LIBE467: A Blast from the Past [Assignment 1]

Evaluation of a Reference Work

Part 1 - Choosing and Evaluating

Gale | Cengage

When I first started working on this assignment, I did not have consistent access to a school library at the time, and thus had some difficulties deciding on what to choose for my reference work. I decided to scour the online databases and library directory of my alma mater, Seaquam Secondary School in the Delta School District for a suitable resource, and stumbled across the Gale Virtual Reference Library database that the school had a subscription to. Within this database, I found an e-book copy of Ancient Civilizations Reference Library, a 4-volume collection of encyclopedias specifically targeting the subject of ancient civilizations, a very popular topic of study for both elementary and high school students. I decided to use this as the focus of my evaluation.

As stated in Riedling, "the purpose of encyclopedias are to educate and inform. ...These reference sources are unique in that they are organized and packaged in such a way that information is easily accessible and retrievable by the user" (2013). However, with the increased use of the Internet, I have been observing a general downward trend in the usage of encyclopedias. As a student, I vividly remembered there being three full sets of print encyclopedias on our school library shelf, yet now when I enter a school library, I'd be lucky to find one full set. Upon conversing with the TL at my new school, she told me that she had worked to weed out a lot of the encyclopedias as they have been seen as unpopular and unused options in research at the school. Where encyclopedias used to be the first considered source, Google, Wikipedia, and other crowd-source online materials now serve as the basis for "assist[ing] in directing and strengthening a student's subsequent work" (Riedling, 2013).

Using Riedling's Evaluation Process for encyclopedias (specifically, online encyclopedias) in Chapter 6 as a basis, I've created and assessed the Ancient Civilizations Reference Library using the following criteria:

Criteria	Poor	Average	Excellent	Comment	Grade
Authority	-      authors are unknown/not experts in the field -      published by an unknown organization	-      authors are known in the field but may not be experts -      published by a smaller organization	-      authors are considered experts in the field -      published by a known organization	-      preliminary search shows that editors appear to be well-versed in publishing reference works, but may not be clear experts in the field -      the publishing company appears to be a well-known organization for publishing reference works	AVERAGE
Content / Accuracy / Scope	-        information may not cover the intended purpose -      information is somewhat accurate -      information does not cover a diverse scope that is age-appropriate (middle/high school)	-      information covers the intended content -      information is accurate and presented in interesting ways -      information covers a somewhat diverse scope that is age-appropriate (middle/high school)	-      information is uniform and reflects a deep understanding of the topic -      information is highly accurate and engaging for the reader -      information covers a diverse scope that is age-appropriate (middle/high school) -      students can easily relate to the material	-      information is very in-depth, much more so than in a usual encyclopedia -      offers information on a wide variety of topics within each of the civilizations -      very text-heavy encyclopedia -      has some more interesting text blurbs to draw readers attention (i.e., Ancient Egypt in the Movies) -      suitable for high school research; would not be ideal for elementary/middle due to lack of colourful pictures	AVERAGE
Currency	-         published 10+ years ago	-      published between 5-10 years ago	-      published within last 5 years	-      published in 2000, 18 years ago	POOR
Format	-         no relevant illustrations/labels -      difficult to navigate	-      few relevant illustrations/labels -       may not be immediately user friendly	-      illustrations are in colour, rich, vibrant, and relevant -      clear, functional, and easy to navigate	-      not all illustrations are available in the eBook copy, likely due to copyright issues; available instead as a separate list on GVRL database -      contains a glossary as well as a timeline of important events -      GVRL database has a Table of Contents that hyperlinks to main chapters in the eBook version	AVERAGE
Indexing	-      generalized index -      no search function	-      detailed index -      search function is primitive or not user friendly	-      detailed index that is easy to use -      user friendly search function	-      has both a print index and an electronic index -      can search through either a search bar function or via an alphabetical index	EXCELLENT
Relevancy to Curriculum	-      not relevant to the Grade 7/8 BC Social Studies curriculum -      does not offer inquiry possibilities	-      somewhat relevant to the Grade 7/8 BC Social Studies curriculum -      may not offer clear inquiry possibilities	-      relevant to the Grade 7/8 BC Social Studies curriculum -      offers inquiry possibilities	-      aligns with Grade 7 BC Social Studies curriculum (new) -      gives enough detailed information for students to “make ethical judgments about past events, decisions, or actions, and assess limitations of drawing direct lessons from the past” (BC’s New Curriculum), allowing for inquiry	EXCELLENT

The greatest drawback of this particular resource is its age. While the content topic is one that probably hasn't had many updates over the past couple of decades, this is still a reference work whose print version was originally published in 2000 and thus makes it 18 years old. Riedling states that encyclopedias that wish to be effective and current in a school library needs to be updated every five years; this reference work is clearly in need of a major update.

Another major drawback of the Ancient Civilizations Reference Library is its very text-heavy focus. While it provides lots of useful information for research, it is not targeting the ideal age during which this research would be performed. After taking a look at the new curriculum documents for Social Studies, I concluded that an "ancient civilizations" unit would probably fit best into the Grade 7 curriculum. While the target audience is for Grade 6-8 students, the large amount of text and lack of colourful illustrations make the reference books seem like they are a better fit for high school students. The eBook version makes accessing the illustrations even more difficult as readers would need to visit a separate tab on the GVRL database to be able to view most of the illustrations available in the encyclopedia. This type of resource would be not suitable for a Grade 7 audience as the large amounts of text would not be engaging for the students.

Part 2 - Potential Replacements

Kids Reference - Ancient Civilizations set

Kids Reference | Ancient Civilizations (2015)

Published in 2015, the Ancient Civilizations set of reference books is created to be much more student-friendly. In addition to being published more recently, this set of books is targeted towards Grade 6-12 students, covering the Grade 7 age range where ancient civilizations would normally be covered in the Social Studies curriculum. The reference set also boasts much more colourful and attractive layouts that is sure to grab a younger reader's attention much fast (see some sample pages here). The School Library Journal, a reputable source for teacher librarians, rates the reference set as being "excellent." While the scope of the content covered is not as large as Ancient Civilizations Reference Library, it has a separate book dedicated to one of eight different civilizations that are commonly taught in the Grade 7 Social Studies curriculum. If a teacher librarian knows that the teacher only wishes to cover a certain civilization, they can choose to purchase just one book rather than the whole set, which saves on a lot of money, especially when compared to the set of Ancient Civilizations Reference Library which costs $315 USD for the whole set brand new (or around $75 USD per volume).

Price: $25.95 USD each, or $207.60 USD for entire set

Ancient History Encyclopedia

Since the Internet is where a lot of students are beginning their research, it only makes sense to include a reliable online source for students to use. The Ancient History Encyclopedia has a vast collection of information that is very detailed and vibrant with illustrations. However, the major drawback of this resource is that it is not intended for elementary-age students to use; the language is very likely to be too difficult for the average Grade 7 student. If literacy is not a problem for the student though, there is a wealth of information on this online encyclopedia that is constantly kept up to date by a certified non-profit organization. The website is easy to browse, has an accessible, user-friendly search function, and is very clean in format. It also does not have strange pop-ups or inappropriate advertisements, which can be a cause for concern when using online resources. The best part is: it is a free resource!

Price: Free

References:

Ancient Civilizations. (2015). Kids Reference Company Inc. Retrieved from http://www.kids-reference.com/Content/1488/PageDetails.aspx

Ancient Civilizations Reference Library. (2000). J. Knight & S.A. McConnell (Eds.), Detroit: UXL. Retrieved from http://link.galegroup.com/apps/pub/97814144228855/GVRL?u=37sess&sid=GVRL

Ancient History Encyclopedia. (2018). Ancient History Encyclopedia Limited. Retrieved from https://www.ancient.eu/

BC's New Curriculum. (n.d.). Social Studies 7. Retrieved from https://curriculum.gov.bc.ca/curriculum/social-studies/7

McLeod, B. (2018, October 5). Personal conversation.

Riedling, A.M., Shake, L., & Houston, C. (2013). Reference Skills for the School Librarian: Tools and Tips, 3rd Ed. California: Linworth. Ebook.