revised fr 2007-08-17 14:51 edt created we 2007-05-16 lesson 01. reference procedures / bringing...

Revised FR 2007-08-17 14:51 EDTCreated WE 2007-05-16 Lesson 01. Reference Procedures / Bringing Learners and Library Skills Together Cr

eated by Cheri Zewe | Reference Services, Evansdale Library, West Virginia University 1/30

Lesson 01

Reference Procedures



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Quick Contents

Reference Interview ……………...……………….. 8

Locating Items …………………………...………… 12

Problems You May Encounter …………...………. 15

Referrals ………………………………...………….. 17

Phone Reference ……………………...…………... 19

Other User Requests ............................................ 21

Electronic and Virtual Reference .......................... 24

Total slides: 30



Acknowledgements

… to all who contributed to the building of this lesson module and to Jill Rafter for compiling the Reference Training Manuel for Student Workers.



Contents of This Lesson

Introduction

Reference Procedures

Recap and a Look Ahead

Your Response to the Lesson



Where You Are in the Instructional SequenceGeneral Context of Student Assistant Library Work

Reference DeskL01 Reference Procedures / Assess / Discuss

L02 Reference Tools and Databases / Assess / Discuss



You should examine the appendices to the Reference Training Manual for Student Workers when you have a moment. Especially important are:

Electronics Information Policy – Appendix J

Emergency Procedures – Appendix K

Performance Expectations – Appendix D

User Conduct – Appendix I

There are some instances where the information in this lesson is already covered in one of the circulation lessons. You will be referred to the appropriate circulation lesson. The web address for these lessons is: intranet.lib.wvu.edu/departments/evancirc/intro-instruction.htm



Interpreting Reference Questions

Focus on the user and ask follow-up questions. Users don’t always ask for what they need, so try rephrasing the question.

Ask the user to tell you more, and let them know you are listening.

Don’t think about a search strategy until you have determined what the user really wants, but do jot down key terms.

It is fine to ask what something means or to ask for more information so that you will lead the user in the right place.



Type of Information Needed

Ask if the user needs a specific format, such as a book, article, score, sound recording, and so on.Also find out how much information the user wants. Someone who needs a statistic would benefit more from a reference source than from a list of five or six books. Helping to formulate a database search query for someone doing in-depth research would be appreciated.Ask the user if they already have some information on the topic. You do not want to give basic information to a professor who is doing advanced research, but the introduction to a subject would be appropriate for someone just beginning a paper.



Notes on the Research Process

Once you have listened carefully to the reference question being posed and have thought of some possible matches with sources that would be useful, it is time to begin the research process. Sometimes the answer isn’t straightforward and won’t always be in the first place you look. Use the sources you consult to focus your search and gain new information about search terms that might be useful. Don't be afraid to try and fail, just be ready with something to try next. Interacting with the user during this process will let you know if you are on the right track and will let them know the steps you are taking to help them answer their question or start their research. It is not necessary to do the searching for them, so once you have located a source that seems to work hand over the resource, give them instructions to get them started, and let them go to work. When you are examining a book source, be sure to consult indexes (usually in the back) and usage guides and tables of contents (usually in the front) of the books.



Wrapping up the Reference Interview

Ask if the user is satisfied.

Invite them to return if they have problems or need further assistance.



Helping Users Locate Items

Many of the questions you will encounter will be from users needing to find an item in the MountainLynx Catalog or in the library itself.If you are unfamiliar with the MountainLynx Catalog, see Circulation Lesson 22.There are maps available on the Reference Desk that can help you give users directions to items in the library.Items are located by Library of Congress Classification Number, with the exception of the Children’s Collection and the Africana Collection – they are arranged by Dewey Decimal Number. For information on classification systems, see Circulation Lesson 05. There is also a breakdown of the Library of Congress classification system in Appendix B of the Reference Training Manuel for Student Workers. Government Documents are classified as SUDOCS, which is covered in Circulation Lesson 25.



Special Collections at Evansdale

Some collections have special words on their labels: AFRICANA = Africana CHILD or C = Children’s Collection CompF = Computer CDs DVD = DVDs EVAN LRC = Leisure Reading EVAN PLAYS = Scripts INDEX = Indexes MUCD = Music CDs MULP = Music LPs PATENT = Patent Information REF or R = Reference VT = Videos



Types of Resources

Encyclopedia – background information, defining terms, good for narrowing topics. There are also encyclopedias for specific subjects.

Reference books – specialized resources like dictionaries, style manuals, books of standards, and others. Good for quick facts and statistics. There are also electronic versions which can be accessed through the Libraries’ Web Page.

Periodical databases – helps find articles in journals, newspapers, magazines, and other sources. Sometimes there is a link to the full text of the article, and other times you must find the journal in paper or microform.



Problems You May EncounterSometimes it is difficult to understand a user’s speech. Try to rephrase the question and ask the user to write down keywords. Remember to be patient.The reference question can be too broad or vague. Ask if there is a specific area of interest, or offer a general book or encyclopedia to help the user learn enough about the topic to narrow it down.Don’t be afraid to ask the user to jot down specialized terms if you are unfamiliar with them.Try to think of keywords for a search if the user has some incorrect information, such as a jumbled title or a misspelled author name.



How to Handle User Complaints

Speak courteously, and try to be friendly.

Use “we” statements rather than “I” statements so the user realizes that your responses reflect library policy and not an unwillingness to help them.

Try to be flexible without going outside library policy. Let a user know, politely, what you can and cannot do.

Remember that the user may already be frustrated or angry and there may be nothing you can do to calm them down. Don’t take it personally, and try to realize that the user is venting about the situation, and not yelling at you specifically.

Refer the user to a supervisor if it seems appropriate.



Referring a Question to Someone Else

Refer the user to another librarian if you can’t find the answer or if you think a specialist is needed. Fill out a Reference Referral Form; there is a sample in Appendix E of the Reference Training Manual for Student Workers. You can see Circulation Lesson 01b for detailed information on the librarians.

Agriculture, Forestry and Consumer Science – Noel KoprivaCreative Arts (music, art, theater, dance) – Beth RoyallEducation and Human Resources – Martha YanceyEngineering and Computer Science – Mary StrifePatents and Trademarks – Marian Armour-GemmenPhysical Education – Barbara LaGodna



The Statistics SheetAll questions should be logged on the sheet.

There are four categories – Reference, Directional, Printer/Hardware, and Virtual Reference.

You should record a number from 1-6 for each question in the appropriate category. See the page on the clipboard that holds the statistics sheet for help in gauging the level of difficulty.



Answering the Telephone

Say: “Evansdale Library Reference Desk, this is ___”

If you cannot find the user’s answer quickly, take their name and number and tell them you will get back to them as soon as you can.

If you are assisting other users, excuse yourself to answer the phone, take the caller’s name, number, and a brief message, and return to the user who is here in person.



Transferring Telephone Callers

When a caller asks to speak to a specific person on the phone, look up the party’s extension line and give this to the caller.

Press the TRANSFER button and then key in the 3-digit extension.

When the party picks up, let them know you are transferring a call and hang up.



Other Requests You May Encounter

If an item cannot be found but is listed in MountainLynx as “Not Checked Out,” first make sure that the listed location is Evansdale Library.

If there is not a line of users at the desk, you can assist the user in locating the item. If there is a line, you can refer the user to the Circulation Desk.

You can also have the user fill out a Missing Items Search Request form at the Circulation Desk.See the sample in Appendix G of the Reference Training Manual for Student Workers.



Other Requests You May Encounter, 2

Course Reserves are handled by Access Services, so refer all reserve questions to the Access Services Desk. Also direct professors there who wish to place items on reserve.

Access Services also handles reservations for study rooms.



Other Requests You May Encounter, 3 Room 130 is the Electronic

Classroom, and it may be reserved by faculty. Use a Reference Referral Form, which is located in the top far right desk drawer, to take down the professor’s information, including the date and time of the request, and place the form in the mailbox of the appropriate subject specialist librarian. Inform the faculty member that you are passing on information, and that the librarian will contact the professor to make the reservation. Please see the policy handout.



Virtual Reference

Virtual Reference is a service in which people can contact the library through online chats via AIM, Yahoo, or MSN Messenger. Here is some basic information so you can answer user questions about the service; the librarians will answer all chat reference questions.Meebo (www.meebo.com) is the website that users can visit to log in to chat services if no software is available on the computer they are using.To access Virtual Reference, the user needs to click on the “Ask a Librarian” link on the WVU library home page. Going here will tell users the times that Virtual Reference is available, as well as letting them know if a librarian is currently logged on. To the right of this information is a list of the Virtual Reference screen names for each of the three chat services. users must type in the screen name, and then use their preferred chat server as usual.GAIM/PIDGIN is the freeware installed on the reference desk computers that the librarians use to access AIM, Yahoo, and MSN Messenger.



Electronic Equipment

Scanners – Both scanners are color. The digital scanner has a paper feed for loose pages, and can only send PDF files in Adobe Acrobat to email addresses. Students will need to have the Adobe Suite on the computer they use to be able to manipulate the scans. The Epson scanner has a flatbed for books, options for cropping and other editing, and will scan documents into either .jpeg, .pdf, or .tif files. It, too, can send scans to a user’s email address.Copiers – They are located in the Microform Room and take coins, bills, or Mountaineer Cards. There is no color copier, but a scanner can be used to produce color copies.Microfilm/Microfiche Readers – Some machines read only microfiche, some will read both film and fiche, and one is a microcard reader. There is one machine that will scan and convert the document to a PDF file; this machine requires a login and charges to print. All of the machines are capable of printing, and there is no charge for printing from any of the non-scanning machines.



Electronic Devices Available at Circulation

Portable tape players

Portable CD players

Music cart

TV cart

Headphones

Laptop computers

If you can’t figure out a problem with the electronic equipment, refer the user to circulation. Most of the staff is trained in troubleshooting.



Music and TV Carts

Boom box

Turntable for LPs

Music Cart TV Cart

TV

DVD/VCR player



Recap and a Look Ahead

You have now learned the procedures you will need to know to work at the reference desk.

In the next lesson, you will learn about reference tools and databases.



Response to Lesson 01

Thank you for your participation in experiencing lesson 01

Please access the online response form to report on your learning experience



Microform

Microform is used to preserve written documents, such as journals and newspapers. It is in the Microforms Room and is read with the use of machines.

Microfilm is documents that have been transferred onto a roll of film.

Microfiche comes in individual cards.

Microform is the term used to describe both of the forms.

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