Envisioning the Future of Reference Instruction

Abstract

This paper examines students' and practitioners' attitudes toward, and uses of, various reference sources. It was precipitated by questioning the best outcomes of the basic reference class in Library Science programs, specifically asking what types of sources LIS students should be versed in as they enter the workforce-print or online? This research found some differences between academic and public librarians, and little agreement about the purposes of the basic reference course. Teaching about types of reference sources today is difficult; as Margaret Landesman says, we are moving away from "reference collections" because of "the convergence among formats, [so that] we can't recognize a reference book when we see one." 1 Our students, though, might benefit from using print reference sources, less as a historical artifact, but for the concrete demonstration of organization of information that they offer. © 2011 American Library Association. All rights reserved.