Reference Training Materials

This material was used in the graduate Library Media Education program at Western Kentucky University. It is placed here to allow library workers to train themselves in the use of reference materials. Copyright 2001 - 2005 Bryan M. Carson.
All Rights Reserved

Bibliography of Reference Materials

Readings

This section contains information on the textbook and other course readings.

The textbook for this class is "Reference and Information Services: An Introduction," 3rd edition, by Richard Bopp and Linda Smith, published in 2002 by Libraries Unlinited. The ISBN is 1-56308-624-7.

In addition to the textbook, there are a number of online course readings, tutorials, etc. These readings are linked from this course. In order to access the online readings, go to the {Course Material} section and click the link for {Course Readings}.

We will be reading a number of chapters in the textbook, although I am not following the same order that the authors established. Chapter 1 is an optional chapter that gives an overview of reference service. Although this chapter is not required, I highly recommend that you begin the class by reading chapter 1 first. Here are the chapters we will be reading, in the order that we will read them:

Here are the web readings:

Using Reference Resources

Searching Online Databases, or "How to become a Super Searcher"

Conducting Reference Transactions

Finding Information on Cars

Finding Grant Information

Legal Research

Assignments

This is the portion of the class where you will learn what is in each book. The class bibliography is divided into subject categories such as social science, science, etc. Within each category, the bibliography contains subjects such as art, music, or biology. Each subject is then sub-divided according to the type of material, such as indexes and abstracts, bibliographies, dictionaries & encyclopedias, etc.

Within each topic (music, psychology, sociology, physics, etc.), you are to pick 2 items; it doesn't matter which type of material (indexes, encyclopedias, handbooks, etc.) you pick. For each item that you pick, you must look at the item in the library and write a brief description of what types of material the item contains. You will post this information to the course discussion board.

I am particularly interested in the following:

  • What format is it in, i.e. print, microform, electronic, etc.
  • Scope
  • Purpose, coverage, and currency of the item
  • What is its relation to similar works?
  • Uniqueness--Is there anything else that covers this same material? Is this item better than its competitors?
  • How accurate and objective does the work appear to be?
  • What audience is this book appropriate for, i.e. elementary school, high school, college, professonals in the field?
  • What is the arrangement or sequence of the item, i.e. alphabetical or chronological?
  • Does the item contain an index and/or a table of contents?
  • How comprehensive does the index appear to be?
  • Are there cross-references in the index and/or in the text?
  • Are there any other special features?

    • Here are two examples for you to use:
    The Oxford Companion to the Earth is a one-volume encyclopedia of geology and earth science. It contains entries under small headings (not under broad categories). The arrangement is alphabetical. The entries are signed; some contain bibliographic information for further reading. There are cross-references in the text. The book contains black-and-white illustrations, charts, and graphs, along with some black-and-white photographs. There is an index at the back of the book with alphabetical listings. The index has subheadings but not cross-references. This book is appropriate for the college, graduate, and professional levels, but could also be used by advanced high school students.
    The McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science and Technology is a 20-volume encyclopedia of general science. The encyclopedia is arranged alphabetically with narrow headings, rather than broad topics. The articles contain subheadings. There are charts, graphs, illustrations, and black-and-white and color photographs. Some of the articles contain mathematical symbols and equations, although many articles are written in plain language. The articles are signed and contain a bibliography. There are cross-references within the text of the articles. The index is in the last volume, and contains headings with many subheadings. The index contains cross-references. In addition to the regular index (which the publishers call the "Analytical Index"), there is a topical index. The final volume also contains study guides, a list of scientific notations, and a list of contributors which is alphabetical by name. This set is appropriate for high school, college, graduate, and profesional use, but could also be used by some middle-school students.

    Please be very brief. Do not write more than one or two paragraphs to answer these questions. This is not a formal written assignment, but rather a description of the materials you look at. (If this were a traditional face-to-face class, this exercise would be done orally in class.)

    It is very important that you learn as future librarians to evaluate the reading level of the materials. Therefore, you will need to put reading levels in each annotation. I will take off 1 point for every annotation that you do not include reader level in. You may indicate reader level in terms of grade level or in a more general way, such as:
    * Elementary (lower or upper)
    * Middle School
    * High School
    * Lower College
    * Majors (upper level college students)
    * Graduate or Professional
    * General (for everybody)
    * Adult