Standards and Assessment 

By Dr. Lesley S. J. Farmer 

This issue of Education Libraries marks the first one publ ished under the d i rection of the Special Libraries 
Association, Education Division's new Editor Dr. Lesley Farmer. The change in editorsh ip took more time 
than anticipated, so the forthcoming issues wi l l  be disseminated more closely to complete the ful l  
publication schedule. 

Dr. Farmer i s  the Professor of Library Media at Cal ifornia State University, Long Beach , and coord inates 
thei r  Library Media Teacher Program. She also teaches educational technology. Dr. Farmer has worked 
in K-1 2  settings in both public and independent schools as wel l  as in specia l ,  academic and public 
l i braries. Her most recent editorship was the Cal iforn ia School Library Association Journal. She has 
written eighteen books and over a hundred articles on l ibrariansh ip .  Her most recent book is Student 
Success and Library Media Programs: A Systems Approach to Research and Best Practice (Libraries 
Unl imited , 2003). 

The theme for this issue, "Standards and Assessment," rose from the 2003 conference sessions 
sponsored by the Division, and also reflects the growing emphasis on accountabi l i ty and effective 
programs. The two articles take total ly d ifferent approaches to this issue. 

� 

Tirupalavanam Ganesh critically examines peer-reviewed ejournals in education in terms of thei r  qual ity 
and their multimedia features. He notes that, while ejournals may provide a cost-benefit savings to 
scholarly publishing ,  he rightly points out that these same publishers are , by and large, neglecting to take 
advantage of the unique features that multimedia offers. Just as most l i brarians now scoff at commercial 
CO-ROMs that dupl icate a print version of a document, so too should l ibrary professionals demand that 
ejournals provide value-added features possible only in a digital environment. 

Jana Varlejs analyzes the courses offered by l i brary and information science programs relative to special 
l i brarianship. In  her broad brush sweep, she notices uneven treatment rather than a systematic approach 
to special l ibrarianship. Considering the extensive knowledge and ski l l  sets expected of entering l i brary 
and information professionals, she fi nds the relative dearth of special l ibrary offerings not surprising . She 
also commends the continuing education efforts of SLA and other special l ibrary associations to address 
the specific needs of this population. Sti l l ,  one might consider the possibil ity of a two-tiered degree 
program:  basic l ibrary and information science foundation, and a second level concentration in at least 
one special ization. 

The department columns continue to provide t imely reference sources in print and onli ne. Gladys Dratch 
and Deborah Garson summarize leading 2003 and 2004 reference books. Anne Wade focuses on the 
theme as she notes relevant Web sites on distance education ,  information l iteracy and l i brary instruction, 
users with disabil ities, and other non-grouped URLs on the theme. 

A long series of book reviews completes this issue, with several new reviewers contri buting their efforts. 
The next issue, which has the theme "Management Issues," wi l l  concentrate on more articles. 
Submissions are warmly accepted . 

Education Libraries Volume 26, No. 1 Summer 2003 4