This module covers the vocabulary used when locating resources. When searching the terms controlled vocabulary and natural vocabulary come into play. Also keyword searching is another relevant term. All three terminologies play a part in helping the search link with terms used by the author to find the resource they are searching for.

Several websites were investigated, such as the Library of Congress, SCIS and ScOT. It is very interesting to begin to understand the process of searching and what vocab is used to help the user find what they are looking for. On the other hand it is very full on to understand and I feel out of my depth and really need to see how this works in action in the library. 

The Library of Congress website will still take me some time to understand. I am finding that it is very American based and the resources on there show that focus. I was completing searches regarding ‘flamingos’ and they are predominantly American. I even used the Thesaurus for Graphic Materials (TGM) and there were only 14 results and all based on American pictures, artworks and statues. 

I like the use of SCIS and how well the results are presented. ScOT was an interesting website to use, it doesn’t seem as easy as SCIS, but really it is only needed to find the headings that could relate to the topic searched for. These ScOT headings are also displayed in the SCIS results, so I question how often the need to use the ScOT website is needed. 

Overall I need to investigate further into how our library uses this in order to aid in searches. I know that we use the SCIS data with our records and it automatically makes the new record easier to input, but do we use ScOT of the Library of Congress? What keywords are recorded on the record, if any, to help make the search process easier? Do teachers and students complete searches, or do they just come to the library and ask – do you have this?