Reflection - Reference Format Bias

I offer the students as many formats and access to as many different resources as I can for research projects. Since I started this course, I also include the Reference section more often than I did before. I think the more resources the students access the better informed the student is about their topic. At this point, I am not sure whether I have a certain bias or not. The Internet is better for some research topics, such as careers in the Foods and Hospitality area; however, we have some excellent non-fiction books and encyclopedias for research on drugs and diseases. The Internet and the databases are excellent sources to access these topics, as well. Sometimes when I cannot find a book on a certain topic, I will suggest to the students to look in an encyclopedia. Sometimes the students have trouble finding enough information or the kind of information they are looking for in a database, so I will suggest another format. Some students prefer books. I ask students not to cut and paste or rely solely on Wikipedia for their research. I tell the students to check out the references that the author used and that Wikipedia is a good place to get synonyms or ideas for further research. I tell the students that universities will not accept Wikipedia or information from encyclopedias and that they should get used to making their own critical analysis from a variety of sources.

I checked many of Riedling's "Useful Web Sites" (p. 105). I created a rubric for Evaluating Web Sites adapting the information from Queen's University (third web site listed; http://library.queensu.ca/inforef/tutorials/qcat/evalint.htm). Two teachers asked if I would give an evaluating web sites presentation, as well as, show the students how to access the databases. I also pulled books and encyclopedias for their research topics.

I was asked to give another Database workshop for Pro-D; it was admitted that the timing was bad for the first workshop (semester turn-around). I included the Research Quest model and the concept maps we learned about in this course. I will also include the Evaluating Web Sites rubric I made. I also used the Ask away feature at UNBC on their library web page and asked for search and navigation ideas that they use. The secondary teacher-librarians are getting together to collaborate to improve the students research skills.