The field of school librarianship has long called for stronger evidence related to school libraries and student achievement (Stefl-Mabry and Raddick 2017; Stefl-Mabry et al. 2016; Morris and Cahill 2017). This article outlines a systematic method for school librarians to document student learning and provide tangible confirmation of their…

The Bibliotherapy Education Project began as a teaching collaboration between faculty at Oregon State University's Libraries and School of Education. The project's evolution from 1999 to 2004 was previously described in this journal (McMillen 2005). The core of the project is a book evaluation tool, which builds counselor skill and knowledge in…

Many programs for mentoring of librarians exist within organizations, for specific areas of librarianship, or for particular groups of librarians. These programs generally depend on face-to-face contact and some organizational commonalities or similarity in positions. With the advent of online communication, could a more general program matching…

Discusses program evaluation concepts and methods and how they can be applied to children's library services. What program evaluation is not is explained, as well as three levels of evaluation, including a variety of "threats" to the possible effectiveness of a program. Examples of program evaluation instruments are appended. (EM)

A variety of resources is needed to effectively carry out a comprehensive evaluation of any reasonably complex program of library instruction. At the State University College at Oswego, New York, the means and motivation for carrying out formal evaluation of a college library's instruction program were greatly enhanced when librarians cooperated…

In attempt to answer the question of how to measure or evaluate the quality of reference service to youth, this essay examines the literature; defines the terms (reference services and tools, parental concern, library instruction); discusses move toward quality evaluation; and provides options and approaches to such measurement. (EJS)

Determining the best methods of assessment for a library instruction program in a large research university can be a challenging task. Albert R. Mann Library at Cornell University Library has pilot-tested three methods of formative and summative assessment for its library instruction program--attitudinal, outcomes-based, and gap-measure--and…

This second in a five-lesson tutorial on library evaluation focuses on the evaluation of library collections. Highlights include the seven-step evaluation process described in lesson one; quantitative methods (total size, unfilled requests, circulation, turnover rate); and qualitative methods (impressionistic, list-checking). One required and…

A brief history of "Psychological Abstracts" describes the development of this index over its nearly 100-year history. The various concerns and problems of both the publisher and users of the psychological literature are reported, and present and future solutions are discussed. Appended is an 18-item annotated bibliography. (Author/EJS)

This article describes use of the InfoTrac system, a self-contained periodical reference system designed for in-library use that provides coverage of 900 general interest, business, management, and economic periodicals, at Indiana University (Bloomington). Discussion covers InfoTrac installation, InfoTrac and student interaction, system…

In 1991, the University Libraries of Northern Illinois University implemented a revised policy for renewals of library materials. Various system, staff, and patron-related concerns required the access services department to adapt to immediate demands, then to seek longterm solutions. This case study examines the initial impact of the new policy,…