The Information Literate Historian: A Research Primer ...



The Information Literate Historian: A Research Primer for Students

Purpose

In these increasingly electronic times, undergraduate history students need to be more sophisticated than ever about their research methods. The Information Literate Historian is the only book available designed specifically to teach students of the information age how to most effectively select and use sources--secondary, primary and electronic—to investigate and present their research. Historians are no longer bounded by the traditional research paper, but must translate those same skills into a new era of research. “Information Literacy is defined as a set of abilities requiring individuals to ‘recognize when information is needed and have the ability to locate, evaluate, and use effectively the needed information’”[1] (Cecelia, this needs help. Information Literacy is the buzz word in higher ed as well as in libraries these days. There are lots of convoluded definitions floating around, but it needs to be in her some way)

Overview

As a reference librarian serving both undergraduate and graduate students in an increasingly electronic environment, I have seen first-hand the difficulties they face as they grapple with the breadth and variety of available historical information. . In the past, a solid knowledge of a core of bibliographic tools bibliography (was sufficient because the research resources sources were primarily available in print, on microform, or at a library. Today, the information explosion that has resulted from the power of and access to the Internet has complicated traditional methods of research by heightening students’ expectations and raising new questions about retrieving, applying, and presenting information.

The Information Literate Historian is the only guide available that will teach students how to understand, find, and utilize both traditional and less-traditional sources in their research and writing. At a time when students as well as younger faculty are beginning to ask questions about more creative historical research and its applications, the available textbooks are no longer adequate. Mainly written by history faculty, these volumes, while knowledgeable about traditional methods of scholarship, have not yet incorporated the newer, electronic possibilities which are now a crucial and central component of students’ lives and education. They also generally fail to provide a comprehensive treatment of understanding and using primary source materials (can’t exactly say this see books below) They also generally fail to incorporate new electronic methods of accessing and presenting primary source materials. Additionally, these books generally spend more time discussing how to take notes and construct a paper than how to conduct research. As a librarian, I am perfectly situated to offer insights into the most effective search strategies as well as provide concrete solutions and guidelines to today’s students’ most pressing research-related questions and concerns.

The Information Literate Historian will give students all the tools necessary, both traditional and non-traditional, for successfully conducting and presenting their research (since I’m not talking about how to construct the traditional research paper, I think I can’t say this.) …..to select, evaluate and associtate traditional and non-tradtional sources and research methods. (can you fix this sentence?)

Audience:

Undergraduate students undertaking a research paper, or senior thesis, primarily in the discipline of history are the primary audience for this book. However, it will also be used by graduate students who do not have a strong undergraduate history research background as well as high school students engaged in history research especially at the advanced placement level.. Additionally, students in other disciplines, both undergraduate and graduate, who are conducting a research project or writing a thesis with a significant historical bent would also find this guide very useful.

The Information Literate Historian is the kind of book that history students will want to have as part of their personal reference library. It will also, however, take its place as a comprehensive textbook for classes on history research. (Jenny, it would be great to be more specific here. Any way to get a few names of these kinds of courses from a few universities, yours included, and an average enrollment number? Publishers love this kind of specific info so any statistics we can provide on that front will be very useful

Examples of classes which might use The Information Literate Historian

1) Many universities require senior thesis/papers for graduation. Miami University calls these classes capstones. Capstones are conducted like seminar classes and have enrollment of around 15 in each class. Miami has about 12 classes per year for about 180 students per year. Some examples of capstones:

)History 400.2 Senior Capstone: Violence in the United States

History 400N: Senior Capstone: US Youth and Culture

2) Some Universities offer credit courses which teach research skills to undergraduate history majors

HST 281: Historical Research: Libraries and Beyond (MiamiUniveristy—Taught by Jenny Presnell) enrollment up to 24

Similar course taught at University of Washington (Seattle)

3) Example of Possible High School Market:

Cincinnati Country Day School (private, college prep) Ap history class. Librarian talks to their class about using primary sources. This book could be used as a text. The teacher and librarian would also find it useful as a teaching tool.

Market and Competition:

The books that can be cited as competition for The Information Literate Historian almost universally lack concrete methodologies for searching for, selecting, and evaluating primary sources as well as discussions of how and when to use the Internet. Most have been written by history faculty who are not up-to-date on the newer techniques of research in the electronic information age. None discuss the Web page as a new way of delivering historical research.

Some examples follow:

• History: Illustrated Search Strategy and Sources. Elizabeth Frick. 2nd edition. Library Research Guide Series No. 13 Ann Arbor, Michigan: Pierian Press, 1995, 197pp. Frick, then professor at Dalhousie University and leader in the library field in bibliographic instruction couples her unique style of teaching critical thinking with research technique. Her text concentrates entirely on looking for secondary sources, using online catalogs and indexes. Although she does explore topic selection, reference resources and government documents, she does not explore primary sources in any way, nor does she provide evaluative skills for selecting secondary sources.

• Student’s Guide to History. Eighth edition. Jules R. Benjamin. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s 2001. Longstanding text for history students aimed at the construction of a research paper from research and notetaking through paper construction.. Benjamin peripherally touches on many of topics that The Information Literate Historian would examine in greater detail. He spends several pages exploring the uses of a catalog and journal articles, whereas my proposed volume would expand these into longer chapters with more specific search strategies. His discussion of the internet is basic, again I would elaboarate and suggest more indept search strategies. His dicussion of primary sources is limited to their use in a paper rather than locating them. He does have a nice bibliography of basic reference resources but does not explain the types of reference resources (ie. encyclopedias vs guidebooks vs bibliographies), does not suggest how to find similar sources not included in his lists, nor does he include many websites. My text would not include his discussion on writing a research paper. It has been my experience that each faculty member has their own style in teaching paper construction. The book focuses on selecting a topic, how to read secondary sources, and how to write a research paper. A chapter is spent discussing basic reference sources and research techniques. (Jenny, the previous sentence is unclear by basic reference sources do you mean primary sources/internet? Please be clearer about this and also about how your book expands on it) My text would expand upon this and divide his topics into many chapters. This book also has a web component. at: history/benjamin

• Going To the Sources: a Guide to Historical Research and Writing. 3rd ed. Anthony Brundage. Wheeling, IL: Harlan Davidson, 2002. Brundage, History professor at California Polytechnic University, Pomona, has only recently updated his text first published in 1989. It explores the use of primary sources in historical research from It is an excellent volume at assisting students in conceptualizing primary sources and how they behave. However, his methods for searching for both primary and secondary sources include shelf browsing, suggest avoiding using subject headings in the online catalog, and mention of a few basic indexes. None of these strategies are realistic in this age of information overload. Students must learn to use technology smartly. He provides few bibliographies of standard resources for students to begin their research. His bibliographic suggestions are embedded in the text and difficult for students to discern without re-reading the text. His discussion of the internet is periferial and includes a very short list of sites which seem to be selected at random. He does not discuss how to search the internet for information. To be fair, the intent of this volume is to integrate primary sources into the traditional written research paper.

• History: Illustrated Search Strategy and Sources. Elizabeth Frick. 2nd edition. Library Research Guide Series No. 13 Ann Arbor, Michigan: Pierian Press, 1995, 197pp. Frick, then professor at Dalhousie University and leader in the library field in bibliographic instruction couples her unique style of teaching critical thinking with research technique. Her text concentrates entirely on looking for secondary sources, using online catalogs and indexes. Although she does explore topic selection, reference resources and government documents, she does not explore primary sources in any way, nor does she provide evaluative skills for selecting secondary sources.

•

• Writing History: A Guide for Students. William Kelleher Storey. New York:; Oxford University Press, 1999. 118pp. Discusses how to use research to construct the research paper, how to make inferences from your research, and how to check facts. Lacks specific search strategies and directions to kinds of resources. (Jenny, again be more specific here about what specific search strategies and directions are missing that would be included in your book)

• Historical Research: A Guide. W. H McDowell. London: Longman, 2002. 273pp. Geared to a British audience, the text lacks specific resources, but does discuss research strategy. Concentrates heavily on the construction of the research paper. Very text heavy.

• In Defense of History. Evans

• The Craft of History. Booth (jenny, either leave these last two out or add text)

Electronic Companions

As is the case with many reference books, The Information Literate Historian would be an obvious candidate for a companion website or CDROM. Perhaps access to some fee based databases can be arranged with an access fee to the textbook

Author Biography

Jenny PresnellJenny Presnell is an Information Services Librarian and Histoy, American Studies, and Women’s Studies Bibliographer at Miami University in Ohio. Aside from her Master’s in Library Science (1984, Indiana University), she also has a MA in Histoyr (1991, Xavier University, Cincinnati, Ohio). She teaches a course to undergraduate History majors using the ideas contained in this proposal. She has contributed to many encyclopedias, reviewed books for Library Journal, written articles for the American National Biography (Oxford University Press, 1999), and is currently one of the senior assistant editors for the History volume to be included in the forthcoming set of Best Books For Academic Libraries Vol 4 (Best Books Inc. ). (Jenny, is there a publisher for Best Books? If so, please list)

Presentation and Format

The volume will be about 250 pages and will be completed in January 2004.. . (jenny do you mean 250 manuscript pages or 250 final book pages also best to give yourself a little extra time so I’ve estimated a final ms. Ready in january, ok?)Each chapter will contain an introduction, search strategy, and a list of resources as well as guidelines on how to use those resources. The chapters will attempt to strike a balance between text and graphics, providing examples that are universal enough to speak to a wide range of students with a variety of different resources. Each chapter will have an online counterpart website with suggested class activites, links to websites and other appropriate materials for further class exploration.that can be updated to reflect such changes. (Jenny, I’m not sure what you mean about online counterpart. Do you mean a website where additional info can be added? )Perhaps access to some fee based databases can be arranged with an access fee to the textbook. (this fee-based info might be better placed in the Electronic Companions section I’ve added above.?) Certain chapters would have extensive bibliographies and a few will include maps and images.

Chapter Outline

Introduction

The Nature of Historical Discourse, or How Historians Communicate

In general students do not understand how scholars communicate. This introduction provides a short overview of how materials get into print, including a very brief and simple look at the editorial process. Also included is a discussion of how historians can take the same evidence and come to different conclusions and how history is more interpretive than students often think.

Part I

Basic Types of Resources

Chapter Two

Historians and Sources

This chapter will discuss the differences between primary and secondary sources and how historians build their research, using primary sources to look for trends.. A more lengthy definition of primary sources will be undertaken in Chapter Seven

Part II

Laying the Foundations: Secondary Sources

Chapter Three

Reference Sources

Every student should have a basic familiarity with both print and online resources for historical research. Using guides, encyclopedias, association web sites, biographical information, book reviews, maps, statistics, historical surveys, chronologies, etc., each type of source will be described and major examples provided.

Chapter Four

Finding Books and Using Catalogs

While most libraries today are online, using the electronic catalog effectively can be as complicated as manipulating the card catalogs of the past. In this chapter, students will be taught basic search strategies. Included will be a discussion of the differences between keyword and subject searching and how to make each effective.. Also discussed will be the differences between books and journals in terms of currency and breadth of topic and what this means for the searcher.

Chapter Five

Chapter Five

Finding Journal Articles and Using Indexes

This chapter will explore what a periodical index is, how to locate one that is appropriate for your subject, and how to perform an effective search. Search strategies that will students think through a topic will be included as well as a bibliography of the major indexes as well as their available formats (print and electronic). Additionally, this chapter will help students understand the difference between journals and magazines (the refereee process will be discussed) and how they differ from writing that appears on the Internet.

Chapter Six

Evaluation of Materials (Jenny, I wonder if this chapter should be included above in Part I, Basic Types of Resources, as Chapter Three, since it seems to be a general discussion of identifying and integrating both primary and secondary materials? What do you think?No, Logically we usually discuss evaluation of sources in a more concrete form—which would be here. After chapter three would be before they have located anything to evalute-)

Information Literate historians must be able to select and integrate primary and secondary materials effectively. Evaluation includes selecting the best sources to reflect the issues that students wish to highlight while proving their thesis. It also includes knowing the source of the information, the credibility of the author, and the accuracy of the text. A list of criteria will be presented and a discussion of bias, propaganda and the purposes and intentions of both will be included..

Part III

Finding and Using the Evidence: Primary Sources

Chapter Seven

The Thrill of Discovery: Primary Sources

Primary sources often present many challenges to the modern student. Students must learn to think like their ancestors, in terminology that is foreign to them as well as look for materials in cultures that are organized in ways unthinkable to their twenty first century mind. (this really needs help). (Jenny, add a sentence or two telling us why this is the case) This chapter will be begin with a thorough discussion of what primary sources are, how they can be identified, and where they can be found. Infused throughout the sections below will be specific strategies for helping students locate, use, and identify primary materials.

*Sources Published for Mass Consumption (Books, Journals, Magazine Articles)

*Unpublished Sources and Manuscripts

*Business and Corporate Records

*Oral Testimony

*Government and Other Official Bodies Documents

*Public Records and Genealogical Resources

*Media | Audiovisual

*Artifacts

*Special Dilemma: Ancient, Medieval, and Artifacts

Part IV

Historians, The Internet and Non-Traditional Projects

(Jenny the other parts above

Secondary Sources, Primary Sources, etc do not have general paragraphs describing the whole section so for consistency, this section shouldn’t either)

Chapter Eight

Historians and the Internet

With the inception of the American Memory Project () from the Library of Congress, projects such as the Valley of the Shadow () and the Center for organization History and the New Media (), a new era of using the Internet for the delivery of primary and secondary information for historical instruction and research was initiated. This chapter will teach students when the Internet is an appropriate tool for research for both secondary and primary sources. Students will learn how to search for and evaluate Internet sites, why scholarly journals are seldom freely available online,, what constitutes a good online collection and how the missing pieces of a collection can be determined, and what to look out for in terms of bias in presentations, among other things Websites whose purpose is to deceive will be highlighted and the “deep web” and hidden information will be discussed. The “deep web” refers to the areas of the Internet which cannot be readily searched by typical search engines such as Google. An example of the “deep web” would be a bibliographic database mounted on a web site,whether free or fee based. That information is essentially hidden because Google will not search WITHIN that bibliographic database, only on the homepage of the database. (Jenny, I think these two terms—deep web and hidden information need to be explained a bit more clearly). Further, Ccommunication among historians, such as h-net, the cluster of subject listservs, and its value to research will also be discussed.

Chapter Nine

Maps: From the Simple to the Complex: Using Geographical Information Systems in Historical Research

There are simple ways for students to use maps to enhance historical research. This chapter will discuss using maps from an atlas and historical maps as well as simple ways to create custom maps. Suggestions for how software and Geographical Information Systems or GIS can be used in creating a visual, interactive look at a region or phenomenon will also be provided..

Chapter Ten

The Web Page or the Traditional Research Paper ?

In this new information age, technology affords students with new and sometimes better ways of presenting their research. This chapter will explore the web as the means of delivery of their research. Design and navigation of web site, commonly called “Information Architecture” will be discussed. Incorporating multimedia and images with interpretive text requires different skills than those for traditional paper writing.. Younger faculty are beginning to explore these options with their students. This chapter will not teach html or xhtml encoding or text editors such as Front Page or Dreamweaver

This chapter will suggest how to design a web page, instead of writing a traditional research paper, commonly called, “information architecture”. Reproducing a research paper and not using the technologies available in an online environment is not really using the Internet. (Jenny, the previous sentence is unclear to me. Please rewrite and be clearer about what this all means, a web page instead of a paper, is that common these days? Etc.) Actual html or xhtml encoding or software packages will not be discussed in detail but ____________________(jenny fill in the blank here). Recommendations in aA bibliography of recommendations for _____________ (again fill in the blank)will be provided and issues . Issues of copyright will be discussed.

Chapter Eleven

Incorporating Images, Audio, and Moving Pictures into your Research

Visual and audio material can be important and effective components of historical research. With new technologies, historians are no longer limited to textual descriptions of an audiovisual medium. This chapter will suggest ways to find and incorporate multimedia into a web- researched history project. Software suggestions as well as editing pitfalls will be included. A bibliography will suggest texts that will help the student enhance his or her skills.

Conclusion

The conclusion will briefly outline what skills students should be confident with and what steps they can take if they are interested in pursuing advanced research.

(Jenny, you just need to provide a few sentences that tell us what conclusion will address/state)

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[1] Association of College and Research Libraries. “Information Literacy Defined,” Information Literacy Standards Toolkit.; available from ; accessed 31 March 31, 2003.

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