LIBR 228-01
LIBR 228-10
Advanced Information Resources and Services
Fall 2010 Greensheet

Todd Gilman
E-mail
Office Location: Web
Phone: (203)432-1761
Office Hours: M-F 9-5 EST


Greensheet Links
Course Materials
Course Requirements
Course Schedule
About your Instructor
Resources
ANGEL
ANGEL Tutorials
iSchool eBookstore
 

The access code for the Angel site will be sent to those enrolled in the class via the My.SJSU.edu messaging system. The Angel site will open for self-enrollment on Monday August 23rd and will remain open through Friday August 27th.

Course Description

Survey of information sources, information transfer processes, and research patterns in the humanities, social sciences, and sciences, including use characteristics, interpersonal communication, and query analysis.  Topics covered will include library instruction, library guides, virtual reference systems, management, and evaluation of reference services.  In addition, the course will emphasize specific skills deemed essential for effective reference work: oral and written communication, functioning effectively with other people, analysis, creative problem solving, and assessment.

Intended for students who wish to work in academic libraries or major public libraries.

Prerequisites: Libr 202 and Libr 210.

Course Objectives

  • To understand the process of information seeking in the sciences, social sciences, and the humanities.
  • To demonstrate the ability to produce a library guide in both print and electronic format in consultation with a faculty member.
  • To present, as a team member, an effective interactive teaching and learning session for a specific electronic source.
  • To develop an appreciation of the strengths and weaknesses of virtual reference systems.
  • To analyze the effectiveness of electronic answering sources for statistical queries.
  • To develop skills in evaluating reference service effectiveness.

Student Learning Outcomes
At the completion of the course, the student should be able to perform the following:

  • Give examples of basic reference sources used in various types of libraries.
  • Identify various types of reference sources, including their characteristics and functions.
  • Describe theoretical concepts and techniques that support the provision of reference and information services.
  • Discover theory-into-practice approaches to provide advanced reference and information services.
  • Identify state-of-the-art information technology and current models for the delivery of reference and information services.

LIBR 228 supports the following SLIS Core Competencies:

  • use service concepts, principles and techniques that facilitate information access, relevance, and accuracy for individuals or groups of users;
  • demonstrate oral and written communication skills necessary for group work, collaborations and professional level presentations;
  • design training programs based on appropriate learning principles and theories.

In addition, this section supports the following SLIS Core Competencies:

  • evaluate programs and services on specified criteria.

Course Requirements

Primary Requirements
Primary requirements consist of:

  • Successfully completing assignments related to objectives listed above. Participation during each unit in the form of asynchronous Threaded Discussion. Use of basic HTML for student presentation pages.
  • Reading assignment must be completed each week. Readings not in the textbook are provided through Angel.

Evaluation Criteria
I shall evaluate ALL written work according to the following criteria in addition to the specific requirements for each assignment:

  • Quality of the presentation--neat and error-free
  • Quality of the writing--clear, direct, and correct
  • Quality of the organization--smooth, logical flow and content
  • Quality and amount of reflection, analysis, and evaluation

All papers must be typed, double spaced, with a font size of at least 12 points.  They must also conform to APA style.  You should own a copy of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 5th edition (2001) or more recent.  For further information, see the SLIS APA Style Resources page.

Late Assignments
Let the instructor know in advance if you will be unable to participate during a given week. Late assignments will be accepted up to five days past the deadline, with a penalty of 1 point (1% of course grade) per day. With an appropriate reason stated BEFORE the due date, students may be allowed additional time without penalty for UP TO THREE ASSIGNMENTS. I shall not accept any paper that is more than five days late.

Technical Requirements
You must have access to the following: Internet/World Wide Web access, Java-enabled Web browser, Microsoft Office (particularly Word), and Adobe Acrobat Reader 9.

You must be able to send and receive e-mail, including attachments. You should plan to check your e-mail and the ANGEL course site regularly for announcements.
For more detailed information, consult the SLIS home computing environment page.

Angel
This course is run via ANGEL. Stanley Laufer, the SLIS Network Administrator, has created a "ANGEL Tutorials and Resources for SLIS Instructors and Students" site. It is located at https://liffey.sjsu.edu/.

Course enrolment dates are 23 Aug. – 27 Aug. 2010.

Office Hours
I shall have no specific online office hours, but shall be available to answer questions submitted either through the ANGEL course site, or directly to me via e-mail. Please note that I am on Eastern Standard Time, and that you should expect to receive a reply to any questions within 48 hours of receipt. Any extended absences that might affect response time will be announced through the Angel course site.

Grading
There are 100 possible points for this course, divided as follows:

Assignments Total Point Value
4 Article Reviews=5 points each x 4 20 points
3 Exercises [i.e., sets of 10 reference
questions each]=5 points each x 3
15 points
2 Investigations 10 points each x 2 (20 points total)
2 Papers 10 points and 20 points (30 points total)
ONTIME Participation in 15 threaded
discussions [ONTIME=by midnight of the last day of the Unit to which the discussion corresponds]
1 point each x 15 (15 points total)

Specific requirements for each assignment, including due dates, will be posted in the course site via Angel.

EXTRA SPECIAL NOTE: Every semester students lose points by neglecting to double-check that their work has been submitted properly. DON'T LET THIS BE YOU!! To avoid disappointment, after you submit any work via Angel, make sure you look at it once more from within the course site in Angel, noting (1) that the file is visible; (2) that it opens correctly (no error messages); and (3) that it is the file you meant to upload. Do not rely on your instructor to catch these errors. This is YOUR responsibility.

Additional Information
Each student will:

  • assume responsibility for his/her learning
  • use the provided learning guides and resources; conduct data searches when necessary
  • manage his/her time effectively (plan a schedule and practice time management)
  • ask for assistance when needed; avoid unnecessary frustration and confusion
  • remain active in the Discussions and Email
  • prepare all work at graduate performance levels
  • enter each Unit beginning the date that Unit starts. He/she is then free to access that Unit as many times as he/she likes through the end of the course
  • follow good online etiquette

Please note:

  • You must have access to a “bricks and mortar” (i.e., physical, not just virtual) library that houses a standard collection of academic reference works.
  • I prefer not to use the Chat function for this course, though you are welcome to; formal interaction of the class as a whole will take the form of Discussions.
  • So that I am not inundated with email, please limit the number of emails you send me to two per week if possible. That means saving up questions, perhaps, for several days.
  • Plagiarism will result in a failing grade for the assignment in question (see more on plagiarism below). 

The instructor will:

  • provide assistance/knowledge in facilitating understanding of the course content
  • guide students through the course
  • facilitate discussion through questioning, probing, examples, etc.
  • provide feedback
  • maintain records
  • mark exams/assignments and maintain records within 15 working days
  • respond to messages on Tuesdays and Thursdays

Course Schedule

Unit Topic
1 Reference 2.0; The Future of Information Service

2

Readers' Advisory Work

3

Information Literacy in the Reference Department

4

Bibliographic Resources

5

Indexes and Full-Text Databases

6

Health, Legal, and Business Sources

7

Encyclopedias

8

Ready Reference Sources: Almanacs, Yearbooks, Handbooks, Directories

9

Biographical Information Sources

10

Dictionaries

11 

Geographical Information Sources

12

Government Information Sources

13

When and How to Use the Internet as a Reference Tool

14

Determining the Question

15

Selecting and Evaluating Reference Materials

About your Instructor

Professor Gilman holds a Ph.D. in English from the University of Toronto and an M.S. in Library and Information Science from Simmons College in Boston. He is Librarian for Literature in English at Yale University Library (www.library.yale.edu). He also teaches part-time for the School of Library and Information Science at Wayne State University.

Course Materials

The Cassell and Hiremath textbook (see below under Required Textbook) may be ordered directly from the publishers or through Web-based vendors such as the iSchool eBookstore or Barnes & Noble at www.bn.com

Additional Readings
Additional course materials will be available through the Angel course site.

Core Journals
You should be familiar with professional journals that explore reference and information service issues appropriate to this course, including

  • College & Research Libraries (Z671 .C6)*
  • Journal of Academic Librarianship (Z671 .J58)*
  • Medical Reference Services Quarterly (R118.2 .M4)*
  • Public Libraries (Z673.A5 .P88)*
  • Reference & User Services Quarterly (Z671 .R7)*
  • The Reference Librarian (Z711 .R43x)*
  • Reference Services Review (Z1035.1 .R43)*

I have taken the call numbers above from the SJSU library catalog, but they should also help you locate materials, if available, at any academic library to which you have access. Titles marked with an asterisk (*) show electronic access through the SJSU Electronic Journals List.

Discussion Lists
Electronic discussion lists constitute an important part of professional dialogue and support for reference and information service librarians. All students in this class should subscribe to LIBREF-L, the largest electronic discussion list dedicated to issues in reference librarianship.

You will also find a variety of electronic discussion lists dedicated to specific subject areas (e.g., history librarianship), to specialized service areas often administered as part of reference and information service programs (e.g., instructional services), and to the use of information technology as a means of supporting reference and information services. You can see some of these lists in the "Webliography" section of the Angel course site.

No Textbooks For This Course



Grading Scale

The standard SJSU School of Information Grading Scale is utilized for all iSchool courses:

97 to 100 A
94 to 96 A minus
91 to 93 B plus
88 to 90 B
85 to 87 B minus
82 to 84 C plus
79 to 81 C
76 to 78 C minus
73 to 75 D plus
70 to 72 D
67 to 69 D minus
Below 67 F

 

In order to provide consistent guidelines for assessment for graduate level work in the School, these terms are applied to letter grades:

  • C represents Adequate work; a grade of "C" counts for credit for the course;
  • B represents Good work; a grade of "B" clearly meets the standards for graduate level work;
    For core courses in the MLIS program (not MARA) — INFO 200, INFO 202, INFO 204 — the iSchool requires that students earn a B in the course. If the grade is less than B (B- or lower) after the first attempt you will be placed on administrative probation.  You must repeat the class the following semester. If -on the second attempt- you do not pass the class with a grade of B or better (not B- but B) you will be disqualified.
  • A represents Exceptional work; a grade of "A" will be assigned for outstanding work only.

Students are advised that it is their responsibility to maintain a 3.0 Grade Point Average (GPA).

University Policies

General Expectations, Rights and Responsibilities of the Student

As members of the academic community, students accept both the rights and responsibilities incumbent upon all members of the institution. Students are encouraged to familiarize themselves with SJSU's policies and practices pertaining to the procedures to follow if and when questions or concerns about a class arises. See University Policy S90-5 at http://www.sjsu.edu/senate/docs/S90-5.pdf. More detailed information on a variety of related topics is available in the SJSU catalog at http://info.sjsu.edu/web-dbgen/catalog/departments/LIS.html. In general, it is recommended that students begin by seeking clarification or discussing concerns with their instructor. If such conversation is not possible, or if it does not serve to address the issue, it is recommended that the student contact the Department Chair as a next step.

Dropping and Adding

Students are responsible for understanding the policies and procedures about add/drop, grade forgiveness, etc. Refer to the current semester's Catalog Policies section at http://info.sjsu.edu/static/catalog/policies.html. Add/drop deadlines can be found on the current academic year calendars document on the Academic Calendars webpage at http://www.sjsu.edu/provost/services/academic_calendars/. The Late Drop Policy is available at http://www.sjsu.edu/aars/policies/latedrops/policy/. Students should be aware of the current deadlines and penalties for dropping classes.

Information about the latest changes and news is available at the Advising Hub at http://www.sjsu.edu/advising/.

Consent for Recording of Class and Public Sharing of Instructor Material

University Policy S12-7, http://www.sjsu.edu/senate/docs/S12-7.pdf, requires students to obtain instructor's permission to record the course and the following items to be included in the syllabus:

  • "Common courtesy and professional behavior dictate that you notify someone when you are recording him/her. You must obtain the instructor's permission to make audio or video recordings in this class. Such permission allows the recordings to be used for your private, study purposes only. The recordings are the intellectual property of the instructor; you have not been given any rights to reproduce or distribute the material."
    • It is suggested that the syllabus include the instructor's process for granting permission, whether in writing or orally and whether for the whole semester or on a class by class basis.
    • In classes where active participation of students or guests may be on the recording, permission of those students or guests should be obtained as well.
  • "Course material developed by the instructor is the intellectual property of the instructor and cannot be shared publicly without his/her approval. You may not publicly share or upload instructor generated material for this course such as exam questions, lecture notes, or homework solutions without instructor consent."

Academic integrity

Your commitment, as a student, to learning is evidenced by your enrollment at San Jose State University. The University Academic Integrity Policy F15-7 at http://www.sjsu.edu/senate/docs/F15-7.pdf requires you to be honest in all your academic course work. Faculty members are required to report all infractions to the office of Student Conduct and Ethical Development. The Student Conduct and Ethical Development website is available at http://www.sjsu.edu/studentconduct/.

Campus Policy in Compliance with the American Disabilities Act

If you need course adaptations or accommodations because of a disability, or if you need to make special arrangements in case the building must be evacuated, please make an appointment with me as soon as possible, or see me during office hours. Presidential Directive 97-03 at http://www.sjsu.edu/president/docs/directives/PD_1997-03.pdf requires that students with disabilities requesting accommodations must register with the Accessible Education Center (AEC) at http://www.sjsu.edu/aec to establish a record of their disability.

icon showing link leads to the PDF file viewer known as Acrobat Reader Download Adobe Acrobat Reader to access PDF files.

More accessibility resources.