Transcript Document

IS 530: Information Access & Retrieval
Class Activity Examples
Fall 2012
Dr. Andrea Baer
Week 1: Introduction
(see next slide)
Freewrite – You & Information Work
Consider the information work you do or plan to do
in the future.
• What role will reference or information retrieval
play in this work?
• How has/might changes in reference and
information retrieval affect your work?
(3 minutes for freewrite, followed by discussion)
Week 3: The Reference
Interview
(See next 5 slides)
Kuhlthau’s Information Search Process (ISP)
• Uncertainty increases and decreases during information seeking
(increases early on, decreases later)
• Six stages:
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•
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task initiation
selection
exploration
focus formulation
collection
presentation
“A Principle of Uncertainty for Information Seeking” (1993)
See Kuhlthau, “Information Search Process”
http://comminfo.rutgers.edu/~kuhlthau/information_search_process.htm for more info
ISP and Info Services
• Information searching as uncertain process
rather than as rational and orderly
• Uncertainty as necessary part of constructing
personal knowledge
– goal of information services is not to decrease
uncertainty but rather to support user’s constructive
processes)
Kuhlthau, “Information Search Process”
http://comminfo.rutgers.edu/~kuhlthau/information_search_process.htm
Discussion: ISP in Practice
• Remember the personal example of information
seeking you considered earlier in class.
• Does Kuhlthau’s model apply to your experience?
How (not)?
• What implications might Kuhlthau’s ISP model
have for reference services?
• What strengths and weaknesses do you see in
Kuhlthau’s ISP model?
Discussion: Info Seeking as Dynamic Process
• How might the dynamic nature of info seeking
affect the reference interview?
– Challenges this presents to reference work?
– Different approaches to addressing the
“messiness” of info seeking?
– Advantages and disadvantages of these varying
approaches
Discussion: Derwin & Dewdney Reading on
Neutral Questioning
• What is neutral questioning?
• What are the differences among closed, open, and
neutral questions?
(See page 5 of article for specific examples.)
• Why use neutral questioning?
• What advantages/disadvantages does neutral
questioning have?
Dervin. Brenda and Dewdney, Patricia. (1986) Neutral Questioning: A New
Approach to the Reference. Interview.
https://faculty.washington.edu/jwj/lis521/zennezdervindewd86nq-1.pdf
Week 8: Database Searching
(see next 2 slides)
Activity: Academic Search Premier vs.
Project MUSE
 Choose a research topic of interest.
(e.g., Internet AND cognition, web 2.0 AND libraries )
 Use your search topic to explore the
databases ASP and Project MUSE.
 Note similarities and differences between the
search interfaces, as well as the results pages.
 Take notes that will help guide our discussion.
(7 minutes to explore)
Activity: Database Interfaces LexisNexis
• LexisNexis: news, company information
Activity:
• Explore LexisNexis. Formulate answers to the
following:
– How does this interface compare to ASP and Project
MUSE?
– What kinds of information are available in it?
– Compare features in the basic and advanced search
interfaces.
Week 9: Internet Searching
(See next 4 slides)
Google: Advanced Searching
Review:
Operators and More Search Help:
http://support.google.com/websearch/bin/ans
wer.py?hl=en&answer=136861
Search Tips & Tricks:
http://www.google.com/insidesearch/tipstricks/
Activity: Advanced Google Searching
Use advanced Google searches to find information
on these questions.
1. I need sources about Julius Caesar, but am not
interested in the Shakespearean play Julius
Caesar.
2. I need information about the concept of
metadata. How can I find relevant sources which
don’t use the word “metadata” in the page title?
3. What government websites address food safety?
4. What time is it now in New Zealand?
5. What is a good recipe that uses cardamom?
6. How many Euros can I get for a US dollar?
Activity: Proxy Searching
1. Go to Live Proxy: http://www.liveproxy.com/. Search on a topic of interest.
2. Do the same search, this time in Google.
3. What are the differences in your results?
Proxy Searching
• What are proxy servers and proxy searching?
• Why use proxy searching?
• What larger issues does proxy searching raise
about Internet research? About reference
work?
Week 11: Library 2.0 & Virtual
Reference
(See 3 next slides)
Discussion: Virtual Reference
• What forms can virtual reference take? (i.e.,
technologies/tools)
• Your experiences as users or reference staff?
• Advantages?
• Disadvantages?
• Challenges?
Discussion: Virtual Reference (con’d)
• What should be considered when
implementing virtual reference service?
• When providing virtual reference?
Consider the ALA RUSA Guidelines for Virtual Reference:
http://www.ala.org/rusa/sites/ala.org.rusa/files/content/reso
urces/guidelines/virtual-reference-se.pdf (required reading)
A Librarian's 2.0 Manifesto
(Video & Discussion)
• Watch this video at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZblrRs3fkSU.
• Consider what concepts, actions, and philosophies
are ascribes to Library 2.0. (Be prepared to
discuss.)