and information skills instruction. In this way 
library/information literacy skills instruction 
contributes directly to teacher education cur­
riculum reform initiatives that emphasize criti­
cal thinking, problem-solving skills develop­
ment, and collaborative partnerships among 
teachers, school library media specialists, and 
teacher education faculty. We maintain that 
before graduation all teacher education students 
must demonstrate a basic level of skills in seek­
ing, retrieving, and evaluating information.

Prepared by A C P I 's E d u ca tio n  a n d  B ehavioral Sciences Section ’s (EBSS) Bibliographic In stru c tio n  f o r  
Educators C om m ittee M em bers (1991—1992): B o n n ie  Gratch, c h a ir  (1 9 8 9 -1 9 9 2 ) a n d  P a t Libutti, co-chair 
(1 9 9 1 -1 9 9 2 ); B a rb a ra  Duke, F rances Jacobson, M ary B eth M inick, N a n c y  O ’H anlon, D ottie Persson, 
E ileen Schroeder, Thom as Tollman; a n d  p rio r m em bers (1 9 8 9 -1 9 9 0 ): Leslie B jo m c ra n tz , Jo A n n  Carr, 
B arbara Celone, M a ry Clarkson, D o n n a  Gilton, M ary Hinkle, B a rb a ra  K o m stein , Jo A n n  M ulvihill,M ary 
Nofsinger, Sally Weimer, a n d  E veline Yang.



5 8 4  /  C&RL News

These goals and objectives statements are 
equally appropriate for the instructional needs 
of graduate students in education and allied 
areas. They can be used to design com prehen­
sive instructional programs, individual course 
sessions, or any combination thereof. We en­
courage instruction librarians to pick and 
choose from the broad goals and terminal ob­
jectives that are pertinent to their local situa­
tion. From these they can then develop more 
specific, behavioral objectives that are tool- 
based and institution-based, if desired. Those 
provided in Part II are intended to be illustra­
tive of two possible applications.

Structure
The docum ent consists of two parts: Part I iden­
tifies the broad goals and terminal objectives 
which are organized according to the follow­
ing sequence:

G eneration a n d  com m unication o f  k n o w ledge in 
education —> Intellectual access — ›B ib lio g rap h ic 
re p re se n ta tio n  o f inform ation so u rces — ›  Physi­
cal access a n d  ev alu atio n  o f inform ation sources 
— ›  C ollaborative roles o f  teach ers a n d  sc h o o l li­
b rary  m edia specialists

A “Glossary” and “Reference” section con­
clude Part I. Part II contains two examples of 
applications of some goals and objectives in 
Part I. These applications provide specific b e­
havioral objectives and activities from which 
to plan instructional sessions for an undergradu­
ate social studies methods course and a gradu­
ate research methods course.

User audience
Because institutions, library settings, and indi­
vidual needs vary greatly, the user audience 
for w hom  this docum ent is intended is broadly 
defined. The committee elected not to prescribe 
separate terminal objectives reflecting educa­
tional level (e.g., undergraduate, graduate) or 
educational role (e.g., practitioner, researcher) 
in recognition of several factors. At any educa­
tional level students possess a different knowl­
edge base regarding the information gathering 
process and are in pursuit of a range of indi­
vidual information needs and interests. In the 
same vein, the activities of practitioners and 
researchers are not mutually exclusive, and, in 
fact, the various roles of educators often inter­
twine. Therefore, the term “learner” is to be 
understood in its broadest sense as encompass­
ing undergraduate students, graduate students, 
practitioners, and researchers.

Part I. Goals and objectives
G eneration a n d  com m unication o f  in form a­
tion  a n d  k n ow ledge in ed u ca tio n

GOAL I. The learner is aware that knowl­
edge in education and its related disciplines is 
com posed of a variety of types of recorded and 
unrecorded information sources and under­
stands how  the body of recorded sources is 
generated and communicated.

Objective A. The learner understands that 
educators belong to a specific discipline or sub­
discipline with associated professional organi­
zations and an identifiable body of literature.

Objective B. The learner comprehends the 
typical publication cycle of information sources 
in education and understands the differences 
in authority of these sources.

Objective C. The learner realizes the effects of 
evolving information technologies on the gen­
eration, communication, and access of information.

Intellectual access
GOAL II. The learner knows how  informa­

tion sources in education and its related areas 
o f study are intellectually accessed.

Objective A. The learner formulates and re­
fines a topic of interest into a question.

Sub-Objectives: 1) The learner understands 
w hen an initial topic may be too broad or too 
narrow and can formulate it into a research­
able question by making adjustments in scope, 
perspective, or time frame. 2) The learner re­
alizes w hen a topic/research question is disci­
pline-specific or interdisciplinary in scope.

Objective B. The learner develops a basic ap­
proach or strategy appropriate to the purpose, 
scope, time frame of the topic/research ques­
tion, and required end product.

Objective C. The learner knows that there are 
specialized access or finding tools for educa­
tion and its related disciplines and can match 
these tools to the types of desired information 
sources identified in the search strategy.

Sub-Objectives: 1) The learner recognizes that 
there are different access tools for the profes­
sional and research literature of education; for 
the type of instructional/curricular materials; for 
the type of media; and for particular in fo rm a­
tion needs, such as statistical, biographical, le­
gal, etc. 2) The learner recognizes that access 
tools vary in format and organization, and that 
this determines how  they are used. 3) The 
learner realizes that access tools have different 
strengths and limitations and that none are com­
prehensive in scope.



O ctober 1 9 9 2  /  5 8 5

4. The learner knows that the reference li­
brarian is a valuable resource to suggest ap­
propriate tools and to explain how to use them.

Objective D. The learner understands that 
finding tools have access points and knows 
how  to manipulate them to locate bibliographic 
citations an d /o r abstracts or annotations.

Sub-Objectives: 1) The learner knows that the 
three major access points in finding tools are: 
author, title, and subject. 2) The learner recog­
nizes that some finding tools provide additional 
access points, such as keywords, codes, report 
numbers, publication types. 3) The learner u n ­
derstands how  tools using a controlled vocabu­
lary differ from those using natural language 
and knows how to translate the research ques­
tion into the controlled vocabulary.

Bibliographic rep resen ta tio n  o f  inform ation 
so u rce s

GOAL III. The learner knows how informa­
tion sources in education and its related disci­
plines are bibliographically represented and 
how  this understanding can help determine the 
usefulness of the source.

Objective A. The learner com prehends that 
the specific pieces of information need ed  to 
represent information sources are arranged in 
a particular structure called a “citation.”

Objective B. The learner knows how to interpret 
and apply the information in bibliographic citations.

Objective C. The learner recognizes that cita­
tions may be useful in evaluating the potential 
relevance of information sources to a specific 
information need or question.

P h y s ic a l a c c e s s a n d  evalu ation  o f  in fo rm a ­
tio n  s o u rc e s

GOAL IV. The learner understands how collec­
tions of information sources are physically or­
ganized and accessed in libraries/media centers.

Objective A. The learner understands that li­
braries/media centers and library systems may 
group information sources by subject, format, pub­
lisher, type of material, or special audience.

Objective B. The learner understands that li­
braries/m edia centers use some type o f n u ­
meric or alphanumeric system to assign a unique 
address to most items in the collection.

Objective C. The learner understands that in­
dividual items within a library’s/m edia center’s 
collections are represented in special holdings 
or location files and catalogs.

Objective D. The learner realizes that he/she 
is not limited to only those information sources

contained in local collections.
GOAL V. The learner understands the im­

portance of evaluating information sources. 
Objective A. The learner com prehends the

significance of evaluating an author’s creden­
tials and knows how  to do this.

Objective B. The learner recognizes that the

G lo s s a r y
(D efinitions co m e  from  com m ittee m em b ers 

a n d  th e  ACRL/BIS M odel S ta te m e n t o f  Objectives.)
Access: to  identify a n d /o r  retrieve inform ation.
A ccess points: specific p ie c e s o f  inform ation 

id e n tified  as b e in g  u seful to  th e  retrieval o f infor­
mation, such as subject, author, report num ber, etc.

A ccess/F inding tools: so u rces th at le a d  th e  u se r 
to  th e  actual inform ation o r d ata su c h  as p e rio d i­
cal in dexes, o n lin e datab ases, catalogs, o r bibliog­
raphies.

B ib lio g ra p h ic access: th e  identification o f  in­
fo rm a tio n  so u rc e s b y  a cce ss p o in ts com m o n ly  
fo u n d  in th e  citation.

C itation: sp e cific p ie c e s  o f  in fo rm a tio n  a r­
ra n g e d  in a p articu lar o rd e r w h ic h  re p re se n t an  
in fo rm atio n  source.

C o n tro lled  v o ca b u la ry: s ta n d a rd  te rm s a n d  
p h ra se s th at are u s e d  to  re p re se n t su b je cts/to p ics 
o r au th o rsh ip  o f  inform ation sources. T h ese term s 
a n d  p h ra se s a re  listed in a th e s a u ru s o r authority 
file w h ic h  usu a lly  relates th em  to e a c h  o th e r b y  a 
h ierarc h al o r so m e  o th e r arrangem ent.

In fo rm a tio n : ideas, facts, data, a n d  im agina­
tive w o rk s o f th e  m in d  w h ic h  h av e b e e n  co m m u ­
n icated, re c o rd e d , p u b lish e d  a n d /o r  distrib u ted  
form ally o r inform ally in a n y  form at.

In fo r m a tio n  source: a single entity from  w h ich  
inform ation is retrieved. Examples: a p erso n , book, 
journal article, in d ex , v id e o ta p e , o r test.

In te lle c tu a l access: th e  isolating or selecting o f 
u seful inform ation from  inform ation so u rces o r 
systems.

Learner: for th e  p u rp o s e  o f  this d o cu m en t, 
le a rn e r in clu d es an y o n e seeking a n d  learning h o w  
to  access a n d  ev alu ate inform ation, su c h  as u n d e r­
g rad u ates, g ra d u a te  stu d e n ts, p ractitioners, a n d  
faculty re se a rc h e rs in ed u catio n .

Location file: a source (catalog, list, file) which 
identifies the physical location o f information sources.

P h ysica l access: th e  ph y sic al retrieval o f an  
in fo rm atio n  source.

R ecorded in fo rm a tio n  source: a physical entity 
in a n y  m e d iu m  u p o n  w h ic h  is re c o rd e d  all o r p a rt 
o f  a w ork or multiple works. Examples: book, journal 
article, m ap, videotape, or com puter database.

U nrecorded in fo r m a tio n  source: oral co m m u ­
nication, su c h  as in fo rm atio n  o b ta in e d  from  inter­
v iew s o r from  c o n su ltin g  a n  expert.



5 8 6  /  C&RL News

purpose of the author or publisher may in part 
determine the usefulness of the source.

Objective C. The learner recognizes the im­
portance of introductory material, table of con­
tents, appendices, summary, and/or abstract in 
evaluating the scope, limitations, and special 
features of the information source and its useful­
ness for the specific information need/question.

Objective D. The learner knows the differ­
ences between scholarly and popular informa­
tion sources and how to use them appropriately.

C ollaborative ro le s o f  te a c h e rs a n d  lib ra ry 
m edia sp ecia lists

GOAL VI. The learner recognizes that the school 
library media specialist is a partner who actively 
collaborates in teaching information seeking and 
analysis skills to K-12 students and in curriculum 
development and planning. (For a complete treat­
ment of collaborative roles, see the guidelines in 
Information Power, 1988.)

Objective A. The learner recognizes his/her 
responsibility as an educator to provide mul­
tiple opportunities for students to develop and 
practice a variety of basic information seeking 
and analysis skills in the context of classroom 
assignments.

Objective B. The learner demonstrates the 
ability to w ork in collaboration with the library 
media specialist to reinforce the information 
retrieval and evaluation skills necessary to uti­
lize the library media center.

Objective C. The learner identifies the types 
of services provided by the library media spe­
cialist in support of general curriculum plan­
ning and development activities.

Objective D  The learner identifies how the 
library media specialist acts as a partner with 
the classroom teacher in designing, implement­
ing, and evaluating instruction.

References
ACRL/BIS Task Force on the Model Statement 
of Objectives. “Model statement of objectives 
for academic bibliographic instruction.” C&RL 
News4S:5 (May 1987): 256-61.

ACRL/EBSS Bibliographic Instruction for Edu­
cators Committee. “Bibliographic instruction: 
bibliographic competencies for education stu­
dents.” C&RL News 42:7 (July 1981): 209-10.

American Association of School Librarians 
and Association of Educational Communication 
and Technology. Information Power Guidelines 
fo r  School Media Programs. Chicago: ALA, 1988.

Example 1: Undergraduate social studies methods course
Scenario
P ro fesso r Linden, w h o  is teach in g  a social stu d ies 
m e th o d s co u rse  for un d e rg ra d u a te  e d u c a tio n  m a­
jors, h a s a s k e d  th e  e d u c a tio n  lib ra rian  to  p re p a re  
h e r  stu d e n ts (p rim arily  ju n io rs) to  find a v ariety 
o f re so u rc e s to d e v e lo p  a u n it o f  activities o n  th e 
V ietnam  W ar for a 9th -g rad e social stu d ies course. 
T hey have d isc u sse d  lesso n  p la n n in g  in class. She 
h as also a s k e d  th at th e y  le a rn  h o w  to  u se ERIC to 
lo cate inform ation o n  le s so n  p la n n in g  a n d  te a c h ­
in g  te c h n iq u e s  fo r th e  social stu d ie s classroom . 
O n e  90 -m in u te s e ss io n  h a s b e e n  s c h e d u le d . Stu­
d e n ts  h av e h a d  p re v io u s e x p e rie n c e  u sin g  th e  
o n lin e  c a talo g  a n d  Library o f  C o n g ress Subject 
H ead in g s. T he s tu d e n t as sig n m e n t will b e  d o n e  
o u ts id e  class.

Lesson goal
T he learn er will effectively u se library a n d /o r m e­
dia c e n te r reso u rces in lesso n  plan n in g  o n  a given 
topic.

M aterials
1. O v erh ead  p rojector (w ith LCD, if available) 

a n d  projector p en s

2. CD-ROM o r on lin e version o f ERIC for de m o n ­
stration a n d  h a n d s-o n  practice (o r RIE an d  CIJE)

3. Library OP AC term inals o r card catalog
4. Files/catalogs to curriculum materials collections
5. M o n th ly Catalog o n  CD-ROM, online, or print
6. T ransparencies (to b e locally pro d u ced ): a) 

Translating a q u estio n  into a search strategy; b) 
In d e x es/ca ta lo g s ap p ro p riate for this topic; c) Use 
o f descriptors/subject head in g s in ERIC; d) B oolean 
op erato rs

Lesson objectives
1. T he learn er will select an  asp ect o f  th e  Viet­

n am  W ar o n  w h ich  to d ev elo p  a n d  form ulate a 
se arc h  strategy for locating curriculum  m aterials 
ap p ro p riate to  th e  subject area, educational level, 
a n d  specific stu d e n t n eed s. This strategy will b e 
ju d g ed  o n  its ap p ro p ria te n e ss to th e  sc o p e, p u r­
p o se, tim e fram e, a n d  o th e r asp ects o f th e  lesson 
to p ic (su p p o rts G oal II, O bjectives A a n d  B).

2. T he learn er will identify at least four infor­
m ation retrieval tools that will b e  useful in locat­
ing different ty p es a n d  form ats o f reso u rces o n  
th e  V ietnam  W ar (e.g., access tools to curriculum  
guides, textbooks, co m p u te r softw are, videotapes,



O ctober 1 9 9 2 / 5 8 7

a n d  g o v e r n m e n t d o c u m e n ts )  ( s u p p o r ts  G o a l II, 
O bjectiv e C).

3. T h e  le a r n e r  w ill fo rm u la te  a s tra te g y  fo r lo c a t­
in g  in fo rm a tio n  in  e a c h  o f  th e  to o ls  id e n tifie d , 
in c lu d in g  s e le c tin g  a p p r o p ria te  a c c e s s  p o in ts . T h e 
le a r n e r  w ill c o m b in e  c o n c e p ts  as n e c e s s a ry  a n d  
a p p r o p ria te  in th e  to o ls  s e le c te d  (s u p p o r ts  G o a l II, 
O b je c tiv e  D).

4. T h e  le a r n e r  w ill u s e  e a c h  o f  th e  s e le c te d  r e ­
trie v al to o ls  a lo n g  w ith  th o s e  liste d  b e lo w  to  lo ­
c a te  a t le a s t o n e  c ita tio n  to  b a c k g r o u n d  o r  c u r ­
ric u lu m  m a te ria ls  o n  h i s / h e r  to p ic  in  e a c h  to o l, 
in te r p re t t h e  s e a rc h  re su lts , a n d  e v a lu a te  th e  a p ­
p r o p ria te n e s s  o f  e a c h  c ita tio n  fo r h i s / h e r  in fo rm a ­
tio n  n e e d . If n o  listin g s a re  f o u n d , t h e  le a r n e r  w ill 
m o d ify  th e  s e a rc h  te rm s  a n d  try  a g a in . If n o  list­
in g s a r e  f o u n d , h e / s h e  w ill d o c u m e n t t h e  s e a rc h  
p ro c e s s  b y  e x p la in in g  s e a rc h  te rm (s ) u s e d  a n d  
y e a rs  o f  fin d in g  to o l s e a r c h e d  ( s u p p o r ts  G o a l II, 
O b je c tiv e  D; G o a l HI, O b je c tiv e s  B a n d  C).

a. Library a n d / o r  m e d ia  c e n te r’s OPAC o r  card  
c a ta lo g

b. M o n th ly  C atalog o f  U.S. G o v e r n m e n t P u b lic a ­
tio n s  on CD-ROM, o n lin e , o r  in p rin t fo rm at

c. S p ecialized  lib ra ry  a n d /o r  m e d ia  c e n te r ca ta ­
lo g s (e.g ., v id e o /film  c o llectio n  catalogs, p ic tu re / 
slid e files) (su p p o rts  G oal II, O b jectiv e C; G o al IV, 
O b jectiv es C a n d  D)

5. T he le a rn e r will lo cate th e  d e s ire d  so u rc e s in th e 
library a n d / o r  m e d ia  c e n te r a n d  e x p la in  h o w  to  o b ­
tain  th e  m aterials n o t f o u n d  in th e  co lle c tio n  (s u p ­
p o rts  G o al IV, O b jectiv es A, B, C, a n d  D).

6. T h e le a rn e r will u s e  th e  ERIC sy ste m  to  find at 
le a s t o n e  article o r d o c u m e n t o n  u n it p la n n in g  a n d  
o n e  o n  te a c h in g  m e th o d s o r  activities. T h e se  will b e  
ju d g e d  o n  a p p ro p ria te n e s s  to  th e  to p ic  (s u p p o rts  
G o al V, O b jectiv es C a n d  D).

7. F o r e a c h  in fo rm a tio n  s o u r c e  re trie v e d , th e  
l e a r n e r  w ill a n a ly z e  th e  im p lic a tio n s  o f  a u t h o r /  
p u b lis h e r /p r o d u c e r  c re d e n tia ls, th e  p u r p o s e  o f th e  
w o rk , a n d  th e  in s titu tio n a l a ffilia tio n s o f  th e  p e r ­
s o n  o r  g r o u p  o n  th e  c re d ib ility  a n d  re lia b ility  o f 
th e  in fo rm a tio n  ( s u p p o r ts  G o a l V, O b je c tiv e s  A, 
B, a n d  D).

Lesson p lan
1. In tro d u c tio n : D iscuss c u rre n t p ractice in te a c h ­

in g  a b o u t th e  V ietn am  W ar in 9 th -g ra d e  social stu d ­
ies classes. B rain sto rm  a s p e c ts o f  w a r  to  b e  c o v e re d  
in  th e  unit.

2. O bjectives: D e ta il th e  o b je c tiv e s  o f  th is class 
s e s s io n . R e la te  th e m  to  a c tu a l c la s s ro o m  te a c h in g  
n e e d s .

3. R e c a ll o f  p r e v io u s  kn o w le d g e : D isc u ss th e  u s e  
o f  e n c y c lo p e d ia s  to  g e t a n  o v e r v ie w  o f  a to p ic . 
R eview  th e  u s e  o f  te x tb o o k s  a n d  c u rric u lu m  g u id e s 
fo r s e le c tin g  in fo rm a tio n  to  b e  ta u g h t in th e  c la s s­
ro o m . R e v ie w  u s e  o f  OPAC to  id e n tify  b o o k s  o n  
th e  to p ic .

4. P resent m a te r ia l/g u id e d p r a c tic e  w ith  fe e d b a c k :

(C an  b e  d o n e  w ith  stu d e n ts w o rk in g  in dividually o r 
in g ro u p s  o n  a to p ic .)

a. U sing b la n k  tra n sp a re n c ie s , h a v e  e a c h  stu d e n t 
w rite  d o w n  h is /h e r  to p ic o r  q u e s tio n . Selectively 
v ie w  th e s e  a n d  p ro v id e  feed b ack .

b. D iscuss translating this to p ic in to  a se arc h  strat­
e g y  u sin g  T ra n s p a re n c y  6a a n d  a n  e x am p le.

c. H a v e  s tu d e n ts  w rite d o w n  a p o ss ib le  s e a rc h  
strategy o n  th eir transparencies. V iew  selectively an d  
p ro v id e  feed b ack .

d. Discuss th e selection o f  appropriate indexes/cata- 
logs for locating information. Com pare an d  contrast 
coverage o f these sources using Transparency 6b. Use 
exam ple to sh o w  selection o f indexes/catalogs.

e. H a v e  stu d e n ts n o te  w h ic h  s o u rc e s th e y  m ight 
u se  in se arc h .

f. E x p la in  c o v e ra g e  o f  ERIC system . E x p la in  dif­
fe re n t fo rm ats (RIE, CIJE, o n lin e , CD-ROM). C om ­
p a re  a n d  contrast u se  o f each. D iscuss h o w  this m ight 
b e  u s e d  to  locate m aterials for lesso n  planning. H ave 
stu d e n ts d e v e lo p  a se arc h  strategy a n d  locate a p p ro ­
p ria te  d escrip to rs. W rite o n  T ra n s p a re n c y  6c a n d  
s h a re  selectively w ith  feed b ack .

g. U sing o n e  e x a m p le , d e m o n s tra te  th e  u s e  o f 
ERIC o n  CD-ROM for lo catin g  te a c h in g  m aterials 
a n d  articles o n  te a c h in g  m e th o d s. E xplain B o o lea n  
logic (T ra n sp a re n c y  6 d  o r a n  o v e rh e a d  w ith  a n  LCD 
a ttach m en t). H av e stu d e n ts d e v e lo p  ERIC s e a rc h  for 
th e ir topics. W rite o n  tra n s p a re n c y  a n d  sh a re  se lec­
tively w ith  fe e d b a c k .

h. E xplain u s e  o f M o n th ly  C a ta lo g x n â  its vario u s 
form ats. C o m p a re  ty p e  o f in fo rm a tio n  f o u n d  in this 
in d e x  to  ERIC a n d  th e  library o r  m ed ia c e n te r’s cata­
log. E x p la in  p ro c e s s  o f  lo c a tin g  th e  in fo rm atio n  
f o u n d  in  th is ac c e ss tool.

i. D iscuss lo catin g  cu rricu lu m  m aterials in th e  
library a n d / o r  m e d ia  ce n te r. H a v e  stu d e n ts u s e  a p ­
p ro p ria te  in d e x e s /c a ta lo g s  for lo catin g  c u rricu lu m  
m aterials o n  c h o s e n  topic.

j. U s in g  s e v e ra l e x a m p le s  fro m  c ita tio n s  s tu ­
d e n ts  h a v e  re trie v e d , a n a ly z e  th e  c ita tio n  fo r c re d ­
ibility a n d  re liab ility  a c c o rd in g  to  a u th o r /p ro d u c e r  
c r e d e n tia ls , th e  w o r k ’s p u r p o s e , a n d  th e  in stitu - 
tio n /c o m p a n y  p r o d u c in g  it. H a v e  s tu d e n ts  a n a ­
ly z e  a n o th e r  c ita tio n  o n  th e ir  o w n . S h a re  s e le c ­
tiv e ly  w ith  fe e d b a c k .

k. D iscuss lo c a tio n  o f  th e s e  m aterials in th e  li- 
b r a ry /m e d ia  c e n te r  o r  o th e r  c o lle c tio n . D isc u ss 
in terlib rary  lo a n  fo r m aterials n o t in collectio n .

5. A ssessing p e r fo r m a n c e : H av e e a c h  stu d e n t d e ­
v e lo p  a lesson p lan  o n  a n  aspect o f the Vietnam W ar 
using th e resources covered in class. Evaluate the re­
sources u se d  according to th e follow ing criteria: cover­
age, timeliness, variety, u se  o f recom m ended sources, 
credibility, a n d  reliability. (This assignm ent will b e  d one 
outside class a n d  can b e evaluated b y  the course instruc­
tor a n d /o r th e education librarian.)

6. E n h a n c e  transfer: D iscuss h o w  th e s e  sa m e  or 
sim ilar acce ss to o ls a n d  in fo rm atio n  re so u rc e s m ight 
b e  u s e d  in fu tu re  le s so n  p la n n in g .



5 8 8  /  C&RL News

Example 2 : Graduate research methods course

Scenario
Professor Chapin has requested that the education li­
brarian prepare graduate students to identify refereed 
journal articles which use specific research designs. The 
students will critique the design used in the article. She 
also asked that they use the electronic access tools now  
available in the library as part of the session. The instruc­
tional delivery format is hands-on application of dem on­
strated search strategies, with a time frame of 90 minutes. 

Lesson goal
T he le a rn e r will effectively u se electronic a n d  print 
resources to select refereed research articles that dem ­
o n strate a given resea rch  design.

M aterials
1. O v erh ead  p ro jecto r (w ith LCD, if available) a n d  

p ro jecto r p e n s
2. Electronic ERIC stations (o n lin e o r CD-ROM) for 

d em o n stratio n  o f  search strategies a n d  ha n d s-o n  ex ­
p e rie n c e  for th e  learners, w ith  a Thesaurus o f  ERIC 
Descriptors at e a c h  station

3. Transparencies (to b e locally produced): a) Informa­
tion flow in education: From ideas to prepublication to 
refereed journal article to indexing/abstracting sources; 
b ) Example of journal description in Cabell’s Directory 
o f  Publishing Opportunities in Education, c) Flow chart 
o f ERIC access: progress from descriptor to access; d) 
Basic Boolean operators; e) ERIC abstract with access 
points highlighted; f) Blank transparency for responses 
to b e  recorded; g)W orksheet for ERIC database search

4. W orksheets w ith instructions for ERIC an d  blanks 
for strategy form ulation

5. Resource listings for refereed journals: Ulrich’s In ­
ternational Periodicals Directory, Vol. 3, a n d  Cabell’s 
Directory o f  Publishing Opportunities in Education.

Lesson objectives
1. The learner will give exam ples o f the publication 

cycle o f educational research (supports Goal IB).
2. T h e  le a rn e r w ill u s e  c o n tro lle d  v o c a b u la ry  

sources to obtain the descriptors ne ed ed  for the search 
(su p p o rts G oal II C a n d  G oal II D).

3. The learner will formulate a search strategy w hich 
in clu d es B o o lea n  o p e ra to rs a n d  lim iters to locate 
relev an t citations o n  ERIC in electronic form  (s u p ­
p o rts G oal II B).

4. T he learner will determ ine if a journal is refereed 
(su p p o rts G oal I B).

5. The learner will examine th e citations located and 
select for retrieval those sources that are relevant and 
refereed (supports Goal IB , Goal IV D, and Goal V).

6. T he learn er will locate th e  jo u rn als in th e library 
a n d  ex p lain  h o w  to  locate item s n o t in c lu d e d  in th e 
collection (su p p o rts G oal IV).

Lesson plan
1. Introduction: P resentation o f an  overview  o f the 

lesson, em p h asizin g  th e  objectives as th e y  relate to 
th e  le a rn e r’s assignm ent.

2. Recall o f  p re vio u s know ledge: D iscuss th e  ch ar­
acteristics o f educatio n al resea rch  literature (using 
tra n sp a re n c y  3a) a n d  elicit exam p les from  learners 
th a t d e m o n strate these characteristics. Review  the 
p u b licatio n  cycle (section o f tran sp aren cy  3a) lead ­
in g  in to  p re se n ta tio n  o n  th e g a te k e e p e r function o f 
th e  re fe re e d  journal.

3. P resentation o f  material: a) P re sen t inform ation 
o n  th e  refereed journal: characteristics, function, and 
w ays o f  assessing if a journal is refereed. Use Cabell’s 
D irectory o f  Publishing: b ) Ask questions about the 
kinds of research designs being searched. What terms 
would b e used to describe the designs? Make a list of 
learner responses (transparency 30; c) Review the access 
points of the ERIC system, using learners’ terms for re­
search designs as entry points to the Thesaurus o f ERIC 
Descriptors (transparency 3c); d ) Demonstrate the use 
o f access points particularly relevant to the task: descrip­
tor, use o f a source limiter (journals), and pubEcation 
type code for research studies w ith the electronic ERIC. 
Explain Boolean logic. Use transparencies (3c, 3d, 3e) 
an d /o r an overhead with an  LCD attachment to display 
the search; e) Show  an  ex am p le o f a retrieved cita­
tion, th e n  a n  abstract. Discuss th e  usefulness o f th e 
a b s t r a c t  f o r  t h e  p u r p o s e s  o f  t h e i r  ta s k ; 
f) Review  th e  physical arrangem ent of a journal, an d  
w ay s to verify if th e library carries th e  journal.

4. G uidedpractice/feedback a) Fill o u t a w orksheet 
(3g), u sin g  a p rojector p en , a n d  g u id e th e learners 
th ro u g h  th e  se arc h  se q u en ce; b ) H ave th e learners 
translate their topics to th e c o n tro lle d  vocabulary 
a n d  o th e r access points, using th e ERIC Thesaurus o f  
Descriptors, o n  their w o rk sh eets. Learners th e n  a p ­
ply  th e  strategies b y  c o n d u ctin g  an  ERIC se arc h  ei­
th e r individually o r in team s. Learners sh o u ld  print 
o u t th e  abstracts; c) Exam ine th e  screens to  se e  h o w  
learn ers are utilizing th e  strategies a n d  c o a c h  indi­
viduals n e e d in g  assistance. Each learn er (o r g ro u p  
o f  learn ers) sh o u ld  b e ab le to g o  th ro u g h  th e p ro ­
cess o f  constructing a se arc h  strategy, finding cita­
tions, a n d  exam ining th em  for relevancy; d ) Learn­
ers d eterm in e if th e journal is refereed , u sin g  th e 
p re s e n te d  resources, a n d  th e n  physically locate th e 
item s to  b e  u s e d  in th e  assignm ent.

5. Assess perfo rm a n ce: a) Collect th e w o rk sh eets 
to assess the effectiveness o f strategy form ulation; b) 
A sk Dr. C hapin to sh a re  h e r evaluations o f  th e  re­
sulting p a p e rs for inclusion o f re fe re e d  citations.

6. E n h a n c e  transfer: D iscuss th e  u se  o f  th e  sam e 
o r sim ilar strategies w ith o th e r relev an t datab ases in 
th e  library, su c h  as P sy c U T o r E d u c a tio n  In d e x . ■



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