Moving Through the lnternet: Teaching Mechanics and Evaluation

Abstract

The Talk Table group (divided about equally between academic and public librarians) spent a lively time discussing how we might "teach" searching on the Internet. It was noted that especially in the academic setting, no one seems to take the responsibility for teaching students how to use the Internet. Most of the sessions taught in both academic and public library settings have been drop-in classes; however, one member suggested that it was like "teaching Italian in five nlinutes." Patrons dropping in for such classes have a range in expertise from needing a basic tutorial on how to use a mouse, to needing more expert help on advanced searching techniques. With the variety of search engines available, emphasis is put on learning to use the "help" screens for each engine. Some public libraries are beginning to use volunteers from the community to help teach, thus relieving pressure on the librarians. A few libraries offer printed help sources for what is covered in class. The use of "bogus" Websites was recommended for helping patrons evaluate information found on the Net. The following bibliography was given to Talk Table participants.