Library and Information Science Commons^™

Normalization: A Method For Structured File Design, Jerry V. Caswell

Library Faculty/Staff Publications

Library automation requires an extraordinary investment of time and money in the development and maintenance of databases. Irrespective of whether a library sets up a stand-alone system such as circulation, a group of more or less related subsystems, or a totally integrated system, it can be certain of one thing: over time needs will change, new applications will have to be developed, and modifications will have to be made to the file structure of the databases. Of principal concern to the designers of a library's databases should be finding a design structure that will allow modifications to be made with …

Use Of Recommended Selection Aids, Procedures And Budget Priorities For Library Media, Johanna Anderson

Graduate Research Papers

This research study was conducted to learn what media selection tools and procedures a selected group of school library media specialists in Iowa used in selecting library media, and the amount of money these media specialists spent on different library materials during the 1983-84 school year. A questionnaire was sent to forty-six certificated library media specialists all of whom completed certification programs and/or masters degrees in the University of Northern Iowa Department of Library Science. Responses were received from forty persons.

Data showed 87.5 percent use SLJ, 82.5 percent use Booklist, and 85 percent use at least one …

Factors Which Contribute To The Usage Of The Vinton Public Library By Students In Grades Four Through Six, Elizabeth Galloway Stark

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose of this study was to determine factors which contribute to the usage of the Vinton Public Library by students in grades four through six in Vinton, Iowa. The 285 students were surveyed by means of a questionnaire. The results of this survey indicated that parents' use of the Vinton Public Library seemed to be an important factor in children's use of the Vinton Public Library; that children wanted to find books and materials for homework at the Vinton Public Library; that children appear to be less interested in AV materials for listening, and that there appears to be …

Media Center Book Losses Due To Student Mobility In Waterloo, Iowa, Darlene Peterson

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose of the study was to determine what percentage of all missing elementary media centers books were not returned by students who had moved either within or outside the Waterloo Community School District, and what retrieval methods had been most frequently and most successfully used. Survey instruments were mailed to all elementary media specialists in Waterloo in September, 1983. The first section of the survey instrument asked how many books were lost in 1982-1983, and of these how many were not checked out but were missing, were checked out but not returned by students who had moved, were checked …

Collection Diversification In Three Media Centers In Hamilton County, Iowa, Patricia Golden

Graduate Research Papers

Specific research problems to be investigated are:

1. What percent of the nonfiction book titles related to selected social studies topics will be in all three of, in two of, and in only one of the secondary school media center collections?

2. What percent of the nonfiction book titles related to selected social studies topics and listed in the Senior High School Library Catalog will each of the three media centers have?

A Historical Study Of Library Service In Dike Community Schools Dike, Iowa, Patricia Middleswart

Graduate Research Papers

This study was intended to record the stages in the development of the Dike School Libraries as well as to ascertain the significant influences in the the development of library services in a small Iowa community.

The major source of data for this research was the personal interview. Librarians, teachers, administrators and students representing the span of school history from the early 1920 1 s to the present were interviewed. Other primary sources included NCA evaluations, applications for the School Library Media Program Award, and school board minutes.

The researcher found the desire of the Dike high school to obtain …

An Individual Reading Guidance Program In An Elementary Media Center, Kathryn M. Rewerts

Graduate Research Papers

The investigator researched whether participation in the individualized reading guidance program caused an increase in the number of recreational reading books read by the students in the experimental group during the program and after the completion of the program as compared to the number of recreational reading books read by the students in the control group during the same time period.

The Utilization Of Adult Volunteers In Elementary School Library Media Centers, Judith Ann Snetselaar

Graduate Research Papers

This study was conducted to determine the extent to which Iowa school systems, employing media specialists, were utilizing adult volunteers in elementary media centers and to determine the tasks the adult volunteers were being assigned. A survey instrument, consisting of equal parts of both professional and nonprofessional tasks randomly selected from the Task Analysis Survey Instrument, was sent to one hundred twenty-one Iowa elementary school media centers. These elementary school media centers indicated the presence of a media specialist on the Basic Education Data Survey 1982-1983. One hundred and eight survey instruments were returned, and this represented a return rate …

Attitudes Of Faculty And Administrators Toward The Library At Hawkeye Institute Of Technology, Sharon Gatewood

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose of this study was to analyze the attitudes of the faculty and administrators toward the Library at Hawkeye Institute of Technology (HIT) in Waterloo, Iowa. Three years prior to this study the library collection at this vocational-technical school had been centralized in new facilities. By surveying library services used, the importance of materials and equipment to classroom teaching, student assignments and administrative duties and the responsibility for selecting and housing those materials and equipment, this researcher hoped 1) to determine if the faculty and administrators were accepting the new organizational pattern, and 2) to discover where those services …

Stereotypes Of The Native American In Fiction Books In Elementary School Libraries, Karma Anderson

Graduate Research Papers

This study proposed to investigate the kinds of Native American materials which were found in elementary school library media centers in Iowa Education Agency Seven (AEA 7). A questionnaire was prepared with seventeen recommended titles and fifteen presently criticized titles on which media specialists in AEA 7 were to indicate availability in their media centers. The hypothesis to be tested was: Given a list of books containing both reconnnended and presently criticized titles, 75 percent of school library specialists in AEA 7 will indicate that there are more recommended titles than presently criticized titles on Native Americans in their fiction …

Tasks Performed By Nonprofessionals In Elementary School Media Centers In Four Area Education Agencies In Iowa, Barbara J. Beebe

Graduate Research Papers

Nonprofessionals or aides in the media centers are an im­portant part of an effective educational media program. They are essential as support staff to strengthen and complement the services that can be provided.

This study was conducted to determine (1) what tasks are media nonprofessionals performing? (2) what tasks , if any, are media nonprofessionals performing which are usually considered to be tasks which are the responsibility of certificated media professionals and (3) how many, if any, appear to be supervising and instructing students without themselves being supervised by a media professional?

A questionnaire was sent to the media center …

The Relationship Of Leisure Reading And Television Viewing Time To Reading And General Achievement Among Fourth Grade Students, Diane Goodrich

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship that exists between the amount of time spent reading in the home and achievement scores; and, the relationship that exists between the amount of time spent viewing television and achievement scores among fourth grade pupils in an Iowa community. More precisely, the questions that were asked are: Is there a significant relationship between the amount of time spent on reading in the home and the reading and comprehensive scores as measured by the Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS) among fourth grade boys and girls? Likewise, is there a significant …

Informs Users And Subject Requests, 1974-1978, Millicent M. Williams

Graduate Research Papers

This study assesses the use of INFORMS from 1974-1978. The number of requests, the types of users, and the variety of data bases used for searches were all recorded during this time period. Sixteen microfilmed rolls of INFORMS negotiation and ledger forms were used. The following conclusions were reached: 1) the number of requests did increase during the time periods when schools were in session; 2) teachers were the number one users of INFORMS; 3) curriculum and teaching techniques were the subject categories most requested; and 4) ERIC was the data base searched most often for all requests.

Objective Measuring Techniques Applied To Illustrations In Children’S Picture Storybooks, Diane Brown Harrington

Graduate Research Papers

This research study was designed to determine if found and developed objective measuring techniques, using children's preferences and interests, were effective when applied to the illustrations of picture storybooks.

Using only fourteen books written and illustrated by Stan and Jan Berenstain, the five methods used to gather data for this study were: 1) applying the Picture Potency Formula to obtain the language stimulation value of each book; 2) Using a kindergarten child to determine if the essence of the story can be told by a child from lookin0 at the illustrations; 3) recording the number of times the main character(s) …

A Comparison Of Users And Search Subjects Before And After The Beginning Of Medline At The Iowa State Medical Library, Joy Averill

Graduate Research Papers

The research in this paper is directed to the evalu­ation of changes brought about in the library search ser­vices of the Iowa State Medical Library by the addition of the use of the MEDLINE (MEDLARS on-line) computer. Nine hundred ninety-eight search requests were analyzed for two time periods of eight months each. The first time period included manual searches only and the second time period in­cluded both manual and MEDLINE searches. The information compiled for analysis included: the user's occupation; the subject request; whether a manual or computer search was requested; and the computer costs involved for each request.

The …

History Of The Prison Library At The Iowa Women's Reformatory, Cathy Charleston

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose of this study was to present a history of the Women's State Reformatory Library at Rockwell City, Iowa. The writer investigated the history of the library between the years 1940 and 1980, but the emphasis has been focused on the relatively recent history of the library because very few records were identified prior to the 1970 1 s. Primary and secondary resources were obtained through 1) personal interviews with past and present employees, and administrative personnel associated with the library, 2) past records at the Reformatory and at the Iowa State Library, 3) periodicals newspapers, and annual reports …

A Comparison Of Production Printing Services Among The Fifteen Area Education Agencies Of Iowa, Joel T. Haack

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose of this study was to discover if there were any differences among the Area Education Agencies of Iowa in printing production services. This was done by means of a questionnaire based on the amount and type of printing equipment owned and used by the AEAs, the number of personnel and the Full-Time Employee (FTE) hours of the staff, and the total number of offset printing impressions produced during the fiscal year from July 1, 1978 - June 30, 1979. The questionnaire was sent to all fifteen AEA Media Center directors in the spring of 1980, asking them to …

A Study Of Historical Fiction And The Works Of Laura Ingalls Wilder, Kathleen L. Mclaughlin

Graduate Research Papers

This study was undertaken for the specific purpose of developing criteria for good historical fiction, applying the resulting criteria statements to each of the books that make up the "Little House" series, and determining the frequency of criteria appearance in each book separately and as a series. The purpose of this study was to develop and apply a criteria list to each of the books in the "Little House" series point by point.

A valid list of criteria has been established and used in evaluating the "Little House series. Eleven separate criterion which describe the five important elements of good …

Middle School Leisure Reading Material And Its Accessibility, Betty Ann Resch

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose of this study was to determine which formats of leisure reading materials (hardback books, paperback books, magazines, comic books, and newspapers) middle school students read, which formats they prefer to read and where students gain access to their leisure reading materials. In February, 1980, during the school day, a questionnaire was completed by the fifth and sixth grade middle school students of Cherokee Community Schools, Cherokee, Iowa to determine leisure reading of students since school started in August, 1979.

Results of the survey by sex, grade level, and reading level revealed that 94.15 percent of the students reported …

Marshalltown’S Library Service: A History Of The First Fifty Years, 1860-1910, Stephen R. Wiarda

Graduate Research Papers

In the study, "Marshalltown Library Service; A History of the First Fifty Years, 1860-1910," the researcher traced Marshalltown's library service provided during three time spans. The researcher documented the services provided during the three time spans dating from March 4, 1892, to September 3, 1898, when the library was housed at the Marshall County Courthouse as a private association; from September 3, 1898, to September 22, 1903, when service was provided from above Andrew's Dry Goods store by the Marshalltown Free Public Library; and concluding with the time period April 22, 1903, through December 31, 1910, when public library service …

The Role Of The School Library Media Specialist As Perceived By English And Social Science Teaching Majors And Library Science Students At The University Of Northern Iowa, Edward L. Bailey Jr.

Graduate Research Papers

This research study was an attempt to answer the question: Do English and social science students; English and school library media specialist students; and social science and school library media specialist students possess similar perceptions of the role of the school library media specialist?

To answer this question, a role norm inventory consisting of seven parts, each representing one of seven role segments was admini­stered. Responses were made on a Likert-type scale by sample groups at the University of Northern Iowa. An analysis of variance was used to determine the significant differences with the .05 level of proba­bility set for …

The Fiction Reading Interests Of Academically Gifted Seventh-, Eighth-, And Ninth-Grad Students At Holmes Junior High School, Donna Bush

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose of this paper was to discover the following concerning gifted seventh-, eighth-, and ninth-grade students: preferred categories of fiction, factors which influence fiction reading choices, and the amount of time devoted to reading. The professional literature reviewed helped in making predictions for the outcome of this study and in developing fiction categories used in the survey instrument. A questionnaire was distributed to all gifted students and a representative number of students at each grade level not in the program for the gifted at Holmes Junior High School in Cedar Falls, Iowa. The questionnaire was divided into the following …

Censorship Of Media Center Materials By Principals Of Iowa Secondary Schools, Helen C. Bush

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose of this study was to determine the extent of censorship of school library media center materials by principals in Iowa secondary schools. A proportional stratified sample of 200 principals was chosen to receive the survey instrument from a computerized list of all the school districts in Iowa arranged according to size.

Accessibility Of The Media Center In Open Space And Traditional Schools: A Case Study, Norma Whipple

Graduate Research Papers

The media center serves a vital role in the functioning of an effective educational program in a junior high school. In order for students to maximize use of the media center they should have easy access to the area.

The purpose of this study was to determine if the student in an open space school had easier access to the media center and its resources than a student in a traditional school with a media center enclosed by walls and doors. The four areas of concern were the location of the media center, school policies, teacher classroom policies and the …

School Library Programs And Materials For Special Education Teachers And Students, Audrey Cammack

Graduate Research Papers

The primary purpose of this study was to gather information about programs and materials provided for special education teachers and students in public elementary schools in Iowa.

The Effectiveness Of Two Methods Of Teaching Card Index Skills To Third Graders, Jo Bader

Graduate Research Papers

This research study set out to determine if an audio-tutorial package or a slide-tape learning package was more effective in teaching card index skills. The researcher predicted no significant difference at the .05 level in the two groups. Literature was reviewed on audio-tutorial packages, characteristics of media, the projected image, and theories of learning. The two learning packages were designed, piloted, and revised. The population was thirty third grade students at Grant Elementary School in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. This population was randomly divided into two treatment groups. The students took similar pretests and post tests and completed the same follow-up …

Instructional Role Of The Media Specialist, Patricia S. Adams

Graduate Research Papers

A study was made to investigate the number of elementary school media specialists part1e1pat1n.g 1n the instructional program. Additional problems of the study were to further investigate what instructional tasks were performed and what values were assigned to the instructional tasks in a total media program.

A survey instrument was distributed to one hundred fifteen Iowa elementary school media specialists in April, 1975. The instrument was used to assess the following, (1) if the recipient was an elementary media specialist employed full time in one attendance center; (2) if the recipient participated with the teaching staff in planning, designing, implementing, …

History Of The Northwood Public Library, Diana Stehn

Graduate Research Papers

The Northwood Public Library of Northwood, Iowa, was founded on January 29, 1907, with the first meeting of the Northwood Library Association. The library opened to its 109 subscribed members on April 26, 1907. On October 14, 1925, the Northwood Library became the Northwood Public Library. 3tate library officials assisted the Northwood Library's Board of Trustees with the planning for the operations of both the subscription and the public libraries.

Four areas in which research was focused upon during the twenty-one year period (January, 1907- December, 1927) studied included the population served by the library, changes in the geographic location …

The Role Of The School Library Media Specialist As Perceived By School Administration Students And School Library Media Specialist Students At The University Of Northern Iowa, Mary Engelkes

Graduate Research Papers

This research study was an attempt to answer the question: Do school administration students and school library media specialist students enrolled at the University of Northern Iowa possess similar perceptions of the following segments of the role of the school library media specialist: materials specialist, curriculum developer, teacher, technical processor, administrator, participator in extramural activities, and clerical-aide?

The Status Of School Media Personnel In Iowa For The School Year 1977-1978 In Terms Of Age, Sex, Race, Level Of Education, And Salary, Barbara E. Jones

Graduate Research Papers

The study on the status of school media personnel in Iowa for the school year 1977-1978 yielded data concerning age, race, sex, level of education, and salary. The researcher used the information found on school media personnel from the Basic Educational Data Survey for the population of the study. The data gathered was tabulated and statistically analyzed. The mean age of school media personnel was found to be 42.6 years and the median age was found to be 40.0 years. For all levels, 88 percent of the school media personnel were females and 12 percent were males. At the building …