Practical Academic Librarianship: The International Journal of the SLA Academic Division (Texas Digital Library - TDL E-Journals)
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Using Student Volunteers in Library Orientations
No full textStudent volunteers can be a valuable resource for library outreach programming. This article details how our library leveraged several registered student organizations (RSOs) to create our freshman orientation video and staff our library open house. Using student volunteers in orientation events helped reduce library anxiety among student participants, engage our freshman audience, and create meaningful connection between library services and campus life
Data Management Services in Academic Libraries: A case study at Oregon State University
No full textLibraries have been asked to provide many new services over the past several decades. This paper aims to show how data management services were incorporated into the services that Oregon State University provides to faculty and graduate students. The lessons learned are general and applicable to any research institute that needs to manage data or help others with managing data
Curating Exhibitions in Academic Libraries: Practical Steps
No full textCurating exhibitions offers librarians an engaging means of reaching out to academic communities and the public. In addition, exhibitions provide a means of exposing hidden collections or showcasing art works by students and faculty. Together the librarians have curated ten exhibitions of varying sizes and in different locations. This paper will discuss and examine practical steps for curating an exhibition in an academic library. Two case studies highlight exhibitions of students’ art and virtual exhibitions
The Review and Weeding of a Reference Collection: A case study
No full textThe author’s library weeded its paper-based reference collection. Some of the titles in the collection were out of date because the most recent edition was in the e-book format and available online. Other titles were simply outdated, irrelevant or in poor physical condition. In addition, the collection took up prime space on the main floor. The library used three criteria to assess the collection: age, currency of content and inclusion on a core title list. The criteria were not determined initially, but rather through trial and error. When completed, the print-based reference collection was considerably smaller and moved to a different location. When viewed in retrospect, the weeding process lacked one standard criterion. No one did a literature search. Though there was no compelling reason to do a search after the fact, the collection development librarian wanted to know if this would have made a difference in the process. The literature search revealed some interesting information about weeding. This included the fact that weeding of a reference collection is a topic frequently not covered in the literature, as well as the fact that a core title list is rarely used. It also revealed that the creation of a reference collection development policy and a weeding policy would have made the process simpler
Library Award for Undergraduate Research: Increasing the Library Profile
No full textOffering a library award program is an effective way of strengthening the ties between subject librarians and teaching faculty, while providing a mechanism to preserve undergraduate student research. This program not only increases the perceived value of library services but also promotes librarians’ expertise as educators and instructors. This case study of implementing such a program at the University of Maryland College Park reviews library award models across the United States and Canada identifying best practices so that others may draw success from the authors’ experience and effective promotional efforts. The authors also hope to provide ideas for improvement and further award development for those with an award program in place.
23 Things Revisited: Participant perceptions of a staff development program over a year later
No full text23 Things programs have been used around the world to help educate library workers about web 2.0 applications. This paper describes the results of two feedback surveys for a 23 Things program that was offered to library employees at the University of Saskatchewan: the first survey, conducted at the time of program completion, and a follow up survey, conducted a year and a half later to assess whether participants were applying what they learned in the program, and if so, how. Generally speaking, respondents indicated that the program was beneficial, and all but 3 of the respondents from the second survey had applied some of what they learned through the program, either personally or professionally. Despite being an independent learning activity, social aspects that arose organically as participants worked their way through the program seemed to be valued by program participants as much as the newly acquired knowledge from the lessons. The semi-facilitated format, in addition to the flexibility of completing the lessons at a convenient time and place, was key to the program’s success. Organizations that wish to transition long-time employees from the print-based working world to the digital world should consider making 23 Things style learning opportunities a regular part of their staff development activities
Where have all the books gone? Exploring “virtual libraries” at Cornell University Library’s Engineering and Physical Science Libraries
No full textThis paper examines the definition of a “virtual library” by observing the experiences of two such libraries in the Cornell University Library system, Physical Sciences and Engineering. In the past five years, both of these libraries closed their physical collections because of budget and print use issues. Since the closure of the collections, both libraries – and their librarians – had to imagine what a virtual library could be and what services could support a highly technical user base that relied on ejournals and ebooks. This paper discusses staffing considerations, new approaches in collection development, and the evolution of library roles for the libraries operating in this new model
Information Literacy in Open Courses
No full textOpen education is changing the landscape of higher education. There are many aspects to the open education movement and the authors of this paper focus on open courses. Librarians and educators who teach information literacy must adapt their instruction to courses that are open, instead of using the same strategies that are employed in traditional education or distance education settings. In this paper, the authors discuss the theories of connectivism and social learning theory and how the both theories apply to information literacy and its foray into open courses. Additionally, the concept of lifelong learning is crucial to open education and its close ties to information literacy are examined. The authors conclude by discussing the content of information literacy courses in an open environment.
The Benefits of Local Involvement: Professional Development through State and Regional Library Associations
No full textIn tight fiscal times, travel expenses add up fast and can make it seem impossible to attend conferences and continue one’s professional development after obtaining the MLS. There are many practical benefits to be gained from focusing on involvement in local and regional conferences and organizations. Not only do these organizations offer greater opportunity for leadership and mentoring, but also for networking with professionals who face similar issues and concerns with local funding
Crossing Disciplines, Creating Space: Using Drop-In Research Labs to Support an Interdisciplinary Research-Intensive Capstone Course
No full textResearch labs — scheduled group consultations — can be an effective means to provide focused library assistance to a high-needs class. Confronted with students from a single journalism history course suffering from library anxiety and requesting individual and intensive help from librarians, the authors developed over several semesters a set of best practices for conducting research labs. They found that holding one to two scheduled group consultations in the library during class time has helped librarians bring the amount of time spent on this one class down to a more reasonable segment of their overall workload, while also allowing them to provide flexible, individualized, and in-person support to students.