Read also our Newsletter.

• 11-18-09 - NEW DATABASE - Treasures of Jewish Education documents the history of Jewish education. This resource currently includes Simcha Assaf's "Mekorot le-toldot ha-hinukh be-Yisrael" ("A Source-book of the History of Jewish Education" from the Middle Ages until the Beginning of the 20th Century).

• 11-12-09 - NEW DATABASE -  First Research provides market analysis tools and editorial-based industry insight and is a companion to Hoover’s, another  Dun & Bradstreet product.

• 10-23-09 - WORKSHOP - Midwood Librarian Caitlin Bernstein attended METRO's Virtual Reference Special Interest Group, which focused on text message reference services. The event invited information professionals to share their experiences and discuss what they liked and didn't like about these services. Alexa Pearce from the Bobst Library at NYU presented on her library’s experience with a text message reference service during the last year.

• 10-23-09 - CONFERENCE - Information Literacy Librarian Sara Tabaei attended a  LACUNY conference entitled "Library Leadership: The Next Generation."  The focus was on the aging of the current field of information professionals, which will create a shortage of librarians in the next few years. The new generation of librarians come to this profession with different attitudes and skills; attitudes have changed and the younger people who work in libraries are not necessarily coming from library schools. They are more diverse, demand better compensations and flexibility in their jobs and many of them are not interested in managerial positions. There was a consensus that our profession needs refreshing and that there should be a balance created between the traditional librarian and the more technologically adept generations who will follow them.

• 10-20-09 - WORKSHOP - Information Literacy Librarian Sara Tabaei attended a two-part special interest group presentation at METRO. The first topic presented was "Critical Thinking and Library Instruction in a low tech environment". Sharon Jarvis from the Schomburg Center of Research in Black Culture described how instead of using computer labs for library classes, students sit around a table and describe what they think their assignments are all about. The instructor then clarifies the assignment and describes it in more detail. This approach aims to make students think critically about their assignments, with no computers to distract students and thus provide an opportunity to focus more on their work and share their thoughts. Other ideas on how to spark students' critical thinking, such as coming up with alternate key words in different contexts, were explored. The second speaker discussed finding an appropriate desktop sharing software program where users can have library questions answered by a virtual consultation. Users become connected to the librarian's computer and as with a virtual class, they are guided through the library's website by the librarian on their own computer.

• 9-22-09 - NEW DATABASE - Gale Virtual Reference Library has added the following two additional titles: "The Gale Encyclopedia of Mental Health -  2nd ed." and "The Gale Encyclopedia of Senior Health: A Guide for Seniors and Their Caregivers."

• 9-1-09 - NEW BOOK - Judaica Cataloger Leiba Rimler's third book "Hosting without Boasting" has been published.