Since this is a reference course, you need to show what you did and WHY as well as your results. Your responses to the questions that follow may be somewhat informal, but it is important to clearly discuss your strategy. You must also comment on the utility of any resource that you use. Evidence of critical thought is important.
I may suggest that you begin by looking at a recognized source to answer a particular question. However, use other sources as well. I may have missed a newer, better source. It is impossible to keep up with all the new social science (SS) sources in hard copy and digital formats. For hard copy materials, the best approach is to know class numbers and look for newer material when you are at the ready reference and general reference shelves in your research library.
If you have difficulty with a particular problem, you may ask a reference librarian for help in identifying appropriate resources.
I make a reasonable effort to change the exercises from year to year. In some situations, where the resources are standard and have not changed or where I have run out of steam, questions may be repeated from the previous year. Please do not borrow responses from others who took the course earlier or from other students. I value your responses and your insights. To be an effective information professional, you need to have the personal experience of working with these materials.
All exercise sets are required. The question with an *is required of all students. Do additional questions for a total of three for each set.
Many, many new websites appear in a typical year and several of those soon disappear. These sites were useful when I examined them, but a few have likely disappeared or become less useful since then.
Humanities & Social Sciences Index Retrospect 1907-1984 is an important retrospective source. It's continued by Social Sciences Full text.
Infomine, Scholarly Internet Resource Collections, has been available for many years and remains an essential reference source. While it covers all disciplines, SS coverage is strong.
Kids Infoprovides links to websites useful for homework help. Some social studies/sciences are included.
As part of its virtual reference service, Library of Congressprovides a collection of well-regarded links. Several deal with social science.
Debaters are often enthusiastic and diligent library users and many debate topics are in the social sciences. Debate Central provides links to sources useful for the year's National Forensic League high school debate topic. Useful for others too.
Lists are very popular in the social sciences and Gary Price has created an unusually useful list of lists. This should be in your desktop ready reference list.
The British RDN Virtual training Suiteincludes a set of tutorial to help students, teachers, and researchers to improve their research skills. Eighteen tutorials are related to the SS and law.
Gary Price's ResourceShelfcovers the social sciences quite well with an emphasis on late breaking reports on a variety of subjects, including the social sciences. Should be bookmarked and checked every day.The Suffolk Cooperative Library System in New York has created a ready reference list of websites and the social sciences are well covered.
If you could review but one source for the best new websites or web information, I suggest the Scout Report. Also useful [but recent funding reductions have reduced scope and coverage] is the Librarian's Index to the Internet. Infomineis another useful source.
The Journalist's Toolbox is a directory of more than 20,000 web resources. Selective and good annotations. Power Reporting by the Columbia Journalism Review is a similar source. The JournoList, British, links desired answers to tools and resources.
Those looking for alternative sources of popular social science information may find good leads on NewPages - Alternatives in Print and Media. Especially helpful for collection development.
Often social science reference involves statistical queries. Here is a comprehensive list of country statistical agencies with websites.
Often social science reference involves biographical queries. Biographical Dictionary is a good source of reliable, brief entry information. ObitFinder is a good source of information on those who have recently passed away.
Who2 provides quick information on famous people.
Often social science reference involves country queries. The CIA World Factbook, found on several websites is an excellent choice for these questions, although not as good as the Europa Yearbooks or the digital editions of Europa.
Country search engines and regional search engines allow you to search within a specific country's or region's web resources.
The Social Science Research Networkprovides access to a reasonably large range of abstracts and full text documents.
The Council of European Social Science Data Archives website provides access to several SS data archive catalogs throughout the world, including the U.S. as well as links to more than 30 other data archives.
The International Social Survey Programme promotes cross-border collaborative research. Their website contains information about their annual surveys and an archive of data sets.
Internet Crossroads in Social Science Dataprovides about 800 annotated links to data-related resources on the Internet.
The Social Science Data Analysis Network provides access to census and demographic information.
The Geospatial and Statistical Data Center at the University of Virginia has one of the best examples of a modern social science data center.
Another leading site for social science data is Social Sciences Data on the Net
Swivel Preview, Tasty Data Goodies, provides access to data sets and a large number of graphs dealing with a variety of SS issues and topics.
The British Social Science Information Gateway contains a comprehensive list of resources, especially strong in those outside the U.S.
The International Association for Social Science Information Service and Technology website provides access to recent issues of their quarterly periodical and information about the association.
The Social Science Research Councilseeks to advance social science throughout the world. Website contains a good list of social science organizations and associations.
A useful UK resource is Regard, a notable access point for research projects funded by the Economic and Social Research Council.UNESCO has begun to provide a free collection of full-text Social Science Online Periodicals. Most titles are issued in developing countries.
Subscription Books Bulletin [in Booklist] surveyed school and public libraries to discover the most frequently used reference titles. The top three were The Statistical Abstract of the United States, the World Almanac and Book of Facts, and the World Book Encyclopedia. Each of these titles answers many SS reference questions and they should be found on the ready reference shelf in virtually every library. Several titles are also available in a digital version.
Public libraries report that they often receive questions on:
Other heavily used reference works related to the SS include:
Another survey suggested that the SS ready reference desk should include:
Larger libraries will hold the American National Biographyavailable in hard copy or online (fee). An excellent source for many queries about people.
Mary Ellen Bates suggests these sources for ready reference:
1. There is some difference of opinion about which disciplines and professions are included in the social sciences. Using a variety of sources, but including authoritative sources, prepare a list of those disciplines typically included in the social sciences. In particular, examine the multi-volume social science encyclopedias.
Using LC Subject Headings or other appropriate source, prepare a list of class numbers for each of the major social science disciplines or professions identified above. {Memorize these numbers for either the LC and DDC classification schemes depending on your situation.}
2. Using these class numbers, browse in the ready reference shelves of your Library (or another library of your choice with areasonably sized reference collection). Characterize the reference sources found there. If these are the tools most often used by information professionals, what does this tell us about popular information needs in the social sciences?
3. Public schools often use the phrase "social studies" instead of social sciences. A public school teacher has asked for help in finding a few comprehensive websites useful for the [add grade levels] teacher and student. Would the Multnomah Country Library Homework Center: Social Issues site be a good place to begin? What else can you find?
4. A [add level] student needs to answer this question: "What is the relationship between social science and socialism?" Strategy? Best sources?
5. A frazzled patron is trying to locate social science data files. What is a social science data file? Where do you find them? Are they available for student use without intervention? Are any available on the web?
6. The University Libraries provide access to a collection of data files from an organization called ICPSR. What is ICPSR and how useful might it be? Likely audience?
7. Almanacs are often used to answer short, right answer queries. Compare the utility of Time Almanac at their website or the print edition with the World Almanac. Create two or three appropriate SS ready reference queries for your test. When would you use these sources and is one best for SS questions?
*8. Carefully read Information and Its Counterfeits: Propaganda, Misinformation, and Disinformation. Find one additional example for each of the four categories discussed here and comment on each. Be prepared to conduct a library instruction session on this topic at some time in the future since the social sciences lend themselves to counterfeit information. Phil Bradley provides a good list of fake or spoof sites.
*8.1 [may be substituted for 8]. Learn about RSS feeds and how they may be used for current awareness in SS reference work. Setup your own Google Reader or Bloglines newsreader account. Locate a few blogs or other websites with RSS feeds useful for current awareness in one of the SS disciplines/professions covered in this class. Comment on the utility of RSS feed-based current awareness.
9. Students working on reports often need images of social science items. For example, a elementary school student wants downloadable images of state flowers for a school project. Which resource is best?
9. A high school student needs to know how many women in the U.S. are single parents and how that has changed in the past twenty years. Which sources are most useful?
10. You have been asked to develop the social science collection in a medium-sized public library. Examine recent issues of Booklist[Z 1035 .A49], Choice [Z 1035 .A1C4], and Library Journal[Z 671 .L7]. Describe and evaluate their coverage of new social science titles. If you could use but one of these sources, which would it be and why?
11. A beginning graduate student needs to find conference papers [proceedings] given at a recent geography meeting. How does one find conference proceedings?
12. A student [add level] is writing a paper on teen-age sexual behavior, especially in suburban areas. She wants to use web sources. You want her to use library content and databases. To what degree are authoritative sources available on the open web for this topic?
13. Social Sciences Citation Index[ Z 7163 .S63] or its digital equivalent [Web of Science or Web of Knowledge] is not as frequently used as some reference professionals would like. Discuss the assets of a citation index in the social sciences. When would you suggest someone use it instead of other sources? {Note that SSCI does a good job of covering much of library and information science.}
14. A high school student is writing a paper on the relationship between computer games and crime. You have been told that an encyclopedia is a good place to begin. Compare the coverage of this topic in the Americana [AE 5 .E333] , theBritannica[AE 5 .E363], and a third encyclopedia of your choice. How satisfactory are these sources for student or beginning adult "research?" Would it be a good idea to have users begin their search with a review of an encyclopedia entry?
15. Social science reference questions often deal with particular countries. In this example, a student [add level] needs to learn about the government of Iran. Compare general encyclopedias with such web sources as E-Conflict World Encyclopedia,the CIA World Factbook, and ELDIS Country Profiles.
16. A student [add level] has been assigned to write a paper on Adam Smith. What would you do first? Which biographical databases are available in your library? Which are most useful for this query? Would web biography sites such as the Biography website be useful?
17. A user has encountered these abbreviations:
18. A patron, approaching retirement, is looking for a community in the U.S. where the cost of living [includes taxes] is low, crime is low and medical care is excellent. Which sources provide current information for this user? Which one is best? Name at least one community that matches these particulars.
