ASSESSING THE CAPABLE AGRICULTURALIST

The background to the role of assessment in the evolution of an experiential programme in agriculture is presented in this paper. The point is made that in such a context, the process of assessment is itself in a dynamic state. The notion of a matrix of competencies is presented, as is a framework for the development and evaluation of assessment procedures themselves.

Examples of assessment procedures are outlined with particular emphasis being given to student reactions and submissions.

The paper concludes by emphasising the integrated role which assessment plays as a reflective mechanism of active learning.     

Promoting literacy in a digital age: approaches to training for information literacy

Information literacy, and other similar ‘literacies’, such as digital literacy, mediacy, and informacy, are concepts relating to knowledge, skills, and attitudes, at various levels, in dealing with information in varied formats and diverse situations. The breadth of scope of these concepts implies that training must be equally broad, varied, and context-sensitive. This is exemplified by two case studies of information and digital literacy training. The first is a training programme in information literacy for the scientific staff of a multinational pharmaceutical research organization. The second is a summer school dealing with digital literacy, primarily for information professionals from countries of Central and Eastern Europe, and the former Soviet Union.     

Motion Pictures and Photograph

Reese V. Jenkins' Images & Enterprise: Technology and the American Photographic Industry, 1839 to 1925 (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1975—$20.00)

R. C. Smith's Antique Cameras (North Pomfret, Vt.: David & Charles, 1976—$12.95)

Gerald Mast's A Short History Movies (Indianapolis: Bobbs- Merrill, 1976—$7.50, paper)

Lix-Anne Bawden's The Oxford Companion to Film (New York: Oxford University Press, 1976—$24.95)

John Brosnan's Marie Manic: The Story of Special Effects in the Cinema (New York: New American Library Plume Books, 1976—$3.95, paper)

Ronald Gottesman and Harry Geduld (eds.) The Girl in the Hairi Paw:King Kong as Mtyh, Magic, and Monster (New York: Avon Books, 1976—$5.95)

Guy Phelps' Film Censorship (London: Victor Gollancz, 1975—about $10.00)

James Robert Parish, et al. Film Directors Guide: Western Europe (Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press, 1976—$11.00)

James Robert Parish and Don E. Stanke's The Swashbucklers (New Rochelle, N.Y.: Arlington House, 1976—$19.95)

Andrew Sarris' The John Ford Movie Mystery (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1976—$8.95)

Laurence Goldstein and Jay Kaufman's Into Film (New York: Dutton, 1976—$19.95/12.95)

Daniel Arijon's Grammar of the Film Language (New York: Hastings House, 1976—$27.50)     

Evaluation of outreach services for primary care and mental health; assessing the impact

Objectives: This paper reports an evaluation, carried out for London Health Libraries, of the impact of outreach services to primary care and mental health workers in 13 different settings. The main aims of the project were to identify the impact being made by the service, and to produce best‐practice guidelines for outreach services in this kind of community setting. Methods: Analysis of documents, analysis of any evaluation already carried out, interviews with outreach librarians, survey of a representative sample of users (eight services). The services evaluated were very diverse in terms of setting, structure, functions and activities. The evaluation was therefore largely qualitative. Emphasis was placed on trying to identify critical incidents, where it could be shown unambiguously that the outreach services made a difference to practice. Findings: Service recipients felt better informed, more up to date, more aware of resources, more confident and supported in their work, and saved time. Direct impacts, such as improved patient care, cost savings, etc., were more difficult to establish. Conclusions: The study identified the main areas of impact, and the main factors which affected this. Recommendations for good practice in such outreach services are made. Lessons of this evaluation for impact studies in general are presented, in particular the difficulty of assessing ‘direct’ impacts.     

Health information seeking in the information society

This article is the second student contribution to the Dissertations into Practice feature. It reports on a study that investigated the everyday health information-seeking practices of a small group of the 'general public' and the implications for information-seeking theory and health information provision. The first student article, about the implementation of radio frequency identification (RFID) in a hospital library, was very different, and the two articles illustrate the broad spectrum of possible subjects for the Dissertations into Practice feature. This study was conducted in summer 2011 by Abir Mukherjee for his MSc dissertation in the Library and Information Sciences programme at City University London. Further information and copies of the full dissertation may be obtained from Abir Mukherjee or David Bawden. AM.     

Reading disabilities and aggression: a critical review.

Several authors have suggested that there is a strong association between specific learning disabilities and aggression, antisocial behavior, and juvenile delinquency. Claims that learning disabilities cause aggressive behavior and delinquency are increasingly common in the popular press, and a variety of theories concerning this purported causal relationship have been proposed. This research is flawed by a lack of specificity in the definition of learning disabilities, with studies often examining heterogeneous groups of children with learning problems. The present review examines the relationship between specific reading disabilities (the most frequently diagnosed learning disability) and aggressive behavior. The data suggest that there is not enough evidence to conclude that reading disability causes aggressive or delinquent behavior, although limited evidence does suggest that reading disability may worsen preexisting aggressive behavior.