Educators: Here’s a Fun Way to Encourage Critical Thinking and Research Skills!

Posted on 9/28/15

By Traci J. Cothran

Looking for a great way to engage students, where they can research a topic of their choice and present their findings in a format (including digital!) that fits their skillset?  The National History Day competition does just that, by providing students with a broad annual theme within which they’ll select their own subject; encouraging them to research, use, and document primary sources related to their chosen subject; then presenting their findings by creating an exhibit, paper, performance, website or documentary.

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Readers’ Advisory: Banned Books Week, Sept. 27 – Oct 3, 2014

Banned Books Week

By Holly Hibner and Mary Kelly

Banned Books Week celebrates the freedom to read. It began in 1982, when there was a sudden uptick in the number of books being challenged in schools and libraries. An astounding number of challenges happen each year (307 reported in 2013, according to the Office of Intellectual Freedom!), and Banned Books Week is a way to celebrate the value of open access to information (1). It is important to point out that of those 307 challenges, few of them were actually banned. The diligence of teachers, librarians, and informed citizens ensured the freedom to read in most situations.

Read moreReaders’ Advisory: Banned Books Week, Sept. 27 – Oct 3, 2014

Content Updates for Gale’s In Context (week ending 9/25/2015)

Posted on September 24, 2015

New content has been added and existing content has been updated in a number of Gale’s In Context products.

Biography In Context

New portals were launched for Biography In Context this week. They include:

  • Popular MMA fighter Ronda Rousey
  • Joko Widodo, President of Indonesia
  • Prime Minister of Thailand Prayut Chan-o-cha
  • Late poets Lucille Clifton and Denise Levertov

Updates have been made for content reflecting the ousting of Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbot, the retirement of Floyd Mayweather, Jr., and the recent passing of Moses Malone.

Narrative content has been added for:

Contemporary Black Biography, Volumes 125 and 126 which covers 110 biographies across the 2 volumes. Some of the individuals covered include:

  • Jeh Hohnson U.S. Homeland Security head
  • Somali-American runner Abdi Abdirahman
  • American ballet dancer Misty Copeland
  • British actor David Oyelowo
  • Zimbabwean author NoViolet Buluwayo
  • Joseph Kabila, President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Read moreContent Updates for Gale’s In Context (week ending 9/25/2015)

Improve Your In-Library Resources for Job Seekers

Help your patrons developing or refreshing skills to get a job, advance a career, and improve their lives.

eBooks to Easily Search with Content for Keeps

Researching job seekers can find what they’re looking for in relation to interview tips, resumes, career exploration, and more with GVRL eBooks. Users can email or save key articles in PDF or HTML format for future reference.

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2015 TEAMS Award Announced and the Winners Are….

2015 TEAMS Awards

Posted on September 18, 2015

Another TEAMS Award is in the books! This year’s voting committee had amazing applications to review and discuss – from a school community garden putting a new spin on “farm to table”, to a 3D gallery walk featuring student artwork and videos, to a social action research fair with fundraising muscle – and all displayed exciting, creative ways in which teachers and media specialists are working together to promote learning and student achievement.

This year’s big winners include:

Read more2015 TEAMS Award Announced and the Winners Are….

Life Coach, Anyone? Self-Guided, Online Support for Better Living

Life and Career Skills eBooks for young adults

Achieving personal and professional excellence doesn’t “just happen” for most people. Success typically results from persistence and guidance.  For some, turning to a life coach is useful – receiving personal assistance with decision-making and skills acquisition. But with rates averaging $100 to $300 per hour, that service is out of reach for most young adults.

But hiring a professional isn’t the only path. With new resources from Gale, those eager for coaching can find help at the library.  (In fact, at YOUR library!)

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Supporting Your Local Data Miner

By: Dr. Dallas Liddle, Associate Professor and Chair of English, Augsburg College

Marshall McLuhan is supposed to have said that “the content of a new medium is always an old medium.” He intended the observation as wry cultural criticism, 

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What I Did on My Summer Vacation: A Gale Intern’s Story

by Luiza Lodder

As an English major from Penn State University, I was pleased to work as a content development intern for Gale this summer, managing academic and educational online resources and databases. My goal was to explore publishing and apply my skills and interests. Although I was placed in the Boston office, my supervisor and team were located in Michigan. Yet in spite of working remotely, I felt fully engaged with the work and the team.

Part of my responsibilities included updating Gale literature databases and maintaining content. For example, I input author birthdates and death dates, recent prizes won, and recent developments such as book publications or adaptations. One of Gale’s long-term goals is to make classic works available online to customers; I helped by identifying which works were already public domain and which were still protected by publication rights. Being an international student from Brazil, I enjoyed a bonus experience that was fun for me and uniquely useful to Gale: translating an interview of Brazilian users recorded by Gale market researchers.

Read moreWhat I Did on My Summer Vacation: A Gale Intern’s Story

Gale Technical Solutions: Branding

By Scott Steward

Welcome back to the Gale Technical Solutions blog series!

I thought it would be good to start with some of the basics.  Today, I will be discussing Branding.

Now when I say branding, I’m not talking about the Gale brand;  I’m talking about your library’s brand within your Gale products.  Did you know all Gale products have dedicated space reserved in the interface for your library’s branding?   In this reserved area we can display text, an image, or some custom code (Javascript, PHP, HTML, jQuery, etc).

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New Titles Added to the InfoTrac Collections in August 2015

The titles below have been recently added and can be located in the product using Basic or Advanced Search forms. Titles can be found via Browse Publications within two weeks. For complete coverage information please see the product title lists. Academic OneFile 2010 State Technology and Science Index: Enduring Lessons for the Intangible Economy (Milken … Read more