Accessing Resources

Course aim

To provide students with the skills to offer customer-centred reference services and utilise information retrieval skills for clients in a variety of contexts.

Course content

• Customer-centred reference and research service, including information seeking behaviour needs analysis, interviewing techniques and service delivery design/management;
• Structured subject searching, seamless searching and identification and analysis of search failures;
• Evidence based research;
• Ethics and legal liabilities of information provision;
• Services to special groups; indigenous issues
• Information literacy
• Identifying and evaluating key resources, eg. Best web lists, current awareness services.

Textbook(s)

Cassell, Kay Ann, Hiremath, Uma 2011, Reference &Information Services in the 21st Century: an introduction, Neal-Schuman Publishers, New York, NY and London, UK

Prerequisite(s)

Nil

Corequisite(s)

Nil

Teaching method

Component	Duration
INTERNAL, CITY WEST
Lecture	1 hour x 13 weeks
Tutorial	2 hours x 13 weeks
Directed Study	N/A x 13 weeks
EXTERNAL, CITY WEST, ONLINE
External (Online moderated discussion boards, and other activities)	3 hours x 13 weeks

Note: These components may or may not be scheduled in every study period. Please refer to the timetable for further details.

Assessment

Client research query, Critical evaluation of the reference interview (short report), Practical searching activities experience report (based on experience of spending one day at a library)

Fees

EFTSL*: 0.125
Commonwealth Supported program (Band 1)
To determine the fee for this course as part of a Commonwealth Supported program, go to:
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Fee-paying program for domestic and international students
International students and students undertaking this course as part of a postgraduate fee paying program must refer to the relevant program home page to determine the cost for undertaking this course.

Non-award enrolment
Non-award tuition fees are set by the university. To determine the cost of this course, go to:
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Not all courses are available on all of the above bases, and students must check to ensure that they are permitted to enrol in a particular course.

* Equivalent Full Time Study Load. Please note: all EFTSL values are published and calculated at ten decimal places. Values are displayed to three decimal places for ease of interpretation.