Discusses learning activities on the Internet, and the need to protect students from pornography while also providing for intellectual freedom. Notes the importance of developing a selection policy, involving the community in censorship versus selection discussions, and talking with children and their parents. Provides a list of Web sites for…

Evaluates the effect of budget cuts on undergraduate library services to secondary users. Topics discussed include the reasons for the public's increased use of academic libraries; how academic libraries are responding to such demands; and strategies for implementing new service and access policies. A brief bibliography and a sample library policy…

Describes a 1994 survey about an introductory class in online communications at Wright State University. Discussion includes a profile of respondents, prior online experience, personal development, impact on personal and professional knowledge and skills, impact on communication, and barriers and limitations to the effective use of…

Discusses 29 sources of information on student employment in academic libraries. Categories include management, orientation and training, surveys and job descriptions, student assistants in small libraries, students supervising students, student problems and perspectives, benefits, and new roles and challenges in student employment. (AEF)

Discussion of school reform activity focuses on criticism of a previously published article that challenged all school restructuring efforts based on the belief that advances in technology renders school obsolete. Topics addressed include problems with current public education; existing learning technologies; and speculations about future…

Presents a historical background of effects that the end of the Cold War had on Slavic and East European collections, and focuses on declines in the acquisition of new materials via blanket orders and exchanges. Examines results of a survey of Slavic librarians to determine acquisition sources. Tables display survey responses. (JMV)

Explores the use of a cyberspace technology, i.e., computer conferencing, to support collaborative learning in courses at two Canadian universities. Instructional design for online learning is examined, including course design, learning tasks, group size, and course requirements; problems are identified; and improvements are suggested, including…

Discusses kinds of problems public librarians encounter in the process of providing legal and health information. Data are compared from two surveys of reference librarians who provide legal and health information services in Ontario (Canada) public libraries, and implications for collection development are suggested. (17 references) (LRW)

Discusses the importance of oral tradition in African culture; describes efforts to collect, organize, and disseminate oral tradition; and highlights associated problems. It is concluded that librarians in Africa should place greater emphasis on oral tradition as a supplement to documentary sources. (18 references) (MES)

Describes the Book House, an interactive, multimedia online public access catalog (OPAC) developed in Denmark that uses icons, text, and animation. An alternative design model that addresses problems in OPACs is described; and database design, system navigation, use for fiction retrieval, and evaluation are discussed. (20 references) (MES)

Discusses enduser searching of online databases and describes a study conducted at Ohio State University that compared two methods of assessing the success of enduser searches. Reasons for dissatisfaction are discussed, problems with online searches are examined, possible solutions are described, and further research is suggested. (20 references)…

Defines collaborating systems, i.e., hardware, software, communications, and people working together; examines the need for machine-supported collaboration; and addresses the major obstacles impeding the progress of collaboration, including economic, political, human, and technical factors. A framework for the implementation of machine-supported…

Presents a synopsis of the results of the first phase of a study project sponsored by the National Science Foundation that examined trends, opportunities, and problems in the dissemination of scientific and technical information in the United States. Findings that are summarized concern the use of information, information technologies, and…

Describes the development of CARAS (Computer-Assisted Risk Accountability System), a school-based case management system for at-risk students that is being pilot-tested in several school districts in the state of Washington. Highlights include needs assessment; monitoring and follow-up; problems; program evaluation; and future plans. (Contains two…

Argues that false assumptions about user needs implicit in methodologies for building information systems have resulted in inadequate and inflexible systems. Checkland's Soft Systems Methodology is examined as a useful alternative. Its fundamental features are described, and examples of models demonstrate how the methodology can facilitate…