Teaching African Studies Bibliography–Information Literacy for 21st Century Scholars

SUMMARY

Indiana University has a long tradition of teaching African studies bibliography. It began in 1964 with Alan Taylor and was taught successively by Jean Meeh Gosebrink, David Easterbrook, Nancy Schmidt, and, for the last four years, by this author. This article discusses developments of the class as they have been implemented over the last four years. In the past, bibliographic tools in African studies disciplines were scarce, and the goal of the class consequently was to introduce the students to those tools. Nowadays, with the proliferation of sources in the field, both in electronic and print formats, the focus of the class has shifted. While various elements of the class have been maintained, the course now has several new elements, primarily in the form of discussion sessions based on the reading of articles and other sources. The focus of the class is no longer on how to find scarce, hidden materials, but rather to develop strategies and techniques to find a wide variety of materials ranging from print sources to oral accounts in libraries worldwide.     

Librarianship and Information Science in the Maghreb 1966–1999: An Annotated Bibliography

This work is an annotated bibliography that consists of articles, books, conference papers, dissertations, reports, etc. published in various library and information science forums on the subject of librarianship in the Maghreb. The goal of preparing this work is to provide a list of citations with abstracts that librarians, library students, and library scholars can use to perform research within this subject area and further the body of knowledge. The research methodology that was used to find these citations involved searching the database versions of ERIC, Dissertations Abstracts Online, and Library Literature within the online public access catalog of the Auburn University library system. It also involved searching the online databases of Library and Information Science Abstracts (LISA), British Education Index, andEducation Abstracts within the DIALOG database as well as the respective print versions of these resources. While this work is by no means an exhaustive critique of the entire Maghrebi library and information science literature, it does strive to be comprehensive in terms of its country-by-country analysis of librarianship and information science within the region. In providing a citation for a non-English language work, the English equivalent of the title of that work will be given next to the non-English title.     

Librarianship and Information Science in Islamic East Africa 1966–1999: An Annotated Bibliography

This work is an annotated bibliography that consists of articles, books, conference papers, dissertations, and reports, etc. published in various library and information science forums on the subject of librarianship in Islamic East Africa. The goal of preparing this work is to provide a list of citations with abstracts that librarians, library students, and library scholars can use to perform research within this subject area and further the body of knowledge. The research methodology that was used to find these citations involved searching the database versions of ERIC, Dissertations Abstracts Online, and Library Literature within the online public access catalog of the Auburn University library system. It also involved searching the online databases of Library and Information Science Abstracts (LISA), British Education Index, and Education Abstracts within the DIALOG database as well as the respective print copies of these resources. While this work is by no means an exhaustive analysis of the entire East African library literature, it does strive to be comprehensive in terms of its country-by-country breakdown of librarianship within the region. Islamic East Africa for the purposes of this work incorporates the nations of Comoros, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, Sudan, and Tanzania. In providing a citation for a non-English language work, the English equivalent of the title of that work will be given next to the non-English title.     

Russia and the Low Countries: An International Bibliography 1500–2000

Abstract

The single most difficult situation publishers have faced since the depression and hyperinflation of 1991-1993 was the financial crisis which began on August 17, 1998. Prior to August 17, Russian publishers were on track to produce a record number of titles. After August 17, production plummeted. Yet by March of 1999 the industry was reviving, and as of May production had returned roughly to pre-cri-sis levels. The August crisis was a severe test for the publishing industry, but the rapid recovery demonstrates its vitality. The authors discuss monographs primarily, but serials are also included. They also explain why caution is necessary when using official Russian publishing statistics since 1991 and how such statistics can still be useful.     

The Educational Strategy of Library and Information Science in China in the 21st Century

The author states that the requirements for the professional personnel of library and information science in the future information society are to have wide knowledge and to be versatile. The knowledge required may include the knowledge of administration, documentary information, technical method and research method, etc.“Versatile”here means the ability of self-teaching, practical operation, social investigation,administration and organization, creation and scientific research. Finally, by analysis of the existing situation of library and information science education in China, and the needs of the Chinese economic vitalization in the 21st century, the author proposes to take a lot of measures at present for the improvement of thee ducation.     

U.S. Government information and the Nicaraguan revolution 1979–1989: An assessment of bias

The internal effects of the Nicaraguan revolutionary reconstruction, 1979–1989, are compared and contrasted with the portrayal of these effects in a sampling U.S. government documents. Special attention is given to U.S. Department of State documents aimed at influencing public opinion. That the revolution had some clearly positive effects on Nicaraguan society is concluded, but weaknesses and contradictions in the ideology and the programs of the revolution are exposed. It is suggested that much contemporaneous U.S. government information on the topic served a propagandizing function.     

A Review of: “Reference and Information Services in the 21st Century: An Introduction. 2nd ed., by Cassell,Kay Ann and Hiremath,Uma.”

The status of library consortia has evolved over time in terms of their composition and alternative negotiating models. New purchasing models may allow improved library involvement in the acquisitions process and improved methods for meeting users' future needs. Ever-increasing costs of library resources and the need to reduce expenses make it necessary to continue the exploration of library consortia for group purchases.     

U.S government information and the Nicaraguan revolution 1979–1989: An assessment of bias

The internal effects of the Nicaraguan revolutionary reconstruction, 1979–1989, are compared and contrasted with the portrayal of these effects in a sampling U.S. government documents. Special attention is given to U.S. Department of State documents aimed at influencing public opinion. That the revolution had some clearly positive effects on Nicaraguan society is concluded, but weaknesses and contradictions in the ideology and the programs of the revolution are exposed. It is suggested that much contemporaneous U.S. government information on the topic served a propagandizing function.     

A Review of: “David H. Weaver,Randal A. Beam,Bonnie J. Brownlee,Paul S. Voakes,and G. Cleveland Wilhoit. The American Journalist in the 21st Century: U.S. News People at the Dawn of a New Millennium.”

Amy Reynolds and Brooke Barnett (Eds). Communication and Law: Multidisciplinary Approaches to Research. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc., 2006 394 pp., ISBN 0805849424 (hardcover).     

An Annotated Bibliography of 46 Useful Interlibrary Loan and Document Delivery Monographs Published from 1902–2007

The Interlibrary Loan and Document Delivery Department train staff, updates manuals, compiles statistics, trains staff, follows copyright guidelines, and performs other relevant duties. Knowledge of copyright guidelines is an important factor that affects decisions on whether to borrow or purchase. Practices and procedures of other institutions guide decisions about how an interlibrary loan and document delivery department operates on a day-to-day basis. The titles in this annotated bibliography will help to guide interlibrary loan practitioners to texts with information on specific topics. This annotated bibliography lists titles with historical, statistical, practical, and useful information on how to operate and manage the interlibrary loan unit.     

The Evolution of Critical Thinking Skills in Library Instruction, 1986–2006: A Selected and Annotated Bibliography and Review of Selected Programs

ABSTRACT

Undergraduate students are increasingly being asked to conduct higher-level research in their areas of study. In order to address undergraduate needs, many academic librarians, especially those charged with crafting instruction, take critical thinking as a given in the teaching of information literacy skills. However, this review of the literature has revealed that, though there was some discussion of critical thinking in a library context in the mid 1980s, the concept did not really take hold until the 1990s, when higher education reform began to appear on many campuses. Additionally, the literature regarding critical thinking skills during this period exhibits four themes: (1) a lack of agreement among librarians and others on what critical thinking is and how it can be defined, (2) the importance of subject and course integration in the teaching of critical thinking skills in libraries, (3) the necessity of reaching undergraduate students, and (4) the special challenges of teaching critical thinking skills in an age when technology is changing so rapidly.     

ImaginOn,The First Twenty‐First Century Public Library Building in the U.S.

This article presents a portrait of ImaginOn, a combined children's library and theater building in Charlotte, NC. Unlike so many modern library buildings intended primarily as warehouses for materials or as civic icons, this structure is designed to encourage visitors to experience the joy to be found in stories of all kinds. The author conveys the excitement of ImaginOn and, using photographs, highlights the principal features of the structure.     

Library-Information Centers in the 21st Century——For the 40th Anniversary of Library and Information Service

Ontheeveofthe21stcentury,advancednewtechnologyisdramaticallychangingthewaypeoplelivingandstronglypromotingthemodeofproduc-tion.Menhavetofrequentlygiveupthewaysandideastheyhavealreadyaccustomedtoandareal-wayspreparedanddeterminedtocompletelybreakawaywiththeoutdatedconventionalideasandthoughts.Convention-stickersandoutmoded-cher-isherswilleventuallybediscardedbytimeunderthisinexorablesocialpsychologytrend.　　Whenwelookintothefutureoflibrary-infor-mationcentersinthe21stcentury,theNIIProgramwhi…     

Who Publishes More Books in U.S. English Departments,Men or Women?

The “gender gap” in the U.S. publication of English language and literature scholarly books has not been fully investigated. In order to investigate gender disparity, we collected, aggregated, and analyzed data on 1633 faculty members who authored or edited 4835 scholarly books at the top 50 U.S. English Ph.D. departments. Despite the fact that more women than men have received Ph.D.s in English since 1987, the top 50 departments are predominantly male, and male faculty members publish more books on a per capita basis. However, who publishes more books in these departments varies: (1) with the department that the faculty member is in (with grater parity in the middle 30 departments); and (2) when the faculty member published their first book, with female faculty who published their first book after 1998 publishing as many books on a per person basis as male faculty. This paper also offers recommendations on how marketing strategies can be used to ameliorate the “gender gap” in this academic field.     

A structural analysis of market competition in the U.S. TV syndication industry, 1981–1990

The author explores how the structure of the national television programming market has changed during the past decade and finds that the market has become highly concentrated and is increasingly being dominated by foreign owners. The author argues that the trends provide support for relaxation of prohibitions on television networks’ participation in syndication     

The presuperhighway politics of U.S. government printing and publishing, 1917–1960

This article examines the practices of, and the policies governing, U.S. executive agency publishing and printing for the period covering 1919–1950s. Particular attention is paid to the activities of the congressional Joint Committee on Printing (JCP) of the 67th Congress, as well as advancements in the graphic arts. Attention is also paid to the inherent, and sometimes bitter, institutional tensions that resulted from the publishing activities of the executive branch. This article further examines the emergence of the Printing Industries of America (PIA) as a player in the sphere of U.S. government printing.     

Self-Dealing or Market Transaction?: An Exploratory Study of Vertical Integration in the U.S. Television Syndication Market

This study explores the programming relationship between vertically integrated station groups and their affiliated syndicators in the context of two frameworks associated with the advantages of vertical integration: the transaction cost and vertical foreclosure theories. The programming sources for various stations that are vertically integrated with syndicators were assessed. The results indicated that leading television station groups had purchased relatively more products from their vertically integrated syndicators. The pattern of internal transfer through vertical integration was especially apparent in the acquisition of newer first-run products that are associated with uncertain quality and less audience information. The findings generally support the transaction cost theoretical perspective. However, the data did not paint a picture of market foreclosure in this industry.