Reference Skills For The School Library Media Specialist » (2nd Edition)

In this update of the 2000 text designed for courses preparing students for a degree in school library media, Riedling adds Webliographies and updated information on publishers and Web tools. Regarding such specialists as key players in promoting information literacy, she emphasizes communication in linking students' information needs with relevant print and electronic reference sources. The guide includes realistic scenario-based exercises and a glossary. No details are provided on the author's background. Annotation ©2005 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

School Library Journal

For this new edition, Riedling has updated the technology discussions, relevant Web sites, and online resources within the appropriate chapters rather than appending a separate chapter. The other major change is the final chapter, which contains both an exercise as well as a separate reference scenario for elementary school, middle school, and high school. The author discusses a wide range of standard reference tools. Information is boxed and bulleted for quick reference. Annotated and complete lists of print and online resources are included. The up-to-date Webliographies included at the end of each chapter will be of great assistance to students and beginning librarians. This is a helpful tool for those new to the profession. A good complement to the more general texts on librarianship that are often used.-Lori Matthews, Loyola School, New York City Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

Acknowledgments     vii
Dedication     vii
Introduction     ix
What Is Reference All About?     1
Reference and the School Library: An Overview     3
Introduction     3
Reference Services     3
The Reference Process     5
Reference and Information Literacy     6
Research Problem-Solving Processes and Models     8
Reference and the Technology Connection     12
Conclusion     12
Useful Web Sites     13
Selection, Evaluation, and Maintenance of the Reference Collection     15
Introduction     15
What Do You Need? - The Selection Process     16
How Do You Know If It's Good? - The Evaluation Process     19
Collection Organization and Maintenance     21
Conclusion     22
Nuts and Bolts     23
Bibliographies     25
Introduction     25
Evaluation and Selection     28
Basic Sources     29
Webliography     31
Directories, Almanacs, Yearbooks, and Handbooks     33
Introduction     33
Evaluation and Selection     35
BasicSources     37
Directories     37
Almanacs     38
Yearbooks     39
Handbooks     40
More Examples of Online Directories, Almanacs, Yearbooks, and Handbooks     41
Webliography     43
Biographical Sources     47
Introduction     47
Types of Biographical Sources     47
Evaluation and Selection     48
Basic Sources     50
Who's Who     50
Current Biographical Dictionaries     51
Author Sources and Literary Criticism     52
Retrospective Biographical Dictionaries     53
Conclusion     54
Webliography and Additional Examples of Online Biographical Resources     54
Dictionaries and Encyclopedias     57
Dictionaries     57
Introduction     57
Evaluation and Selection     58
Basic Sources     60
English Language Dictionaries     60
Foreign Language Dictionaries     61
Historical Dictionaries     61
Slang and Dialect Dictionaries     62
Thesauri     62
Specialty Dictionaries     63
Webliography      64
Geographical Sources     67
Introduction     67
Evaluation and Selection     68
Basic Sources     70
Current World Atlases     70
Historical Atlases     71
Thematic Atlases     71
Maps     72
Gazetteers and Other Geographical Sources     72
Additional Online Geographical Resources     73
Gazetteers     74
Atlases and Maps     75
Webliography     76
Indexes and Abstracts; Online Periodical Databases     79
Introduction     79
Evaluation and Selection     80
Basic Sources     82
Online Periodical Indexes     82
Specialized Indexes     84
Webliography     86
The Art of Questioning     89
The Reference Interview     91
Introduction     91
The Patron - The Student     92
The Setting     93
You - The School Library Media Specialist     94
Questions and Questioning     95
Types of Reference Interviews     96
Conclusion     97
Reference and the Web     99
The Web in Today's Reference Services     101
Introduction     101
The Web and Reference Services in School Library Media Centers     103
Useful Web sites     105
Scenarios and Exercises for School Library Media Specialists     107
Introduction     108
Special Notes to Instructors     109
Scenarios and Exercises     111
Elementary School     111
Middle School     113
High School     115
Publisher Information     117
Glossary     125
Works Cited     129
Index     131