ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries Ja n u a r y 1 997 / 19 The Way I See It Gathering inform ation: How to get there from here B y C e lia R a b in o w itz Why m etaphors m atter on the in form ation superhighw ay N ot too long ago a student came to me asking for assistance using the ERIC da­ tabase. “I only have this much information,” she said, displaying a pile of photocopied ar­ ticles about 2 or 3 inches thick, “and I need more.” I asked her if she had started to read what she had already collected. No, she re­ plied, she didn’t have as much as she needed yet. After we talked for a few minutes I was able to convince her to look through her mate­ rials, think about her topic, and then return to search for more if necessary. Interactions like the one described above are increasingly common in the contemporary academic library. Students are becoming ex­ perts at “hunting and gathering.” They come to the library, do “research” (this they identify as time spent using a CD-ROM database or two), collect journals, and spend 30 -6 0 minutes pho­ tocopying. Most students feel a great sense of accomplishment leaving the library, knapsacks bulging with photocopied articles, waiting for the touch of a green or yellow highlighter. Cerise Oberman is one of several librarians who has observed that many students (and I would add faculty) are convinced that all rel­ evant information on a topic can be retrieved through the computer.1 As a result, students and faculty often expect library instruction to be focused on tool, (i.e., computer) use. And after a significant shift away from tool-based instruction the past ten years, some librarians are moving back to teaching mechanics by of­ fering generic workshops on the Web, use of electronic mail, or other electronic information- gathering tools. Information gathering has be­ come the climax of intellectual inquiry. And the computer has made information gathering seem easy. N avig atin g the w o rld of inform ation The various metaphors that have come to rep­ resent our relationship to the constantly ex­ panding universe o f information reflect how much we feel either in control of, or controlled by, new forms of access to it. Perhaps we have to accelerate faster than we would like in or­ der to get on the information superhighway, too soon after having just learned basic driving skills, barely having time to enjoy the scenery, and more than likely missing our exit. And the most experienced Web surfer can be undone by bad weather ( “the server is not respond­ ing”) or may only manage to ride along the crest of the waves, barely skimming the sur­ face. And aren’t Web surfers, like their cousins the channel surfers, out there more for fun than serious business? If we must view the modern world o f infor­ mation and its access points as a vast transpor­ tation system, I prefer to think o f the individual user as a navigator, as someone who plots the course for a specific destination before setting out. A skilled navigator must be confident about the final destination and prepared for any num­ ber of roadblocks. The most effective path to­ ward a given destination may not be a straight line or might involve travel over various types o f terrain (print, electronic, microform). What looks on the map like the correct turn could turn out to be a dead-end. The savvy traveler will plan strategic rest stops to refuel and as­ sess the journey. Alternative routes should be part of any good itinerary (in case o f unex­ pected construction, accidents, etc.), and trav­ elers should always feel comfortable stopping to ask for directions. C elia R a b in o w itz is ref e r e n c e lib ra ria n /in s tru ctio n c o o r d in a t o r a t St. M ary ’s C ollege o f M arylan d; e -m ail: cerab in o w itz @ o sp rey .sm cm .ed u mailto:cerabinowitz@osprey.smcm.edu 2 0 / C&RL News Lib ra ria n s: The A A A of the inform ation h ig h w a y In the academic setting, librarians and classroom faculty must continue to work together to en­ sure that students view searching, reading, and writing as interconnected parts of the journey we call the research process.2 Questioning, searching, gathering, reading, and evaluating are components of a cycle repeated throughout the process of writing a paper or preparing a pre­ sentation. No matter how much fun, or how easy, the technology has made information gather­ ing, we still have to read and think about what we find in order to prepare to write. There is an urgent need for faculty to make this clear to students, and to discuss the purpose o f as­ signments and papers among the objectives o f a class.3 Librarians are strategically posi­ tioned to help students and faculty develop good navigational habits grounded in an under­ standing o f how knowledge is synthesized and produced in the various disciplines. At the risk of carrying a metaphor to ex­ tremes, librarians are the equivalent o f AAA for the information superhighway. We can help travelers plan their journeys, point out the sce­ nic routes, highlight rest stops, and respond to roadside emergencies. We can also suggest al­ ternative forms o f transportation (formats and access points). Librarians possess the knowl­ edge and expertise to bring those who have joined the “computer as goddess” cult back to reality, and to encourage those who are still riding a horse and buggy to try something new. One of the most effective ways we can accom ­ plish these goals is by strengthening our tradi­ tional role on campus as one o f the primary loci of support for the process o f intellectual inquiry for all members of the community. The faster the maps change, the more important the navigators become! Notes 1. Cerise Oberman, “Library Instruction: Con­ cepts & Pedagogy in the Electronic Environ­ ment,” RQ 35 (spring 1996): 318. 2. For more on the holistic approach, see Bar­ bara Fister, “Teaching the Rhetorical Dimensions of Research,” R esearch Strategies 11 (fall 1993): 211-219, and Raymond G. Mclnnis and Dal S. Symes, “Running Backwards from the Finish Line: A New Concept for Bibliographic Instruc­ tion,” L ibrary T rends 39 (winter 1991): 223– 37. 3. R o b ert A. S c h w e g le r and Linda K. Shamoon, “The Aims and Process o f the Re­ search Paper,” C ollege English 44 (Decem ber 1982): 817– 24, present a useful study of how students view the purpose of writing papers and why the result is often not what the in­ structor expected. ■ C&RL N ew s 30th a n n iv e rsa ry quiz Here is the next C&RL News 30th anniversary quiz. Test your recollec­ tion o f events reported in C&RL News since 1966. 1. W h en did Ja m e s Cagney, J o h n W ayne, and Humphrey Bogart appear in C&RL News? 2. The 1 9 7 9 P resid en t o f th e A m erican As­ sociation o f University Professors was a li­ brarian. Who was she and where did she work as a librarian? . W h at ACRL co m m itte e m et fo r th e first time at ALA’s 1991 Midwinter Conference? . A c co rd in g to th e resu lts o f th e 1 9 9 3 ACRL member survey, what was the num­ ber one reason for ACRL membership? . W h o w as M ichael K u n ash k o, an d w h at was his significance in the history o f li brarianship? 3 4 5 Answers: 1. North Texas State U niversity w on a Special A w ard in the 1987 John C otton D ana L ibrary Public R elations A w ard C ontest for its “Tough Guys Fight Crime” PR campaign against mutilation and theft w hich featured the three actors on posters and bookm arks (June 1987). 2. M artha Friedm an w as an associ­ ate professor and history and philosophy librarian at the University of Illinois, U rbana (February 1979). 3. The ACRL Racial and Ethnic D iversity C om m ittee (A pril 1991). 4. T o update know ledge of library practice (June 1994). 5. M ichael Kunashko pleaded guilty to book theft from the General Library at the University of California, Berkeley. He received a six-month sentence to county jail, which was suspended, and was placed on probation and forced to pay restitution to the university and to the booksellers to whom he had sold stolen books (June 1984). Jan u ary 1 9 9 7 / 21 2 2 / C&RL News