Lesson 1 - Definitions

I would like to start with a little story. The definitions for this lesson are found in our class readings: Reference Skills for the School Library media Specialist: Tools and Topics, 2nd Edition, (2005) by Ann Riedling. When I read the discussion topic assignment, I panicked. I had ordered my texts for my three classes before term, and got a note from Fed-Ex at the end of the first week of classes saying my parcel had been delivered, except it had not been delivered to me. So the search was on for Fed-Ex to find my books. It turns out after three lengthy discussions with a friendly Fed-Ex employee that the driver had delivered my books in Prince George to a local merchant (good: right city, wrong address). Luckily the driver remembered the signature that was given for the book and found my parcel and delivered my books. Boy did I have a lot of readings to catch up on. But that is okay, because I got the assignments all in on time and I am still good to go.

I reviewed the glossary and found I was familiar with most of the terms listed. I also noticed after reading several of my classmates' posts that I was not alone in the unfamiliar terms. All of the terms I was not aware of were abbreviations. Personally I find abbreviations difficult to remember and keep straight. There are so many abbreviations in the teacher librarian world (TL, SLMC, SLRC, DRC, SD, SLMS, and the list can go on).

The three terms that stuck out for me were: NUC (National Union Catalog), OCLC (Online computer library center) and RLIN (Research Libraries Information network). The NUC "lists all works that are cataloged by the Library of Congress and other members of the system" (Riedling, 2005). The OCLC is "a bibligraphic network [that] has the greatest number of members and link to more than 30,000 libraries in 65 countries" (Riedling, 2005). The RLIN is "a bibliographic network that includes records of the 'ivy league' universities and major research centers" (Riedling, 2005).

When I reviewed these three abbreviations I realized that two may not really apply to me, as they are American resources dealing with congress, and 'ivy league' universities. Upon further reflection, as a teacher librarian our students may be dealing with current events topics that are connected with the United States. Having access to these to reference resources could help our students answer a research question, or a hot topic of discussion. I acknowledge that just because we are Canadian and want to include Canadian materials before others, we also have to open to including information from sources around the world. If our students will truly be connected to a global network, they should be entitled to accessing American information just as much as Canadian content.

References

Riedling, A. (2005). Reference Skills for the School Library Media Specialist: Tools and Tips, 2nd Ed. Worthington, OH: Linworth Publishing.