Describes the overall design, content, and use of Chemical Literature Exercises and Resources (CLEAR), a set of materials which introduces students to the chemical literature. Indicates that, overall, student evaluations of the CLEAR materials were very positive. (JN)

This issues paper, the fourth in a series of eight, is intended to distill formative evaluation questions on topics that are central to the development of the higher and further education information environment in the United Kingdom. As the online environment becomes a feature of teaching and learning, it offers lecturers the opportunity to…

Offered as an alternative to the search strategy model for bibliographic instruction, the approach to library instruction in psychology which is described involves analysis of the natural structure of the research literature. An example using Festinger's theory of cognitive dissonance is presented. Twelve references are cited. (EJS)

Research at a library at Utica College (New York) revealed that "roving" reference librarians provided more sophisticated and thorough service than "stationary" ones, improving student search strategies and prompting twice as much work with electronic resources as conventional service. Roving also boosted librarian-client…

Discusses Web information searches and identifies three types of user profile acquisition modes used in filtering systems: a rule-base, user-driven mode; an explicit learning mode; and an implicit learning mode. Describes a study of undergraduates that examined the influence of user involvement in these modes and their impact on profile accuracy…

Reviews search process, with particular attention to search process, at 24 target sites in western United States. Found hiring patterns reflected a reliance on traditional and outmoded criteria and western states hired few minorities for deans of student services. Recommends actions to improve representation of Asians, Hispanics, and Native…

Describes a study of graduate students at Florida State University that was conducted to determine relationships between measures of cognitive learning style and online searching behavior of novice searchers. Results of the Learning Style Inventory (LSI) and other measures are discussed, and comparisons with other studies are made. (29 references)…

Discusses topics related to use of search trees to enhance subject searching in online catalogs: subject searching in existing systems; search trees defined; highlights of a study of subject queries; normalized subject headings; the exact approach to subject searching; one-word queries; multiword queries; queries failing to produce retrievals; and…

This experiment explores the effectiveness of retrieving the listing of a known-item book from the 3.6 million entry online catalog at the library of the University of Michigan using various combinations of author's name plus first and last title words. Discusses implications for the design of OPAC (online public access catalog) screens.…

Compares search effectiveness when using query-based Internet search via the Google search engine, directory-based search via Yahoo, and phrase-based query reformulation-assisted search via the Hyperindex browser by means of a controlled, user-based experimental study of undergraduates at the University of Queensland. Discusses cognitive load,…

Discusses why it is important to think critically about web searching; how the size of the web affects searching; how the quality of material on the web affects searching; some good approaches to searching effectively; and how searching can become truly productive inquiring. Notes various data on the size of the web. (SR)

Introduction: Explores the complexity of online information use for learning in the culturally-diverse, information and communication technologies-intensive, higher education context. It presents a Model of responses and influences in online information use for learning, which aims to increase awareness of the complexity of online information use…

This worksheet is a supplement to "ERIC Basics: How To Use ERIC To Search Your Special Education Topic." It provides an example of how a special education question can be converted to a strategy for searching the ERIC (Educational Resources Information Center) database. The worksheet suggests that the ERIC user write the topic in his or…

The number of history reference works has proliferated at a tremendous rate in the past few decades. The effective use of these tools is one of the most important research skills of the historian. Bibliographies should be understood as more than just books that list books. The design and workings of these tools are meant to influence search…

This booklet is designed to explain how the ERIC (Educational Resources Information Center) and ECER (Exceptional Child Education Resources) databases can be used to find information about the education of children and youth who have disabilities or who are gifted. Chapters cover the following topics: what ERIC is, where ERIC can be found, how to…