[WEB4LIB] RE: Information Literacy (was Jargon...which was

[Stephen R. Westman]

The problem is that the students are correct.  Databases ARE search engines -
they just don't search the domain(s) that the students are expecting. One hopes
that someday we will be able to have unified search engines that will be able
to query a wide variety of content domains - catalogs, Web sites, journals,
full text articles.  Unfortunately, until that happens, we have to try to
design sites that help to explain what are, to the students (to most users who
are not librarians), very arbitrary distinctions.

Stephen Westman
Digital Resources Systems Administrator
The Ohio State University Libraries


"Mary P. (Mollie) Freier" wrote:

> Good point, Sarah. Our students keep calling databases "search engines."
>
> --On Monday, May 20, 2002 8:53 AM -0700 Sarah Graham
> <Sarah_Graham at emerson.edu> wrote:
>
> > I think we're getting away from Blake's original question about the larger
> > philosophical issue of whether we use our web sites to teach, rather than
> > the related issue of whether we should use jargon on our web sites.
> >
> > One issue in particular I'm thinking about is the fact that my library's
> > recent usability test uncovered something that librarians have been
> > observing for some time - that users are not distinguishing between web
> > sites, individual web pages, and databases. Examples of such confusion
> > are: student thinks they are searching the web when they are searching a
> > database, student thinks they are still on a library web page when they
> > are searching a database, student says "I used something on the internet
> > to look up a book the other day and I can't remember what it was," etc.,
> > etc.
> >
> > My question is: should we be doing a better job of teaching our users the
> > difference between web sites and databases? Should we just be doing this
> > in our library instruction classes (e.g. should we reframe our
> > definitions of information literacy to state that the person should be
> > able to distinguish between web sites, databases, and other types of web
> > programs/software), or should are there some creative things we could be
> > doing on our web sites to assist users to do this?
> >
> >
> > Sarah Graham
> > Coordinator of Web Development/Reference Librarian
> > Emerson College Library
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Karen Harker
> > To: Multiple recipients of list
> > Sent: 5/17/2002 5:12 PM
> > Subject: [WEB4LIB] RE: Information Literacy (was Jargon...which was
> >
> > Where else are they using these terms?  Will they use them in their
> > chosen field?  Will they ever use these terms outside of a library?
> >
> > If not, why teach them?  If they use different terms in their fields,
> > why must they translate into library terms?
> >
> > We are not training users to become librarians...we are teaching them
> > how to find the information they need.
> >
> >
> >
> > Karen R. Harker, MLS
> > UT Southwestern Medical Library
> > 5323 Harry Hines Blvd.
> > Dallas, TX  75390-9049
> > 214-648-1698
> > http://www.swmed.edu/library/
> >>>> Blake Carver <carver.50 at osu.edu> 05/17/02 15:37 PM >>>
> > Well, I guess I'm NOT really advocating for the use (or especially the
> > over
> > use) of jargon, but it could easily be argued we are doing our users a
> > favor (or favour depending on where you are) by teaching them commonly
> > used
> > terms. True the users could care less about such things, but we are in
> > the
> > business of imparting knowledge, and if we can make someone wiser
> > through
> > our site and they didn't even notice (That is there was little or no
> > effort
> > on their part to learn something that could potentially be useful to
> > them
> > in the future), then we've done a good job.
> > The other side is the site should be 100% jargon free, and stick with
> > the
> > lowest common denominator.
> > I'm not sure either approach is completely correct, perhaps the answer
> > lies
> > somewhere in the middle.
> >
> > At 04:11 PM 5/17/2002 -0400, you wrote:
> >> I am going to play the devil's advocate here.  Why should we use jargon
> >> written for librarians by librarians?  The users could really care less
> >> about such things.  I am not talking about dumbing down.  that is a
> >> different issue entirely.
> >>
> >> Bill Drew
> >
> >
> > ------------------------------------------
> > Blake Carver
> > Web Librarian
> > The Ohio State University Libraries
> >      See Also:
> >      www.LISNews.com
> >
> >
> >
> >
>
> ------------
> Mary P. (Mollie) Freier
> Reference & Instruction Librarian
> Laurence McKinley Gould Library
> Carleton College
> One North College Street
> Northfield, Minnesota 55057