The Reference Process and Information Skills

This week’s module was about the reference process. Reading about the various reference processes reminded me of how the process has evolved since I wrote my very first reference paper. I remember when I was in High School having to search through yes the paper card catalogue trying to find information for the question I was trying to address. Then once I found the cards I would search the library shelves for the books and then finally read the materials to find what I was looking for. Today the process is so much simpler. A quick search on a journal data base can yield information in a matter of seconds. But as the way we access information has changed the reference process itself has not. It is still as Rieding explains the reference process it “1) a need for information; 2) a question; 3) the search for information; 4) an answer or response; 5) an evaluation (pg. 5, para. 2).”

In past years it was seen as the teacher librarian’s job to guide students through the reference process, classroom teachers played little role in the process, but that was also when librarians were employed full time within 1 individual school. In subsequent years due to budget cut backs librarians run 2 to 3 libraries within a school district. It has become virtually impossible to depend on the teacher librarian to teach the reference process. I would further argue that the reference process should be taught as an integrated part of regular curriculum. The information seeking process and therefore skill set does not end once a research paper has been handed in. It is a process that we engage in on a daily basis to make the smallest and the biggest of decisions. Therefore it is imperative that the reference process is part of an integrated curriculum in all subjects. It reminds me of the saying of “Give a man a fish and he will be fed once, teach a man to fish and he will never be hungry.” Students through the research process need to be taught how to find answers, not just given them. This point was also stated in the text when it explained that “the ability to find and use information – is the keystone to lifelong learning (pg. 11, para. 1).”

Sources:
Rielding, A. (2005). Reference skills for the school library media specialist: Tools and tips, 2nd ed. Worthington, Ohio: Linworth Publishing, Inc.