What's Coming Off the Shelves? A Reference Use Study Analyzing Print Reference Sources Used in a University Library

To what extent is the print reference collection being used? Use of the print collection at a small private university was tracked for a four-month period. The results suggest that the reference collection is too big and underused.     

Using Desk-top Publishing to Develop Literacy

Desk-top publishing is an important growth area in the use of computers in business, and it is beginning to have an impact in schools. In this paper we examine the learning benefits which may accrue from the use of desktop publishing techniques with children, especially in terms of the development of literacy skills. Desk-top publishing is analysed as an extension of word-processing, but with several extra important features. The paper concludes by describing some of the possible ways of using desk-top publishing in the classroom.     

Some Dilemmas in Implementing the Criteria for Continuous Assessment in GCSE English

Using evidence from a two‐year case study of teachers in a comprehensive school who were implementing the new GCSE examination in English, we explore the origins and development of two dilemmas. Opting to join a large consortium of schools using teacher‐based, criterion‐referenced, continuous assessment, the staff faced these different but interrelated questions. (1) As individuals, could they maintain the motivation of their classes if, early in the course, pupils could guess their ultimate grades? (2) As collegiate agents of the grading process, could they standardise their varied, individual assessments in line with GCSE expectations? We argue that the strategies teachers developed reflected the dilemmas they faced. The dilemmas derived from contradictions built into the course.     

Authors and information technology: new challenges in publishing

Last year 1279 professional authors completed a lengthy questionnaire on their use of, and attitudes towards, technological tools for writing and publishing. The data were analysed quantitatively, by examining the most frequent responses to items on the questionnaire, and qualitatively, by looking closely at details illuminating the relationship between authors and publishers. The results, for present purposes, are divided into three broad bands of interest: first, what types of writing software authors are currently using; second, what the implications of using authors’ disks in the publication chain are; and third, how technology alters perceptions of the ‘copy’ as a unit of sale. Findings suggest that though authors are operating at basic levels, they have embraced technology with more enthusiasm than their publishers. The challenge facing those involved in books is to make provision for presenting and displaying work in electronic form: to improve contracts and licensing agreements, and to disseminate information on technology to authors.     

Postgraduate taught students and preparedness for Master’s level study: polishing the facets of the Master’s diamond

Transitions are increasingly recognised as difficult, and less has been written about transitions to postgraduate taught programmes than about transitions into undergraduate or doctoral study. A Scotland-wide project found that new taught Post-graduate (PG), and staff teaching them, can be unclear about what is expected at Master’s level, and proposed a framework of seven facets that indicate how students are expected to engage with Master’s study. The facets and accompanying resources were designed to be discussion tools, to promote staff and student discussion of what is expected in their programme and subject. In a follow-up project at one university, a questionnaire was designed and distributed to postgraduate students asking them to rate their current level of ability against the skills and capabilities identified as facets for Master’s level study. The project found students felt ill-prepared for particular aspects of Master’s level study, with sub-group differences between disciplines. Master’s courses are intensive and fast-moving, so this has implications for students’ preparedness for successfully navigating through their programmes. Some suggestions on how students can be better briefed on what to expect are made.     

Telling the Tale and Living Well: Adolescent Narrative Identity,Personality Traits,and Well‐Being Across Cultures

This study explored links between narrative identity, personality traits, and well‐being for 263 adolescents (age 12–21) from three New Zealand cultures: Māori, Chinese, and European. Turning‐point narratives were assessed for autobiographical reasoning (causal coherence), local thematic coherence, emotional expressivity, and topic. Across cultures, older adolescents with higher causal coherence reported better well‐being. Younger adolescents with higher causal coherence instead reported poorer well‐being. Personal development topics were positively linked to well‐being for New Zealand European adolescents only, and thematic coherence was positively linked to well‐being for Māori adolescents only. Negative expressivity, neuroticism, conscientiousness, and openness were also linked to well‐being. Implications of these cultural similarities and differences are considered for theories of narrative identity, personality, and adolescent well‐being.