GREENSHEET
| Format | Textbooks | Grading | Assignments |
Course Objectives
- To introduce the student to the concept of special libraries/information centers and the variety of environments in which they are situated.
- To introduce the student to the organizational/operational issues associated with special libraries/information centers and other related types of information services.
- To introduce the student to the specific operation of one type of special library/information center through the fieldwork experience.
Class Format
We will meet in-person twice, once at the beginning of class and once at the end. At the first session, we will reach a common understanding of how a special library differs from other kinds of libraries and what constitutes a special library. Assignments will be reviewed and understood. At the final session, students will give their final presentations. Time permitting, a panel of special librarians will address students’ questions.
Reasonable Accommodation of Disabilities
Students who need accommodation due to a disability must register with SJSU's Disability Resource Center (DRC) during the first three weeks of the semester. The Center will work with the students to determine the disability, document it, and determine the services and accommodations necessary for student success. Then, the DRC will contact the faculty member to determine the types of consideration necessary.
Students attending the Fullerton campus should first contact the Disability Resource Center in San Jose since they are SJSU students. The DRC will then direct the students to supporting resources on the Fullerton campus.
The DRC Web site: http://www.drc.sjsu.edu/
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Textbooks
Recommended texts
Matarazzo, James M. and Suzanne D. Connolly. Knowledge and Special Libraries (Resources for the Knowledge-Based Economy). Butterworth-Heinemann, 1999.
Mount, Ellis and Renee Massoud. Special Libraries and Information Centers: An Introductory Text. 4th ed. Washington DC: Special Libraries Association, 1999.
Outsell Briefing: The Value of Libraries: Justifying Outsell Briefing in the Year of Accountablility, 2001. (posted to blackboard)
Outsell Briefing: Outlook 2004: Issues in the Information Marketplace, 2003 . (posted to blackboard)
Outsell Briefing: Lessons from Library Closings, 2002. . (posted to blackboard)
Outsell Briefing: TrendAlert: Globalization and Distributed Corporate Information Centers, 2003. . (posted to blackboard)
Portugal, Frank. Valuating Information Intangibles. Washington DC: Special Libraries Association, 2000.
Siess, Judith A. The Visible Librarian: Asserting Your Value with Marketing & Advocacy. American Library Association, 2003.
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Grading
You will choose your grade, based on the amount and quality of your work.
Read the SJSU Academic Integrity Policy
http://www2.sjsu.edu/senate/S04-12.pdf
A/A- grade
40 hour fieldwork or 20-25 page research paper
Project Review (for fieldwork)
Oral Report
2 issue papers
2 Professional Event papers
Outsell Discussion on Blackboard – you must post one comment (at least) to each briefing
B+/B/B- grade
30 hours fieldwork or 10-15 page research paper
Project Review (for fieldwork)
Oral Report
1 issue paper
1 professional event paper
Outsell Discussion on Blackboard – you must post one comment (at least) to each briefing
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Assignments
Oral Report
Prepare a 10 minute oral presentation based upon your observations during your fieldwork experience or your research for your paper. If you did fieldwork, you should be prepared to discuss your project in detail, the library/information center where you did your fieldwork, its organizational structure, its management style/structure, its clientele, and any other interesting features. If you did a research paper, be prepared to summarize its content. This assignment will be evaluated according to the following criteria:
- Completeness of the analysis
- Organizational ability
- Presentation ability
Project Review (for Fieldwork)
Each student will be expected to complete a project at the fieldwork site. The student will negotiate the project content with the supervisor they are working with at the site as well as your instructor. Upon completion of the project, the student will prepare a written project review, including the following:
- Purpose and scope of the project
- Explanation of the approach to and design of the project, along with the rationale for the approach taken
- Description of specific methods and techniques used and why
- Discussion of any problems encountered and how they were handled
- Summary of the results of the project and how the project will benefit the fieldwork site
- Evaluation of what you learned/accomplished by doing the project
This assignment will be evaluated according to the following criteria:
- Completeness of the review
- Organizational ability
- Your site supervisor's feedback
Issue Papers
Interview a special librarian. Discuss the major issues of our field. Write a 1-2 page double spaced paper describing the interview. Post them to Blackboard. These papers may be submitted to the local SLA newsletter for publication (with everyone’s permission, of course).
Research Paper
Choose a topic that pertains to Special Libraries. You must get your instructor’s approval of this topic. Your paper must be double-spaced. Include your bibliography of sources. Suggested topics may be valuing an information center, use of xml, taxonomies, content management, the role of the special librarian in the future.
Professional Event
Attend one/two professional event(s) during the course of the semester. Your assignment is to introduce yourself to at least one stranger. Write a one page, double-spaced summary of the event. Post it to Blackboard. These papers may be submitted to the local SLA newsletter for publication (with everyone’s permission, of course).
Outsell Briefings
Four Outsell briefings have been posted to Blackboard. Read each briefing. By the dates indicated below, please go to the appropriate discussion board and post a comment on the briefing. Tell what you agree or disagree with about the briefing. Your posting may (is encouraged to be) a reaction to a someone else’s comment.
Title of Briefing |
Final Date to Post |
Value of Libraries |
Feb 27 |
Outlook 2005 |
March 20 |
Lessons from Library Closings |
April 10 |
Globalization and Distributed Corporate Info Centers |
May 7 |
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