Copy and paste from the following data to produce each assessment task. Write these in plain English and spell out how, when and where the task is to be carried out, under what conditions, and what resources are needed. Include guidelines about how well the candidate has to perform a task for it to be judged satisfactory.
Required skills
communication and teamwork skills to:
consult with colleagues
present search results to customers
information literacy skills to define, locate, evaluate and present information
literacy skills to:
interpret a wide range of information and ideas
prepare reference lists as required
problemsolving skills to develop alternative search processes or methods when information cannot be found
self-management skills to:
prioritise work tasks and meet deadlines
seek expert advice as required
technology skills to use a range of industry-current databases and datasets.
Required knowledge
role of databases in the context of the information services industry
scope and type of databases available to information services providers
features of commonly used databases, including:
bibliographic information
downloadable records
inprint status
current prices
difference between database and internet searching
database searching techniques and procedures
copyright, moral rights and intellectual property issues and legislation relevant to the use of information from databases.
The range statement relates to the unit of competency as a whole. It allows for different work environments and situations that may affect performance. Bold italicised wording, if used in the performance criteria, is detailed below. Essential operating conditions that may be present with training and assessment (depending on the work situation, needs of the candidate, accessibility of the item, and local industry and regional contexts) may also be included.
Databases may include: | bibliographic databases, such as: library catalogues Library of Congress catalogue databases accessed via library websites, such as: Australian National Data Service (ANDS) Libraries Australia National Library of Australia public libraries state libraries Trove datasets accessed through paid subscriptions to aggregators and vendors full text databases available through Electronic Resources Australia (ERA) literature databases publisher and vendor databases containing bibliographic records. |
Information services providers may include: | archives co-located local government services, such as: councils galleries libraries museums tourist information centres community advisory organisations or bureaus galleries government departments, agencies or shopfronts information units, including: business and financial information units information units within a parent organisation libraries, such as: business law medical public and private school TAFE university museums records management units. |
Proceduresmay relate to: | access restricted to authorised persons, such as: members of library students and staff of school or university free access to databases provided through various state and national libraries logging on via secure password or authentication of internet protocol (IP) address. |
Copyright and licensing conditionsmay relate to: | constraints on usage by specific groups downloading and printing of entire works number of concurrent users at any one time terms and conditions of licensing agreements. |
Search techniques may include: | compiling lists of keywords and related phrases conducting single searches, that is, repeating same search one database at a time consulting indexes or thesauruses to determine standardised subject headings or search terms, such as: Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) medical subject headings (MESH) following online search tips ISBN or ISSN searches limiting by date, language or format reviewing and revising search items searching across a range of databases using federated search engines seeking assistance from colleagues or external organisations using Boolean operators using different access points, such as: author combined searches keyword subject title using subject terms and descriptors using truncation symbols and wildcards. |
Features of databases may include: | ability to interface with referencing applications, such as endnote ability to print or email articles abstracts availability of bibliographic or full text information or a combination of both availability of online help and search tips basic and advanced search features citations only downloading of bibliographic and other records federated search engines full text pay per view databases range of subjects covered by individual databases or datasets scholarly or academic content single search engines. |
Search resultsmay include: | bibliographic citations full text articles lists of relevant information resources results lists as displayed on screen. |
Formats may include: | annotated bibliographies delivered as email attachments diagrammatic electronic copies printbased provide explanation of search strategy reference lists or bibliographies created manually or using endnotes. |
Standard referencing styles may include: | American Psychological Association (APA) Australian Government Publishing Service (AGPS) Chicago Manual of Style Harvard referencing style Modern Language Association (MLA) Vancouver. |
Copy and paste from the following performance criteria to create an observation checklist for each task. When you have finished writing your assessment tool every one of these must have been addressed, preferably several times in a variety of contexts. To ensure this occurs download the assessment matrix for the unit; enter each assessment task as a column header and place check marks against each performance criteria that task addresses.
Observation Checklist