A dozen articles suggest a variety of ways for libraries to enhance their daily reference service and the image of librarianship, and to bring in more users. They emphasize the interaction of both the staff and the clients with new technology. Also published as The Reference Librarian, no. 39, 1993. No index. The paper edition has the same ISBN. Annotation copyright by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Training paraprofessionals is vital to providing good service and minimizing turnover. This manual is designed for librarians creating and implementing a training programme for paraprofessionals who will be working in reference services. The process is covered from goal-setting to evaluation.

Using paraprofessionals to answer reference questions is a great way to expand your library¿s reference reach while getting the most value out of your staff. But how do you begin training them? What training materials should be used? What skills should be taught? How important is the reference interview for paraprofessionals? What are the pros and cons of using paraprofessionals in this manner? Morgan answers these and other questions in a new edition of this bestselling book. Revised and updated to include basic and advanced skills using both print and electronic resources, this volume includes modules on government information, international and corporate information, statistics, medical and health information, and more. This guide will help you prepare paraprofessionals for the issues frontline library staff face on a daily basis. Once you¿ve trained them, you can turn again to the book for tips and strategies on evaluation and supplemental training. If your library has catalogers, students, newly hired staff, or other staff members with untapped potential, this book is for you.

This text carefully addresses the difficulties encountered by teaching or classroom assistants working with children with pervasive developmental disorder, autism and Asperger syndrome.

Reference and Information Services, if it may still be referred to by this term, is an evolving outreach service in libraries. This is not only due to Google and the Internet, but also other technological advances afford users online access to a plethora of content, free and proprietary. This evolution has also caused a shift in the theories and practices (especially, core functions and values) of reference and information services as library schools seek greater alignment with practitioners and libraries on the forefront of these changes. As academics and practitioners work together to educate library students on the kinds of changes happening in reference and information services, they are rethinking their curriculum and assignments to incorporate real-world challenges adaptive to user needs. Likewise, libraries may work through their regional library consortia to plan professional development workshops or training sessions to teach new skills and methods of approach required for such changing services. Here’s a tool for library school instructors, library students, professional development instructors, and current librarians poised to change, which specifically addresses the pedagogy of reference and information services in flux. It will help answer questions such as: How may we better educate a new and current generation of reference and information service professionals, given the challenges they will likely encounter? What kinds of assignments could be devised to better promote active learning in a transformative field like reference and information services? What new approaches or theories could be applied to assist library professionals in meeting the informational needs of users?

How can you enhance reference services without adding staff? Modern law librarians are under growing pressure to keep up with new technologies, deal instantly with the demands of patrons, keep the library safe and user-friendly, and generally offer the best possible service while keeping costs down. Emerging Solutions in Reference Services: Implications for Libraries in the New Millennium is a very practical guide for coping with rapidly changing technology and increasing demands for services. Its sane, well-researched advice and suggestions can help you deal with the hectic days and nights behind the reference desk. Emerging Solutions in Reference Services suggests up-to-date, innovative ways to deal with the traditional issues confronting librarians, including: handling problem patrons and ensuring security assigning reference responsibilities teaching patrons at the reference desk or on library tours drafting enforceable rules avoiding the unauthorized practice of law charging--or not charging--fees for services cross-training reference personnel Some of the traditional problems of law librarians are solved by computers; others are actually exacerbated by the new technologies available. In addition to finding ways that technology can help law librarians, Emerging Solutions in Reference Services offers solutions for the special problems posed by new technology, including questions of Web design, setting up online reference services, virtual library tours, Internet training for patrons, and ensuring technological competency of staff. In these days of decreasing budgets and increasing demands for services, Emerging Solutions in Reference Services is an invaluable resource for the librarian caught in the middle.

This revised and updated sixth edition of Reference and Information Services continues the book's rich tradition, covering all phases of reference and information services with less emphasis on print and more emphasis on strategies and scenarios. Reference and Information Services is the go-to textbook for MSLIS and i-School courses on reference services and related topics. It is also a helpful handbook for practitioners. Authors include LIS faculty and professionals who have relevant degrees in their areas and who have published extensively on their topics. The first half of the book provides an overview of reference services and techniques for service provision, including the reference interview, ethics, instruction, reader's advisory, and services to diverse populations including children. This part of the book establishes a foundation of knowledge on reference service and frames each topic with ethical and social justice perspectives. The second part of the book offers an overview of the information life cycle and dissemination of information, followed by an in-depth examination of information sources by type—including dictionaries, encyclopedias, indexes, and abstracts—as well as by broad subject areas including government, statistics and data, health, and legal information. This second section introduces the tools and resources that reference professionals use to provide the services described in the first half of the text.