Module 1: What's out there?

Using subject directories

Yahoo!
M1 Task 3 - A sample search in Yahoo!
M1 Task 4 - Using Yahoo!
Other subject directories
M1 Task 5 - Using other subject directories
Some strengths and weaknesses of subject directories

This section looks at three subject directories and how to use them. Ways of conducting keyword searches using search engines are dealt with in the next section, Using search engines.

Yahoo!

Some subject directories are very large, like the Yahoo! directory (http://www.yahoo.com/). Yahoo! is actually an acronym for 'yet another hierarchical officious oracle!' Yahoo! has some local versions including Yahoo! Australia & New Zealand (http://au.yahoo.com/). You have the choice of searching all of Yahoo! or Australia or New Zealand only.

M1 Task 3 - A sample search in Yahoo!

Click on this link to open Task 3 - a step-by-step guide in how to use the Yahoo! subject directory to find resources for Art History in the classroom. (M1 Task 3 Art History in the classroom). Follow the instructions. Windows users can switch between the Task 3 page and Yahoo! (http://au.yahoo.com/) by using the taskbar or Alt-Tab. Macintosh users can do so by using the Window menu in the toolbar. Print out the guide for Task 3 if you find it easier to work with a hard copy (M1 Task 3 Art History in the classroom).

M1 Task 4 - Using Yahoo!

Visit the Yahoo! (http://au.yahoo.com/) subject directory and scan the front page. Note the categories that are used and the types of sub-categories contained within them.

Use the Yahoo! directory to find information about some topics. For the moment, don't use Yahoo!'s keyword search facility as it is important here to see how subject directories can be structured. (A useful point for Arts teachers is that when searching in American databases Visual Arts sometimes means Graphic Design.)

Find some information on these topics:

art activities for young students;
Australian art magazines;
printmaking;
web art;
colour theory;
your own topic, of particular relevance to your own classroom.

Here are some suggested paths through the Yahoo! categories (M1 Task 4 Suggestions). Don't forget to bookmark or note the addresses of any sites you find that you think might be useful later on.

Other subject directories

Yahoo! is just one example of a subject directory. Its root directory covers a wide range of general areas. There are other directories available that are subject specific. A subject directory specifically focused on education can be found at Awesome Library (http://www.awesomelibrary.org/). Another can be located at the Education Network Australia (EdNA Online) site (http://www.edna.edu.au). EdNA includes a subject directory of resources and links which are approved before being listed and also provides a section devoted to the Arts Key Learning Area. (Click on School Education, then Key Learning Areas, then The Arts.)

Find out more about how EdNA Online might be useful to you. It is much more than a list of resources (M1 About EdNA).

M1 Task 5 - Using other subject directories

Visit the Awesome Library site (http://www.awesomelibrary.org/) and scan the front page. Enter The Arts portal and browse through one or two of the sub-directories, trying to find material relevant to one of your earlier Yahoo! searches (for example, 'Art activities for young students'). If you locate any of the sites you found during your Yahoo! search, note the overlap. Revisit the Yahoo! (http://au.yahoo.com/) search to refresh your memory.

Find some sites on art activities for young students by navigating through the EdNA Online hierarchy (http://www.edna.edu.au).

Need some help searching EdNA (M1 Task 5 Navigating EdNA)?

Here are some suggested paths through EdNA, Awesome Library and Yahoo! (M1 Task 5 Using EdNA, Awesome Library and Yahoo!).

After completing the three searches write some notes in response to the following questions.

In this search, which directory gave you the most valuable material?
What are some strengths of subject directories?
What are some weaknesses of subject directories?
Under what circumstances do you think you would use one of these directories?

You can print these questions if you wish (M1 Task 5 Questions about subject directories).

Now read the section below and compare it to your responses.

Some strengths and weaknesses of subject directories

Here are some of the strengths of subject directories.

They have a logical and hierarchical organisation.
Experts select sites in some directories (such as EdNA and Awesome Library), so the sites should be uniformly of a higher standard.
The sites will all relate in some way to the topic you are searching for.

Here are some of the weaknesses of subject directories.

Their organisation may be logical, but their logic is not always apparent to the user. This can lead to dead-end or circular searches yielding only sites already considered.
It can be very time-consuming and frustrating to work your way through a directory.
There may be other useful Internet sites not found because they were not included in the particular directories being used.
There may be distinct cultural bias towards American sites.

Subject directories are generally thought to be most useful when information is being sought for a broad topic, such as 'sculpture'. They are not as good as search engines for finding more specific information, such as a particular work by an Australian sculptor.


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