220 p. · $45.00
8½" x 11" · Spiral-bound
Includes supplementary materials on disk

ISBN 0-9652711-2-9
© 1998

Instruction and Training for Enhanced Reference Service, Volume 1: Categories of Fact & Finding Reference Sources

Anne Cerstvik Nolan and Marilyn P. Whitmore, Editors
Active Learning Series, no. 3

From the Editor | Reviews and Comments | Table of Contents
Sample Lesson Plan (260K, PDF) | Order this Book

From the Editors

"All libraries offer reference services to their patrons. Some do it better than others. How successful those services are in providing answers to users' questions depends largely on the degree of training of the reference staff. The staff at libraries of any size and type, from community or schools, collegiate or regional public, must have sufficient training to respond to their patrons' needs. All would benefit from the lesson plans and hands-on exercises included in this book. The reference resources discussed and used as examples in each chapter have been copied on the accompanying disk. Only one hands-on exercise per chapter is illustrated in this print volume. All of the exercises will be found on the accompanying disk; each librarian may customize the training to fit the needs of the individual library.

"The instruction chapters in this book have been divided into two parts: (1) categories of reference sources and (2) skills. The lesson plans, hands-on exercises, and handouts in the chapters may easily be modified for teaching library users in all types of libraries."

Reviews and Comments

This 3-part work "serves superbly as a reference-class-in-a-box for paraprofessional training.... Within each volume, entries are divided into three parts: background material on the nature of research on the topic, followed by a selective list of annotated major reference works, and finally exercises utilizing these works." - Public Services Quarterly v1 n1, 2002

Table of Contents

17 lesson plans in alphabetical order