An Opportunity,Not a Crisis: How Google Is Changing the Individual and the Information Profession

ABSTRACT

This article explores some of the key impacts that Google and new technologies such as Web 2.0 have had on the way people see information and information professionals and presents the argument that much of what is typically seen as negative about Google is, in fact, positive.     

Optimal Results: What Libraries Need to Know About Google and Search Engine Optimization

Search engine optimization, or the practice of designing a web site so that it rises to the top of the results page when users search for particular keywords or phrases, has become so prevalent on the modern web that it has a significant influence on Google search results. This article examines the techniques used by search engine optimization practitioners, the difference between “white hat” and “black hat” optimization tactics, and why it is important for library staff to understand these techniques and their impact on search engine results pages. It also looks at ways that library staff can help their users develop awareness of the factors that influence search results and how to better assess the quality and relevance of results listings.     

Mastering cognitive development theory in computer science education

To design an effective computer science curriculum, educators require a systematic method of classifying the difficulty level of learning activities and assessment tasks. This is important for curriculum design and implementation and for communication between educators. Different educators must be able to use the method consistently, so that classified activities and assessments are comparable across the subjects of a degree, and, ideally, comparable across institutions. One widespread approach to supporting this is to write learning objects in terms of Bloom’s Taxonomy. This, or other such classifications, is likely to be more effective if educators can use them consistently, in the way experts would use them. To this end, we present the design and evaluation of our online interactive web-based tutorial system, which can be configured and used to offer training in different classification schemes. We report on results from three evaluations. First, 17 computer science educators complete a tutorial on using Bloom’s Taxonomy to classify programming examination questions. Second, 20 computer science educators complete a Neo-Piagetian tutorial. Third evaluation was a comparison of inter-rater reliability scores of computer science educators classifying programming questions using Bloom’s Taxonomy, before and after taking our tutorial. Based on the results from these evaluations, we discuss the effectiveness of our tutorial system design for teaching computer science educators how to systematically and consistently classify programming examination questions. We also discuss the suitability of Bloom’s Taxonomy and Neo-Piagetian theory for achieving this goal. The Bloom’s and Neo-Piagetian tutorials are made available as a community resource. The contributions of this paper are the following: the tutorial system for learning classification schemes for the purpose of coding the difficulty of computing learning materials; its evaluation; new insights into the consistency that computing educators can achieve using Bloom; and first insights into the use of Neo-Piagetian theory by a group of classifiers.     

The Current Status of Graduate Training in Suicide Risk Assessment

Directors and coordinators (n = 75) of graduate programs in school psychology approved by the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) were surveyed regarding their training practices in suicide risk assessment. Respondents viewed the assessment of suicide risk as an important part of graduate instruction, and most believed that students completing training at their institutions would be adequately prepared to perform this task. Almost all directors indicated that a portion of class lectures was dedicated to addressing child/adolescent suicide risk assessment, and students were reportedly exposed to this topic in multiple courses, particularly those associated with practicum and internship. Students in doctoral and nondoctoral programs received comparable training and were judged to be equally prepared to perform suicide‐related professional activities in the schools. Gaps in training were revealed involving instruction in the use of quantitative measures of risk, large‐scale suicide prevention efforts, interventions with suicidal youth, and postvention activities.     

The eastern public speaking conference

THE LEGISLATIVE STRUGGLE. By Bertram M. Gross. New York: McGraw‐Hill Book Co., 1953; pp. xviii+472. $6.50.

MASON'S MANUAL OF LEGISLATIVE PROCEDURE. By Paul Mason. New York: McGraw‐Hill Book Co., 1953; pp. 640. $6.50.

I AM HAPPY TO PRESENT. By Guy R. Lyle and Kevin Guinagh. New York: The H. W. Wilson Company, 1953; pp. 265. $3.00.

THE MIRACLE OF LANGUAGE. By Charlton Laird. New York: The World Publishing Co., 1953; pp. xii+308. $4.00.

PHONETICS IN ANCIENT INDIA. By W. S. Allen. London Oriental Series, Volume 1. London: Oxford University Press, 1953; pp. x+96. $3.00.

SUPERVISING PEOPLE. By George D. Halsey. (Revised edition). New York: Harper &; Brothers, 1953; pp. 238. $3.00.

COMMUNICATION IN MANAGEMENT. By Charles E. Redfield. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1953; pp. xvi+290. $3.75.

ADULT EDUCATION, THE COMMUNITY APPROACH. By Paul H. Sheats, Clarence D. Jayne, and Ralph B. Spence. New York: Dryden Press; pp. xiii+530. $5.75.

THE ART OF EFFECTIVE TEACHING. By C. B. Eavey. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, pp. 298. $3.75.

HOW TO BECOME A BETTER READER. By Paul Witty. Chicago: Science Research Associates, Inc., 1953; pp. viii+304. $5.00.

READING ALOUD. By Wayland Maxfield Parrish. (Third Edition). New York: The Ronald Press Company, 1953; pp. iv+572. $4.25.

TIME FOR TRUE TALES AND ALMOST TRUE. By May Hill Arbuthnot. New York: Scott, Foresman and Co., 1953; pp. 396. $3.50.

THE COLLECTED PLAYS OF W. B. YEATS. By W. B. Yeats. New York: The Macmillan Company, 1953; pp. 446. $5.00.

THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF WILLIAM BUTLER YEATS. New York: The Macmillan Company, 1953; pp. 344. $5.00.

TILBURY TOWN: SELECTED POEMS OF EDWIN ARLINGTON ROBINSON. By Lawrence Thompson. New York: The Macmillan Company, 1953; pp. xvi+144. $3.50.

THESE THAT I HAVE LOVED. AN ANTHOLOGY OF LIVING POETRY AND PROSE. By Mildred Welker Hufstater. New York: Pageant Press, 1953; pp. xiv+112. $3.00.

LITERARY MASTERPIECES OF THE WESTERN WORLD. Edited by Francis H. Horn. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press, 1953: pp. xix+255. $3.50.     

Teaching manuals and the blackboard: accessing historical classroom practices

The blackboard, a useful teaching tool in nineteenth-century England, was transformed into a teaching necessity in the decades follwing 1870, when the Education Acts made school free and mandatory for all children. The resulting huge population of schoolchildren inspired the development of teaching techniques appropriate for large-group learning. Many of these techniques relied on the blackboard as a reusable demonstration space visible to the entire class at once, unlike a book or slate. To share these new practices among teachers, particularly the novice teachers recruited to serve the increased school population, dozens of teaching manuals were published around the turn of the twentieth century. These manuals’ instructions for how to teach reading, writing, arithmetic and nature study to elementary school students offer historians a rare glimpse into teachers’ and students’ school experiences by suggesting how the blackboard shaped classroom practices in late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century England.     

Media Effectiveness in a Malaysian Park System

Abstract

The effectiveness of three media formats (guides, booklets, and signs) were compared for use on a nature trail at Kinabalu Park, Malaysia. Based on a multiple-choice, cognitive test taken by 1,194 visitors, the guide treatment scores were significantly higher than the other media treatments. There was no difference between booklet and sign treatments, and all the media treatments scored higher than the control group (F _3,1190 = 173.76, α = .05). A second experiment compared only booklet and sign media. There was still no difference in effectiveness (Paired t test, t = 0.22, df = 566, p □ .05). The first language and educational backgrounds of visitors influenced media effectiveness. However, age, sex, residence, interest level, prior knowledge, and prior park visitation did not influence the relatively great effectiveness of the guide treatment. Other factors, such as cost, time, and numbers served, may justify use of media formats other than guides.     

The appeal of rough‐and‐tumble play in televised professional football

In a factorial design varying (1) the degree of roughness/violence of a play (low, intermediate, and high), (2) several particular plays within this classification, and (3) sex of viewer, the enjoyment of televised plays of professional football was investigated. The plays were taken from a large pool of plays drawn from numerous games and involving numerous teams. In a pretest, a strong differentiation in the selection plays' degree of roughness/violence was secured. At the same time, the plays were matched on several other, potentially contaminating stimulus dimensions. The enjoyment of plays was found to increase with the degree of their apparent roughness/violence. However, this relationship was significant for male viewers only. It was not reliable for females. There were no appreciable sex differences in the enjoyment of plays featuring low and intermediate levels of roughness. Highly violent plays, in contrast, were significantly more enjoyed by males than by females. The findings suggest that, at least for male viewers, a high degree of aggressiveness is a critical ingredient of the enjoyment of watching sports contests.