Nine strategies for opening and sustaining discussion of cultural pluralism in the college classroom are offered, including use of powerful evocative quotations, evocative visuals, student self-identification in cultural terms, pictographic autobiographies, student personal narratives, metaphors for America, concentric identity circles exercise,…

The teaching of autobiography is recommended as a means of inducing individual and social self-consciousness among college students. This refers to the study of reflective self-presentations of the lives of people especially concerned about social and civic issues, including statesmen, writers, social reformers, public servants, and literary…

A discussion of women and learning looks first at women's experiences and perspectives about learning and why the university classroom is usually more comfortable for men than for women. It then explores the implications for effective teaching and for creating equal learning environments for men and women. Specific classroom techniques and…

To help college teachers assist students in approaching reference materials to obtain citations, basic points that students should identify within citations are specified, and useful classroom techniques and materials are suggested. Common errors in search strategies are also noted. Some suggestions are made for selection of indexes for searching.…

A classroom exercise to help college students of economics conceptualize, create, and learn from graphs is described. The technique is illustrated with an exercise concerning the concept of supply and demand in consumer markets. Classroom time required for the activity is small, and students become adept at manipulating models without anxiety.…

Environmental issues that can be explored in social science courses include problems with potential to cause serious or irreversible change to an ecosystem or biosphere. Areas for discussion include: environmental attitudes, values, and behaviors; the environmental movement; risk perceptions; and the political economy of the environment and…

Presents a content analysis method used in evaluating the quality of group learning in seminars held both face-to-face and with computer-mediated communication. Explains the development of two research instruments: (1) a student questionnaire; and (2) content analysis, which identifies examples of indicators of critical and uncritical thinking…

Describes three schools that are successfully developing digital multimedia portfolios for use by students and teachers. A sidebar provides information on the tools (software and hardware) helpful in setting up digital portfolio projects. (JKP)

Provides a brief explanation of Web browsers and their use, as well as technical information for those considering access to the WWW (World Wide Web). Curriculum resources and addresses to useful Web sites are included. Sidebars show sample searches using Yahoo and Lycos search engines, and a list of recommended Web resources. (JKP)

Provides a list, organized by company, of access software appropriate for special education users, and general software such as productivity tools and educational and recreational software. Sidebars include: software accessibility features to consider; the Alliance for Technology and Access; and contacts for publishers and special education…

Discusses the need for community colleges to assess their participation in automated library networking systems (ALNs). Presents results of questionnaires sent to 253 community college learning resource center directors to determine their use of ALNs. Reviews benefits of automation and ALN activities, planning and communications, institution size,…

Identifies resource allocation patterns and establishes a basis for understanding academic library service costs through a cost analysis of public services. Results of a survey of 101 academic libraries indicate that libraries have responded to increased costs for resource materials by increasing that budget and decreasing the budget for salaries.…

Proposes that the interlibrary loan and document delivery department be used as a setting to train library science students about resource sharing, the practical operations of academic libraries, and the different facets of librarianship. Highlights training methods employed at the Health Sciences Library, University at Buffalo. (JMV)

Reviews the effects of technology on interlibrary loan (ILL) services, and discusses ILL at the Southern Illinois University at Carbondale (SIUC). Examined the number of ILL requests at SIUC from 1983 to 1993, and found that ILL requests have not increased for undergraduates, despite the increased quantity of information available. (JMV)

Discusses the need to create a learning environment in the computer lab that encourages students to "dabble." Benefits include increased student motivation, help for special needs students, and a decrease in truancy. Presents answers to possible objections to this form of student-directed learning and provides tips for running a lab efficiently.…