Examining validity in research

Guest post from Reference Librarian Christopher Allen

As a society, we have an abundance of information and resources at our fingertips.  The volume of information we have access to can be overwhelming, especially when given a research assignment by your professor. Where do you begin and how do you know that what you are reading is reliable?

Image credit:  Martin, Michael. “Bias In The Media Today: Is fake news really a thing?”, Odyssey, 13 Feb. 2017.

Here are some things you need to think about:

• How much do you know about the publication you are extracting information from?  What is the process for publishing information in this source?   
• Who publishes the information and what is their role? 
• What are they trying to promote? 
• Who supplies the funding for much of the research?

These are all important questions you should be asking yourself when researching information.

Finding true and accurate information can be a daunting task for students. Here are some steps you can take to evaluate the information you are reading in order to test the validity of the source:

• What credentials does the author(s) hold?
• Is this person(s) considered an expert?  How do you know?
• Can you find information on the name of the company, business, or organization that funded the research or created the publication?
• Is the article selling or promoting a product or idea? Is there an agenda?
• Can the information in the resource be confirmed via other sources?  

If you have any questions about this process or are still not sure about the resources you are reading, the library is here to help!  Librarians are well-practiced in evaluating and locating reliable databases and sources for information. There are only a few short weeks left in summer session B, so see a librarian today!

Psychotherapy.net: New Database Trial

We are currently trialing a new database, Psychotherapy.net.

This database provides streaming videos for teaching, training, self-study and continuing education in psychotherapy, psychology and addictions.

Users can browse the collection by approach, therapeutic issue, expert, or population.  The database also offers keyword searching. 

This database should be of particular interest to students in Creative Arts Therapy and Social Work. 

Faculty may also want to view the Platform Feature Optimization Guide for tips and best practices.  This guide explains how to make and share clips, directly access videos and clips, where to download instructor's manuals, navigate the video via the transcript, find titles based on content area and more.

The database is available here and also on our Databases page under New/Trial Databases.

We would love to have some community input on this resource, so please let us know what you think!  The trial will end on August 10, 2018.

New books on teaching, learning and pedagogy in higher education

Last summer we put together a guide to new and classic literature on teaching, pedagogy and higher education for new faculty at Nazareth.  All the books are available either in print or electronically at our library.

We've recently updated the guide with some new titles, including:

The Skillful Teacher:  On Technique, Trust and Responsiveness in the Classroom by Stephen D. Brookfield

Learner-Centered Teaching:  Five Key Changes to Practice by Maryellen Weimer

       

Small Teaching:  Everyday Lessons from the Science of Learning by James. M. Lang

Drive:  The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us by Daniel H. Pink

      

...and more!  You can see all of the books on our guide and resource list.

This list is designed to be useful for our Nazareth community, so let us know if you have suggestions!

We added new books on our resource list using input from these great sources online:

• Listener Question: Essential Readings on Pedagogy
• Five useful books for new faculty
• Inside Higher Ed's New Books about Higher Education
• Books for Higher Education Professionals

Time for Summer Beach Reading!

Looking for something fun to read during the long, hot days of summer?  The library has you covered!  All of the tiles below are available in our McNaughton Collection in the Browsing Lounge.

The Female Persuasion by Meg Wolitzer

"Charming and wise, knowing and witty, Meg Wolitzer delivers a novel about power and influence, ego and loyalty, womanhood and ambition. At its heart, The Female Persuasion is about the flame we all believe is flickering inside of us, waiting to be seen and fanned by the right person at the right time. It's a story about the people who guide and the people who follow (and how those roles evolve over time), and the desire within all of us to be pulled into the light." -Amazon description

The Line Becomes a River: Dispatches from the Border by Francisco Cantú

"For Francisco Cantú, the border is in the blood: his mother, a park ranger and daughter of a Mexican immigrant, raised him in the scrublands of the Southwest. Haunted by the landscape of his youth, Cantú joins the Border Patrol. He and his partners are posted to remote regions crisscrossed by drug routes and smuggling corridors, where they learn to track other humans under blistering sun and through frigid nights. They haul in the dead and deliver to detention those they find alive. Cantú tries not to think where the stories go from there." -Amazon description

The House of Broken Angels by Luis Alberto Urrea

"In his final days, beloved and ailing patriarch Miguel Angel de La Cruz, affectionately called Big Angel, has summoned his entire clan for one last legendary birthday party. But as the party approaches, his mother, nearly one hundred, dies herself, leading to a farewell doubleheader in a single weekend. Among the guests is Big Angel's half brother, known as Little Angel, who must reckon with the truth that although he shares a father with his siblings, he has not, as a half gringo, shared a life." -Amazon description

Red Clocks by Leni Zumas

"In this ferociously imaginative novel, abortion is once again illegal in America, in-vitro fertilization is banned, and the Personhood Amendment grants rights of life, liberty, and property to every embryo. In a small Oregon fishing town, five very different women navigate these new barriers alongside age-old questions surrounding motherhood, identity, and freedom." -Amazon description

How to Stop Time by Matt Haig

"How to Stop Time tells a love story across the ages—and for the ages—about a man lost in time, the woman who could save him, and the lifetimes it can take to learn how to live. It is a bighearted, wildly original novel about losing and finding yourself, the inevitability of change, and how with enough time to learn, we just might find happiness." -Amazon description

Find more on Primo or by browsing the McNaughton Collection.  Happy reading!

Some fun summer reading lists:

• The 39 Books We're Talking About This Summer (Washington Post)
• 73 Books to Read While the Sun is Out and the Days Are Long (The New York Times)
• The 32 Best Books to Read this Summer (Elle Magazine)
• The 20 Smart Books You'll Want to Read at the Beach This Summer (Esquire Magazine)

A snapshot of what we've been up to this year

Student survey results: Thanks for participating!

Thanks to the over 700 students who participated in our survey--we really appreciate it!  Winners of the Amazon gift card raffle have been notified.  Here are some of the highlights of the survey, and a few things that we're looking into doing based on student feedback.

You can also view the infographic here.

Any questions or comments can be sent to Ilka Datig, Head of Instruction & Outreach, at idatig5@naz.edu.

Welcome to Our New Reference Librarian!

We have a new face at the Reference Desk! 

Getting to know Chris Allen:

When did you know you wanted to be a librarian?

I have always had a passion for libraries. Even as a little kid, I would play "library" with my younger brother and sister. I still find children's books at my parents' house with my home-made date due stamps in the back.

All through grade school and high school I worked in the school libraries as a volunteer. As I got older, I was able to get summer work and got paid to be in the library. This set my career path.

What is your favorite part of being a librarian?

My favorite part of being a librarian would have to be talking with students about what they like to read. I am always interested to hear about the different kinds of things that they like and that helps to inform me about new materials the library should have.

What is your favorite book?

Picking a favorite book would be difficult. I really enjoy almost everything that Stephen King has written and am a big fan of his. There are a few of his that I have read several times such as Pet Sematary, The Stand, and It.

I also love the Harry Potter series and have read that at least three times.

Another favorite is Charlotte's Web.

Anything else you'd like to share? 

My sister and I are both Nazareth Alums. I graduated in 1997 and she did in 2000. Now, my daughter is just finishing her freshman year at Nazareth.

I have been a school librarian at Wayland-Cohocton for the past 19 years and I have been the Freshman Class and National Honor Society advisor for 17 years.

My wife and I have a small farm with over 50 chickens.

Feel free to drop by the desk and say Hi! 

Gilbert E. Griswold – Carved Cane

What’s new in the library? Whether you’re stopping by Millie’s or coming in for a class, take a moment to look at our newest display. In the case in front of John Menihan’s portraits of the Wilmots is a carved wooden cane. But not just any cane. Look again. The cane consists of beautifully carved animals rendered in fantastical style.  The handle is crowned with a mythological hybrid horse but other creatures emerge as you look closer.

The cane was carved by Gilbert E. Griswold (1857-1947). Griswold was a sculptor originally from Pennsylvania who moved to California, first to San Francisco and then to Los Angeles in 1907. He was active in his field until his death in San Bernardino, CA.

The cane was donated to Nazareth College’s Art Department in 1994 by Kenn Scullin, a California native who had relocated to Rochester. It came into his family’s possession along with a table also carved by Griswold. A note states that it was given to the donor’s uncle by the artist for “helping him in time of need” after the great San Francisco earthquake of 1906.

The library staff is very excited to have this carving on permanent display for our community. It really is a wonderful piece of Americana for everyone to enjoy and is quickly becoming a treasured addition to the library’s growing art collection.

Deborah Janetos, Reference Librarian and College Archivist

National Library Week is April 9-14!

There is no better time to show your love of school, public, and college libraries!

All this week you can show your support for all the wonderful work that libraries do in our communities.  Here are a couple of ideas from the American Library Association:

• Visit your local library and see what they're up to!  And we don't mean just us...the Pittsford Community Library is just down the street!
• Show your support on social media:
• Use hashtags #nationallibraryweek and #librariestransform on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram
• Follow I Love Libraries on FB and Twitter

• April 12 is Take Action for Libraries Day
• Libraries need your help, so consider getting involved by talking to your elected representatives about the importance of libraries to your community. #fundlibraries
• Take time to reflect on how a library or librarian has helped you achieve something in life.  Then share that knowledge with someone else!

Above all, go out and enjoy your libraries! 

References:

American Library Association:  Celebrate National Library Week

Historical posters from the Archives

This week's post comes to you via one of our Library Archives Student Assistants--enjoy!

Over the years the Arts Center at Nazareth College has been home to countless productions and performances. Students, faculty, and the public alike have enjoyed the entertainment fostered by the Arts Center since it was first built in 1967. Keep reading to see how productions at the Arts Center have been presented throughout the years.

I think it’s fascinating to look at the productions that have come through the Arts Center. As I was sorting through the theater production posters in the Nazareth College Archives, I found some that caught my eye! From famous musicians and dancers to our own Nazareth College Drama Club, the stage has seen many wonderful performances.

It's funny to think that in 1973 students were still on campus for New Year’s Eve! Now that is right in the middle of our winter break. Imagine ringing in the New Year with your friends while watching this exciting performance!

The bright pink and green color on this poster really caught my eye.This poster is one of the many that advertised a production presented by the Nazareth and St. John Fisher Drama Club. Hopefully the Naz-Fisher rivalry didn’t get in the way!

This poster describes the 70’s to a tee! I love the groovy vibe that is captured in the wavy graphics and warm colors. Not to mention tickets were only $1.00!

The color of this poster is so bold! Created in 1994, this poster is evidence that graphics and design have certainly improved throughout the years. This poster is for the production of a classic, William Shakespeare's The Tempest, presented by our very own Nazareth College Theatre League!

This poster advertises one of the many dance performances and recitals here at the Arts Center! Aside from theater productions, the Arts Center has seen many dancers over the years! The Murray Louis Dance Company performed at Nazareth in 1975!

If you are interested in these or any other theater production posters, please visit the New York Heritage digital site to see the Nazareth College Poster Collection or contact the Nazareth College Archivist, Deborah Janetos at djaneto1@naz.edu.

Christiana Rowlands ‘21

Students: We need your input--please take the library survey!

UPDATE:  The survey is now closed.  Thanks to all who participated!

From March 19-March 30 the library is running a student user survey.  The survey is anonymous and will take about 10-15 minutes to complete.

Participants will get a chance to win a $50 or $100 Amazon gift card!

The Nazareth College Library is committed to providing students with the academic resources, study spaces, and research assistance that they need.  The results of this survey will help us achieve those goals--your feedback is very valuable to us!

Please click here to complete the survey, or copy and paste the link into your browser: https://naz.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_42toMZFQ0n7doc5

If you experience any issues or have questions about the survey, please contact us.

Women's History Month Film Series: Women Who Fight!

March is Women's History Month!  Celebrate by watching some fantastic films by and about women at The Little Theatre.

This month The Little Theatre in Rochester is celebrating Women's History Month with a collection of documentary and narrative films about trailblazing women. 

Special speakers, including local educators and women's right advocates, will lead audience discussion after most of the films.

The series is sponsored by The Little Theatre and by The Susan B. Anthony Institute for Gender and Women's Studies at the University of Rochester.

The next screening is on International Women's Day 2018, Thursday, March 8.  Here is a short description from Rotten Tomatoes:

Viktoria (Maya Vitkova, 2014, Bulgaria)

"Dreaming of the West, Boryana is determined not to have a child in communist Bulgaria. Nonetheless, her daughter Viktoria enters the world in 1979, curiously missing a belly button, and is declared the country's Baby of the Decade. Pampered by her mother state until the age of nine, Viktoria's decade of notoriety comes crashing down with the rest of European communism. But can political collapse and the hardship of new times finally bring Viktoria and her reluctant mother closer together?"

You can find out more about this film, and the others in the series, on The Little's website.  

If you'd like more information, please contact Ilka Datig at idatig5@naz.edu.  She is a member of the organizing committee and will be happy to you more about the series.  

Academic eBook Collection: A new way to find ebooks

The library recently purchased a new collection of ebooks from EBSCOhost, the Academic eBook Collection.

Here is a description of the collection from EBSCO:

This growing subscription package contains a large selection of multidisciplinary e-books representing a broad range of academic subjects. The breadth of information available through this package ensures that students and scholars will have access to information relevant to their research needs.

Offering more than 170,000 e-books, this collection includes titles from leading university presses such as Oxford University Press, MIT Press, State University of New York Press, Cambridge University Press, University of California Press, McGill-Queen's University Press, Harvard University Press and many others. Additional academic publishers include Elsevier, Ashgate Publishing, Taylor & Francis, Sage Publications and John Wiley & Sons.

Subject Coverage Includes:

Art
Business and  economics
Education
Language arts and discipline
Literary criticism
Medical
Performing arts
Philosophy
Poetry
Political science
Religion
Social science
Technology and engineering
Other academic fields

When looking at a book, you can either jump to a particular chapter in the Table of Contents, or view the entire book as a PDF.

The interface gives you a lot of options for reading the book:  you can save, print or email a selection of pages, or save the entire book to a folder with an EBSCO account.

You can view and read the entire book online.  Most ebooks have a limit to how many pages you can download or print.  In that case, you may want to decide which chapter is most important to you.

One of the best features of ebooks is that you can search for a particular word or phrase.  To do so, click on the "Search within" button to look for the terms of interest.

You can find all of our ebook collections in our A-Z databases list.  If you have any questions about using ebooks, please contact the Reference Department.  Happy reading!

Serendipity: Women’s Suffrage and African American History Month

Serendipity is a wonderful word, one I think about a lot in my library research setting. Although librarians use designated subjects heading to help delve into research topics, oftentimes we find ourselves following the unexpected, and off we go on tangential threads. These excursions can lead to surprises, some helpful to our research, others just plain interesting. You learn a lot along the way. That’s what happened when it was time to arrange books for the library’s February display.

First up, books on women’s suffrage. It’s been 100 years since New York State finally granted women the right to vote after decades of struggle. We all know about Susan B Anthony’s role in the movement. Hopefully you have visited her home in Rochester as well as the Women’s Rights National Historical Park in nearby Seneca Falls, New York. If not, add them to your list of must-dos.

But while thumbing through books for the display, I came across names and photos of women not as familiar to me. I was struck by the beautiful photo and inspiring story of Mary Church Terrell, an early African American advocate of both women’s suffrage and civil rights. So serendipity struck and led me to discover others including Ida B. Wells, weaving a beautiful thread to and throughout the African American History Month display in the adjoining large case.

Ida B. Wells

Mary Church Terrell

So next time you’re in the library, please take a look at some of the interesting and relevant books we offer on these subjects, and  pause to learn a little about the many courageous and inspiring women who paved the way for all of us. Serendipity...

--Deborah Janetos, Reference Librarian & College Archivist

Selected Books at Nazareth Library:

Terrell, M. (1996). A colored woman in a white world (African-American women writers, 1910-1940). New York : London: G.K. Hall ; Prentice Hall International.

Lorette Wilmot Library   Nazareth Main Collection   323.092 Ter  

Jones, B. (1990). Quest for equality : The life and writings of Mary Eliza Church Terrell, 1863-1954 (Black women in United States history ; v. 13). Brooklyn, N.Y.: Carlson Pub.

Lorette Wilmot Library   Nazareth Main Collection   973.0496073 Ter, Jon  

Wells-Barnett, I., & Royster, J. (1997). Southern horrors and other writings : The anti-lynching campaign of Ida B. Wells, 1892-1900 (Bedford series in history and culture). Boston, MA: Bedford Books.

Lorette Wilmot Library   Nazareth Main Collection   323.092 Wel  

Thompson, M. (1990). Ida B. Wells-Barnett : An exploratory study of an American Black woman, 1893-1930 (Black women in United States history ; v. 15). Brooklyn, N.Y.: Carlson Pub.

Lorette Wilmot Library   Nazareth Main Collection   323.092 Wel, Tho  

Winter at Nazareth College

Librarians spend a lot of time thinking about ways to get students inside the library, teaching them about our resources and services - which are extensive and wonderful. Even with campus-wide access available, we really like to see them come through our doors. With that said, sometimes it’s good to go outside, look beyond our usual confines and embrace how winter, especially this year, has transformed the campus into a wintry wonderland. Really photo worthy!

This weekend Campus Activities Board, Student Activities & Leadership and the Undergraduate Association will be hosting the annual Winter Wonderland event, reminding me of winter festivals I’ve read about in the college Archives.

Beginning with winter picnics at Powder Mills Park in the ‘30’s, the festivals became popular annual events after the college moved to our present location in 1942. Highlights included snow sculpture competitions among the classes, sledding and ice skating, dances, concerts, and, of course, a Winter Weekend Queen.

We may not crown a court anymore, but the college’s Winter Wonderland event will still be lots of fun and good way to start off the new semester. And don’t forget to bundle up and get outside and take a few minutes to enjoy our beautiful campus.

-Deborah Janetos, Reference Librarian and Library Archivist

Chicago Manual of Style: 17th Edition

The newest edition of the Chicago Manual of Style was released in Fall 2017.  We have a copy located at the Reference Desk, and have updated our Chicago Citing Handouts.

The goods news is that there are very few changes that will affect how the majority of students use Chicago Style to cite their sources!  Some changes are noted below, along with information on where students can learn more in the Manual.

The biggest change is that Chicago is giving more clarification on how scholars should cite digital materials.  As before, they emphasize citing digital sources using a DOI (Digital Object Identifier) when available.  For most articles, the DOI will be listed on the first page (1.33).  The other option is to use a permalink (rather than copying a URL directly from the browser address bar) (14.9).  Most databases have a Permalink or Durable URL function (look for something that looks like a link chain).

They have also expanded their description of how to cite websites, blogs, and social media (14.205-10).

You can read a full description of what's new in the 17th Edition on the Chicago Manual of Style website.

The Washington Post has a somewhat humorous take on the changes.  The OWL at Purdue has also updated their Chicago Manual of Style tip sheets.

If you have any questions, please contact us!