Integrated General Education
Catherin M. Wehlburg, Editor
96 pages, 9 chapters
New Directions for Teaching and Learning Series
published Spring, 2010, by Jossey-Bass
"General educaton has been an essential part of American higher education for a long time. Unfortunately, it is often seen as something to'get out of the way' so that the student can go on to take the more 'important' courses within a chosen major. This way of thinking does a disservice to the student, the student's learning, and the overall expectations for a baccalaureate degree." (From the Editor)
In our on-going discussion of baccalaureate culture, this is relevant reading. It was recommended for the library by Henriette Pranger.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Thursday, August 19, 2010
CQ Researcher This Week
Drone Warfare
Are strikes by unmanned aircraft ethical?
"Unmanned “drone” aircraft controlled from remote video consoles are being used in increasing numbers by the U.S. military in Afghanistan and by the CIA in Pakistan and other places outside of recognized war zones. Some scholars argue the CIA strikes in Pakistan are illegal, while others say they comply with the laws of war. The spread of armed drones, along with resulting civilian deaths . . . ."
The full report is available on line user name and password required).
Other Recent Reports:
Financial Industry Overhaul
America at War
Gangs in the U.S.
Are strikes by unmanned aircraft ethical?
"Unmanned “drone” aircraft controlled from remote video consoles are being used in increasing numbers by the U.S. military in Afghanistan and by the CIA in Pakistan and other places outside of recognized war zones. Some scholars argue the CIA strikes in Pakistan are illegal, while others say they comply with the laws of war. The spread of armed drones, along with resulting civilian deaths . . . ."
The full report is available on line user name and password required).
Other Recent Reports:
Financial Industry Overhaul
America at War
Gangs in the U.S.
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Mirthless Senate
In a devastating profile this month of the broken Senate, George Packer of The New Yorker reveals a place that might as well be stuffed with mummies. Senators from opposite parties avoid eye contact, even a few feet apart. The choreography is as well-plotted as an old-style Soviet party congress — everything known in advance. Senators work a three-day week, and spend about 50 percent of their free time raising money for reelection.
(Quoted from editorial in the New York Times today by Timothy Egan.)
(Quoted from editorial in the New York Times today by Timothy Egan.)
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Citing Indirect Sources: MLA format
I am quoting from the MLA Handbook (7th edition 6.4.7 page226)
"Whenever you can, take material from the original source, not a secondhand one. If only an indirect surce is availabe--for example,someone's published account of an author's spoken remarks [or published work]. If what you quote or paraphrqase is itself a quotation, put the abbreviation qtd. in ("quoted in") before the indirect source you cite in your parenthetical reference."
Y:ou may document the original source in a note (5.5.1 page 230)
Examples:
Parenthetical Reference:
In “On Her Own Work”, O’Connor suggested her interpretation of the gesture to the misfit (qtd.in Petit 312).
Works Cited
Petit, Susan. “Finding Flannery O’Connor’s ‘Good Man’ in Marilynne Robinson’s Gilead and Home.” Christianity and Literature 59.2 (Winter 2010):
301-318. Web. 11 Aug. 2010.
Note
1.The original source of the paraphrase of O’Connor's comment on the grandmother’s gesture to the misfit was on page 112 in “On Her Own Work” Mystery and Manners: Occasional Prose selected and edited by Sally and Robert Fitzgerald published in 1969 by Farrar.
[Notes would precede the Works Cited Page.]
"Whenever you can, take material from the original source, not a secondhand one. If only an indirect surce is availabe--for example,someone's published account of an author's spoken remarks [or published work]. If what you quote or paraphrqase is itself a quotation, put the abbreviation qtd. in ("quoted in") before the indirect source you cite in your parenthetical reference."
Y:ou may document the original source in a note (5.5.1 page 230)
Examples:
Parenthetical Reference:
In “On Her Own Work”, O’Connor suggested her interpretation of the gesture to the misfit (qtd.in Petit 312).
Works Cited
Petit, Susan. “Finding Flannery O’Connor’s ‘Good Man’ in Marilynne Robinson’s Gilead and Home.” Christianity and Literature 59.2 (Winter 2010):
301-318. Web. 11 Aug. 2010.
Note
1.The original source of the paraphrase of O’Connor's comment on the grandmother’s gesture to the misfit was on page 112 in “On Her Own Work” Mystery and Manners: Occasional Prose selected and edited by Sally and Robert Fitzgerald published in 1969 by Farrar.
[Notes would precede the Works Cited Page.]
CINAHL Features for Nursing Students' Research
Do you need articles on coronary thrombosis written by a nurse? Sometimes your instructors require you to find peer-reviewed articles written by a nurse. Perhaps you have already discovered that CINAHL has a new feature that will help you.
You can limit articles to those ”Written by a Nurse.” You can also limit to articles where the first author is a nurse, or you can limit to articles where any author is a nurse. These limits are only good for articles 2009-forward and a nurse is considered any author with RN, BSN, MSN, and in the case of international publications the appropriate international license/credentials/degree. I always emphasize that this is not a perfect solution either because it eliminates nurse authors in non-nursing journals. I do not know if this feature will become retroactive and include articles before 2009. Stay tuned.
Some additional information:
.The DOI (Digital Object Identifier) has been added to all records 2009-forward.
•The PMC ID (PubMed Central ID) has been added to records 2009-forward.
You can limit articles to those ”Written by a Nurse.” You can also limit to articles where the first author is a nurse, or you can limit to articles where any author is a nurse. These limits are only good for articles 2009-forward and a nurse is considered any author with RN, BSN, MSN, and in the case of international publications the appropriate international license/credentials/degree. I always emphasize that this is not a perfect solution either because it eliminates nurse authors in non-nursing journals. I do not know if this feature will become retroactive and include articles before 2009. Stay tuned.
Some additional information:
.The DOI (Digital Object Identifier) has been added to all records 2009-forward.
•The PMC ID (PubMed Central ID) has been added to records 2009-forward.
Friday, July 30, 2010
Credo Reference Concept Map
Have you used the Credo Reference Concept Map lately? The Concept Map is a great tool that enables you to quickly find information when you don’t know exactly what to look for or want to expand your knowledge of a given area. Students have had great success in using the Concept Map to help brainstorm and focus a topic, or to help them find a new angle or direction to research.
The concept map needs Java 1.4.19 or newer to work. That is the only requirement. For the users that don’t have Java installed this link provides installers for all operating systems: http://www.java.com/en/download/manual.jsp. After installation the browser will need to be restarted. Windows users might need to reboot their computer.
In some cases Java is already installed but it is disabled in the browser. How to enable it is browser-specific but it usually means opening the browser’s Preferences dialog and enabling Java. In Firefox the checkbox to enable Java is in the Preferences window under the ‘Content’ tab. In Safari the option is under the ‘Security’ tab. The option is usually placed besides the option to enable Java Script. It is important to note, though, that ‘Java’ and ‘Java Script’ are two completely different/independent things and enabling one does not enable the other
New Gale Resource Centers
On Sunday, August 1, the following resources will have a significantly different look/feel in order to improve the relevancy and currency of search results:
History Resource Center: U.S.
History Resource Center: World
Science Resource Center
The names of these resources will change from Resource Center to In Context (e.g., Science Resource Center will become Science In Context). The Biography Resource Center will undergo a similar redesign in late August to early September. Other resource centers (Health, Business) will follow later.
We hope you like the changes!
History Resource Center: U.S.
History Resource Center: World
Science Resource Center
The names of these resources will change from Resource Center to In Context (e.g., Science Resource Center will become Science In Context). The Biography Resource Center will undergo a similar redesign in late August to early September. Other resource centers (Health, Business) will follow later.
We hope you like the changes!
Thursday, July 29, 2010
You Thought the Library was Small? THINK AGAIN!
You thought the library was small? Think again! Besides what you see on the shelves in the library, we have 70,000 books you do not see. That's right--70,000. Where are they, you may ask?
They are electronic or ebooks. Libraries of the future,and we are one of them, want expanding space for users and less for books sitting on shelves. That’s why Goodwin Library has eBrary Academic Complete, a database with full text books. Ebrary has just added 1,100 new titles and they added 5,100 in June. They also provide 140 full-text books and other materials specifically for librarians and knowledge managers. That means that we now have that database of over 60,000 full text books. You won’t see them on the shelves, but you will if you go to the library page and click on eBrary. If you add Credo Reference’s full text reference books—also online-we have at least 70,000 electronic books. (By the way, we still plan to fill up the existing shelves.)
Letting Go: A Healthcare Issue
Atul Gawande, Doctor and author, has an article in The New Yorker called "Letting Go" about what medicine should do when it can't save our lives. It is an important discussion for healthcare students of how we deal with end of life issues.
"People have concerns besides simply prolonging their lives. Surveys of patients with terminal illness find that their top priorities include, in addition to avoiding suffering, being with family, having touch of others, being mentally aware, and not being a burden to others. Our system of technological medical care has utterly failed to meet these needs, and the cost of this failure is measure in far more than dollars. The hard question we face,then,is not how we can afford this system's expense. It is how we can build a health-care system that will actually help dying patients achieve what's most important to them at the end of their lives."
This is a quote from the article. Dr. Gawande is a surgeon at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston and a professor at Harvard Medical School, His most recent book, A Checklist Manifesto, is available in the library as is the article.
Source: The New Yorker August 2 2010
"People have concerns besides simply prolonging their lives. Surveys of patients with terminal illness find that their top priorities include, in addition to avoiding suffering, being with family, having touch of others, being mentally aware, and not being a burden to others. Our system of technological medical care has utterly failed to meet these needs, and the cost of this failure is measure in far more than dollars. The hard question we face,then,is not how we can afford this system's expense. It is how we can build a health-care system that will actually help dying patients achieve what's most important to them at the end of their lives."
This is a quote from the article. Dr. Gawande is a surgeon at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston and a professor at Harvard Medical School, His most recent book, A Checklist Manifesto, is available in the library as is the article.
Source: The New Yorker August 2 2010
CPR with Chest Compression Alone
The current issues of the New England Journal of Medicine has three articles on CPR with chest compression alone. There was interesting commentary on these articles on the radio this morning. This might make a good research paper topic.
"in CPR, Less May Be Better" M. Weisfeldt
"CPR with Chest Compression Alone or with Rescue Breathing" T. Rea et al.
"Compression-Only CPR or Standard CPR in Our-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest L. Svensson et al.
New England Journal of Medicine
July 29
"in CPR, Less May Be Better" M. Weisfeldt
"CPR with Chest Compression Alone or with Rescue Breathing" T. Rea et al.
"Compression-Only CPR or Standard CPR in Our-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest L. Svensson et al.
New England Journal of Medicine
July 29
Thursday, July 22, 2010
500 million Facebook Users
This week Facebook reached 500 million users. To give an idea of what 500 Million people would look like, using world population, the Resource Shelf staff built an estimate. 500 million people would mean that every citizen in the following countries were active Facebook Users (in alphabetical order):
The ENTIRE Populations of:
+ Australia
+ Bermuda
+ Canada
+ Cayman Islands
+ Guatemala
+ New Zealand
+ Singapore
+ South Africa
+ United Kingdom
+ United States
Source: BBC Press
Have you got anything by the Ugandan xylophonists?
The new BBC archive of indigenous music from around the world has!
BBC will tomorrow launch a globally-accessible online archive that features indigenous music from some of the world's most dangerous conflict zones, as well as its most inaccessible states. There are audio clips of singing waitresses performing sea shanties on the coast of North Korea, and harp-playing cowboys in rural Venezuela. In all, there will be 100 hours of programming on the BBC's World Music Archive, alongside dozens of photographs of recordings being made in the most remote locations. Essentially the resource comprises the output of Radio 3's world music programmes from the past decade an extraordinary collection of some of the most unlikely and most beautiful music ever recorded.
Listen here. new BBC archive of indigenous music from around the world
Source: The Independent July 22, 2010
BBC will tomorrow launch a globally-accessible online archive that features indigenous music from some of the world's most dangerous conflict zones, as well as its most inaccessible states. There are audio clips of singing waitresses performing sea shanties on the coast of North Korea, and harp-playing cowboys in rural Venezuela. In all, there will be 100 hours of programming on the BBC's World Music Archive, alongside dozens of photographs of recordings being made in the most remote locations. Essentially the resource comprises the output of Radio 3's world music programmes from the past decade an extraordinary collection of some of the most unlikely and most beautiful music ever recorded.
Listen here. new BBC archive of indigenous music from around the world
Source: The Independent July 22, 2010
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Development Reading & Learning communities
Learning Communities for Students in Developmental Reading: An Impact Study at Hillsborough Community College
This report presents results from a rigorous random assignment study of a basic learning community program at Hillsborough Community College in Tampa Bay, Florida. Hillsborough is one of six community colleges participating in the National Center for Postsecondary Research’s Learning Communities Demonstration. The demonstration’s focus is on determining whether learning communities are an effective strategy for helping students who need developmental education. Hillsborough’s learning communities co-enrolled groups of around 20 students into a developmental reading course and a “college success” course. Three cohorts of students (fall 2007, spring 2008, and fall 2008) participated in the study, for a total of 1,071.
Full Report
Source: Education on Docuticker
This report presents results from a rigorous random assignment study of a basic learning community program at Hillsborough Community College in Tampa Bay, Florida. Hillsborough is one of six community colleges participating in the National Center for Postsecondary Research’s Learning Communities Demonstration. The demonstration’s focus is on determining whether learning communities are an effective strategy for helping students who need developmental education. Hillsborough’s learning communities co-enrolled groups of around 20 students into a developmental reading course and a “college success” course. Three cohorts of students (fall 2007, spring 2008, and fall 2008) participated in the study, for a total of 1,071.
Full Report
Source: Education on Docuticker
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Retaining Experienced Nurses
With the nation’s nursing workforce aging and many nurses approaching retirement just as the population ages, creating a greater demand for hospital care, retaining experienced nurses will be critical in coming years. Hospitals, medical centers and other health care organizations can keep more veteran nurses at patient bedsides by implementing a variety of employee-retention strategies identified in a new study supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
Read the full report.
Source: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
Read the full report.
Source: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
Thursday, July 08, 2010
Livemocha for Learning Languages
Livemocha is a Web site for learning languages. The site was started by a group of former Microsoft employees who saw a need for language skills in the growing international economy. It combines immersion language learning with Web 2.0 features, allowing students to connect with others who are learning the same language as well as native speakers so that they can practice conversation, exchange study tips, and contribute new learning materials.
Livemocha is a useful resource for people who want to study a language without investing in expensive products such as Rosetta Stone. It is also a good way to supplement a language class or learn basic expressions for travel.
Source: Reference on the Web By Barbara Bibel
Livemocha is a useful resource for people who want to study a language without investing in expensive products such as Rosetta Stone. It is also a good way to supplement a language class or learn basic expressions for travel.
Source: Reference on the Web By Barbara Bibel
Students Not Encouraged to use Technology
According to the 21st-Century Classroom Report: Preparing Students for the Future or the Past? students think technology is important now and will be in the future, but their schools aren’t adequately preparing them to use technology in college and their careers. Students use technology extensively as a learning tool and expect to use technology in college and the workforce. 94% anticipate using technology to complete assignments in college.
Call to Action for Goodwin College
Survey students to understand their technology expectations. Consider using the 21st-Century Classroom survey tool, or your own survey, to get an accurate picture of what students and teachers want and need
Bring together faculty and IT to discuss must-have resources. Use that discussion to create or augment your district's technology plan
Leverage 21st-century tools to achieve educational goals. Focus on professional development to ensure faculty understand and use technology
Source: T.H.E. Journal, June 28, 2010
Thursday, July 01, 2010
Recommended Books This Week
Patrons recommend this week:
Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Blindness by Jose Saramago
Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson
Differentiate or Die: Survival in Our Era of Killer Competition by Jack Trout
Making the Best of Basics: Family Preparedness Handbook By James Stevens
Fire by Kristin Cashore
Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson
Girl Who Played With Fire by Stieg Larsson
Death and Life of the Great American School System by Diane Ravitch
Trick Baby by Iceberg Slim
No More Sheets by Juanita Bynum
American Women and World War II by Doris Weatherford
What are you reading??
Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Blindness by Jose Saramago
Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson
Differentiate or Die: Survival in Our Era of Killer Competition by Jack Trout
Making the Best of Basics: Family Preparedness Handbook By James Stevens
Fire by Kristin Cashore
Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson
Girl Who Played With Fire by Stieg Larsson
Death and Life of the Great American School System by Diane Ravitch
Trick Baby by Iceberg Slim
No More Sheets by Juanita Bynum
American Women and World War II by Doris Weatherford
What are you reading??
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
American Library Association: Technology Trends
At the annual American Library Association Conference, a panel of expert technology librarians held forth on most interesting library-tech trends. I will be reporting on these all week.
Super Fast Book Scanning: 200 pages in one minute or less
University of Tokyo professor Masatoshi Ishikawa (covered a few months ago on IEEE Spectrum's Automaton blog), which could, in just a few years, allow a handheld device, such as a phone, to scan an entire 200-page book in one minute or less. I'm not really sure how we deal with this but it's not avoidable.
Click on Automaton blog in the previous paragraph for more information and to see the scanner in action on YouTube.
Super Fast Book Scanning: 200 pages in one minute or less
University of Tokyo professor Masatoshi Ishikawa (covered a few months ago on IEEE Spectrum's Automaton blog), which could, in just a few years, allow a handheld device, such as a phone, to scan an entire 200-page book in one minute or less. I'm not really sure how we deal with this but it's not avoidable.
Click on Automaton blog in the previous paragraph for more information and to see the scanner in action on YouTube.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Credo Reference has Topic Pages
We're excited to announce the launch of Credo Topic Pages, now available on http://www.credoreference.com!
Topic Pages can now also assist you in finding your library. By allowing search engines to index Topic Pages, Credo aims to direct even more users to their local libraries - and to your library resources. After finding topic pages in a search engine, users can find their local library on our login page that lists nearby subscribers.
How to find Topic Pages
To find Topic Pages, simply start searching Credo. If a Topic Page exists for your query, it will appear at the very top of your search results.
Topic Pages can now also assist you in finding your library. By allowing search engines to index Topic Pages, Credo aims to direct even more users to their local libraries - and to your library resources. After finding topic pages in a search engine, users can find their local library on our login page that lists nearby subscribers.
How to find Topic Pages
To find Topic Pages, simply start searching Credo. If a Topic Page exists for your query, it will appear at the very top of your search results.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Technology in Higher Education
The National Center for Academic Transformation (NCAT), a small nonprofit considered to be the intellectual center of the technology-based course transformation movement, has labored mightily and with much success to help more colleges bring their undergraduate courses into the modern age. But it has labored precisely because colleges have yet to decide, en masse, that adopting a proven method to produce better student learning outcomes for less money is the kind of thing they should naturally do on their own.
At Fairfield University here in Connecticut, seven different professors all taught a general biology course with a total enrollment of 260 students. Fairfield consolidated the biology course into a single section co-taught by two professors and used technology, such as clickers and laptops, to supplement the learning experience and to make sure the larger setting was not too impersonal. The changes reduced course costs by 31 percent. At the same time, student retention of concepts covered in the course also improved, as measured by questions given to students in the required second-year course for biology majors specifically designed to test concepts covered in both the redesigned and traditional class.
Here is the full report.
At Fairfield University here in Connecticut, seven different professors all taught a general biology course with a total enrollment of 260 students. Fairfield consolidated the biology course into a single section co-taught by two professors and used technology, such as clickers and laptops, to supplement the learning experience and to make sure the larger setting was not too impersonal. The changes reduced course costs by 31 percent. At the same time, student retention of concepts covered in the course also improved, as measured by questions given to students in the required second-year course for biology majors specifically designed to test concepts covered in both the redesigned and traditional class.
Here is the full report.
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