III.1    Conducting a Library Tour

Since I want to show them where certain things are on the shelves, it is important that the groups not be too large. Experience has shown me that more than 8 is too many (6 is ideal). Consequently, I do the same tour several times (and outside of class time). One day during class, I pass around a sign-up sheet with a preamble which reads:

To help you become familiar with the most interesting and useful historical references in the science library, I will be conducting tours at the times indicated below. If you would like to go on one of these tours, sign up below. I will meet you outside the science library. Each tour will take about 45 minutes.

What I show them are the things that they will need to use to do their two library assignments. The lsit of things that I show my students during their Library Tour is available for you to look at. Of course, what you do will depend on the resources available in your library.

The time spent in conducting these tours is very well spent. It saves me from answering the same questions over and over again during the term. Also, I prefer to do the tours myself, rather than asking a librarian to do them, because then I am sure what they have been told and I know that they have been to the most important tools in the library. But of course, I tell them that they should definitely ask the librarians for help as necessary. I encourage them to consult a librarian before asking me about sources. Even so, I make quite a few trips to the library with individual students. They really appreciate this personal assistance and are pleased that I take a genuine intellectual interest in their projects.

I use this library tour to make students aware of some of the culture of mathematics. I show them some things because there is something to be learned by looking at them, even if they never use them. For example, I show them Mathematical Reviews so that I can mention the name of Otto Neugebauer (1899-1990) again and so that they can see the growth of research mathematics from the 1940s to today. Most students are hardly aware that any mathematical research is being published today, so it is good for them to be aware of the huge volume that is being published. It is for similar reasons that I point out the collected works of mathematicians that are in the library, even though they are unlikely to use them in this course.

This page has dealt with acquainting the student with the library. Of course the teacher must be very familiar with the library also.