91´«Ã½

CHICAGO—The Reference and User Services Association (RUSA) has registration open through Thursday, July 28 for its two new online learning offerings, “Introduction to Screencasting for Online Tutorials and Reference” and “Beyond Compliance: Assuring equitable access to library services for all library users.”

The webinar, will be held from 1-2:30 CDT p.m. on August 2, and will introduce the screencasting tools and best practices for creating online videos for training, instruction or reference. Participants will learn about the most popular software used and some key pedagogical factors that help create effective streaming tutorials. Screencasting is a powerful tool for virtual reference and informal communications. Topics covered include an overview of screencasting, pedagogical aspects and how to build online tutorials and how to enhance the educational experience of virtual reference. Van Houlson, William Breitbach and Maribeth Slebodnik will present.

This webinar is made possible through the Education, Training and Support Committee of RUSA’s MARS: Emerging Technologies in Reference Section. Registration rates start at $40 for RUSA members, and group rates are available.

“Beyond Compliance” is a unique course offered Aug. 1-26, 2011 in partnership with the Association of Specialized and Cooperative Library Agencies (ASCLA), and is designed to address the virtual and media-related obstacles disabled patrons encounter while accessing library services. This four-week course will include weekly assigned readings and short assignments, weekly optional chats and discussion prompts. Students will take away practical advice on creating equitable access to library services and instruction.

Topics covered in this course include the importance of accessibility; affected populations and associated challenges; defining electronic and media-related barriers; recommended solutions; legislation and ethics; and planning for electronic accessibility improvement. This course does have three scheduled 90-minute lectures: Monday, Aug. 1, Friday, Aug. 12 and Friday, Aug. 9, all beginning at 11:00 a.m. CDT. The lectures will be held in GoTo Webinar, and the remainder of the coursework will be conducted in Moodle.

Registration rates for “Beyond Compliance” start at $130 for RUSA and ASCLA members, and group rates are available.

The , a division of the 91´«Ã½, represents librarians and library staff in the fields of reference, specialized reference, collection development, readers’ advisory and resource sharing. RUSA is the foremost organization of reference and information professionals who make the connections between people and the information sources, services and collection materials they need. Not a member, but interested in discounted registration rates on conference, preconferences and other events? Join, renew or add RUSA to your 91´«Ã½ membership at . Learn more about the association at .