Students come to the school library every day with questions ranging
from "How many people live in China?" to "I need to find out how the Sun
began for my science paper." Helping students find the answers to their
questions is one of the most important responsibilities school
librarians have. In Introduction to Reference and Information Services
in Today's School Library, one of America's premier school library
educators covers the A-Z of both reference and information services for
today's library. Everything from teaching students how to use sources to
both in-person and virtual reference service is covered. A key feature
of the text is an annotated bibliography of core print and electronic
sources for elementary, middle, and high school collections. Yes,
reference and information services are vital library functions in the
digital age. Even students who appear to be tech savvy have trouble
finding the right information efficiently - and knowing what to do with
it. This book examines information needs and behaviors, and provides
strategies for assessing and meeting the informational needs of the
school community. The book also addresses the conditions for optimum
service: physical access (including virtual access), effective
interaction and collaboration, instructional design, and systematic
planning. Newer issues such as embedded librarianship, curation,
collective intelligence, and web 2.0 intellectual property are also
addressed. This book introduces the entering professional, and updates
practitioners, to current standards and useful strategies.
