August 2002
Welcome to LBR110: Effective Internet Searching!
We hear about the Internet everyday in newspapers, television, conversations, radio, and classrooms. LBR110 Effective Internet Instruction deals with topics that we dont hear much about - how to effectively find and evaluate information on the Internet using the most appropriate search tool. The course material is totally web-based and we are "machine dependent" upon accessing the course materials. You should have reliable, consistent Internet access.BR110 is a one-credit course, for which you should allow two - three hours of homework per unit. The majority of students enrolled in LBR110 are enrolled in the Web Design Certificate program. Many of the examples and sites used throughout the course are related to the field of Web Site Design.
LBR110 may be your first experience with a web-based class. If that is the case plan to make a few adjustments. Communication and interaction among teachers and students in a classroom environment is a vital teaching tool in itself and we are challenged in a distance course to maintain the quality and excitement of our learning environment. If you encounter course material that you don't understand, contact me and I will try to make the material more clear to you. If you see words that you don't know the meaning of look them us using the course glossary or dictionary.com.
LBR110 is divided into 5 units, which are posted on the web you might want to think of these units like chapters in a textbook. Each unit contains links to specific aspects of the chapter these links are displayed at the top of each page under the Unit name. For example Unit 1 Online Environment contains the following subsections Information Need, World Wide Web, Assignment, and Resource Reading. To be most effective in the course you should read through each subsection or chapter of a Unit. Web pages are not linear lined up one after the other like textbook chapters and pages. You will also see links to readings within each subsection. Assignment questions may direct you to read and/or compare some of these linked readings. To access magazine articles with the Proxy required statement you will need to set up remote access using the directions posted in Start Here.
Each unit has a homework assignment consisting of 4 or 5 questions to be answered using NVCC email. The last question in each unit is to be posted to the course WebBoard which can be found in the orientation portion of the course. You will be doing a great deal of practice searching in this course. When answering searching questions I need to see the exact search strategy that you used so that I may critique your search process. If you have misunderstood or incorrectly answered a question, I will let you know and you can resubmit your response to receive full credit. Resubmission applies to homework only NOT exams. Each homework unit and your introductory letter are worth 10 points and the two exams are worth 20 points each. Exam 1 should be taken after you have received a grade on Unit 3 homework. Exam 2 should be taken after you have completed Unit 5.
I hope that the course will encourage
you to THINK before you CLICK effective web searching is more
about problem solving than finding information. As most of you know, anyone
can find something on the Internet, but few can find the best information to
answer their questions using the appropriate resource. Consider the following 1)
in what part of the World Wide Web will you find the best information to answer
your question - the Invisible Web
or the Visible web, 2) what search tool is most appropriate for your type
of question, and 3) what search expressions will yield the most relevant
information, and 4) what makes the resource you find the best one to answer your
question?
Your journey through this course will be more pleasant if you do the following:
1) read the Orientation section of the web site completely,
2) print out the Assignments and read them before you read the online unit,
3) if you discover a dead link in the course material, please email me immediately so I can make the necessary modifications,
4) establish remote access so that you can read linked articles from proprietary databases that are included in course units and
5) use your NVCC email to submit ALL assignments
5) read
the LBR110 WebBoard Announcements regularly for answers to student
questions about LBR110 and changes that I have made in course materials.
My career has taken me to opportunities
in Mississippi, Illinois, Texas, and back home to Northern Virginia and NVCC.
I received my BA in History/Sociology from East Carolina University.
I completed by Masters in Library Science at Florida State University in
1974. I began a second masters at
George Mason University exploring higher education's response to cultural
diversity, but during the last five to seven years I have devoted most of my
learning energies towards technology training provided by NVCC and VIVA (Virtual
Library of Virginia).
I spend most of my time on the Loudoun Campus teaching and developing bibliographic instruction modules for students and faculty. I enjoy teaching students to become more successful in their quest for information and using library resources.
I look forward to working with you this semester. If you have questions, problems, or issues with the course, email me immediately. I will do my best to be sure that you have a positive learning experience and I expect the same from you.
Sincerely,
Jennifer Egan
Instructional Services Librarian
jegan@nvcc.edu
703-450-2642