American Library Association Journals
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Teachable Moments in Reference
No full textLibraries, particularly libraries that have a teaching mission, should take advantage of teachable moments during reference interactions. Teachable moments occur when people are open to learning. Reference encounters, in many instances, should be approached as a chance to help someone learn, rather than simply providing them with information. This column will give practical applications of when to help library users learn during a reference interactio
Best of the Best Business Web Resources 2025
No full textEmily Mross, Penn State University Libraries, Chair. Committee Members: Genifer Snipes, Universityof Oregon; Jennilyn Wiley, Auburn University; Alan Witt, SUNY Geneseo; Alice Kalinowski, StanfordUniversity; Anna Milholland, The College of William and Mary; Christopher Sturgeon, University ofSouth Florida; Edward Junhao Lim, University of Connecticut; Emily Da Silva, University of Ottawa;Kate Cummings, University of Scranton; Sarah J. Hammill, Florida International University; TimTully, San Diego State University; Laureen Cantwell-Jurkovic, Colorado Mesa University; RebeccaManiates, New York University Abu Dhabi; Terrence O’Neill, Michigan State University, Benjamin Hall,University of Southern Californi
It’s About Time: Use of The Extended Date/Time Format in the Digital Public Library of America
No full textDate metadata can be a powerful tool for browsing, search, and visualization. Although metadataquality and consistency are key, a broad array of practices exists in the Libraries, Archives, andMuseums (LAMs) community’s metadata, which is stored in repositories, library catalogs, and otherplatforms. Cultural heritage materials with “squishy” dates can be difficult to express and display.While institutions may find local approaches, challenges arise when the metadata is shared elsewhere.The Extended Date/Time Format (EDTF) is a solution to encode dates that conform to a broad varietyof scenarios, including ambiguous and circa dates. This article assesses the impact of EDTF in theDigital Public Library of America (DPLA), an aggregator of LAMs metadata. Compared to a priorstudy in 2015, date values that correspond with EDTF have increased. The overall number of recordswith any date value, however, has declined. The authors note nuances regarding the results andprovide recommendations for the community
No Little Plans: Constructing a Local Controlled Vocabulary in EXPLORE Chicago Collections
No full textThe Chicago Collections Consortium (CCC), formed in 2012, is a membership organization oflibraries, archives, and museums in the Chicago area, whose mission is to collect, preserve, andshare freely, openly, and equitably the history and culture of Chicago with the world. One of the waysit supports this mission is through the EXPLORE Chicago Collections (EXPLORE) portal, whichbrings together the finding aids for archival collections as well as individual digital images from itsmember organizations into a single online discovery platform. Aggregating digital content from variousrepositories that utilize different metadata schemas and descriptive standards is notoriously difficult.One way that the Chicago Collections Consortium attempts to streamline the content in EXPLOREis with the creation of a local, regional vocabulary that creates uniformity in access points across therecords
How to Make Kids Like You: One Big Way (and Three Super Simple Tricks)
No full textHow do you “make” kids like you? Like, really, really like you?I love asking my children’s staff this question, and I’m always fascinated to hear the answers, which both vary and fall in predictable line.Invariably, what seasoned children’s librarians say is that the one big way to get kids to like you is obvious but necessary: you treat them like people who matter. You ask them questions and then really listen to their answers. You pay attention to what they like and don’t like. You match your emotional tone to theirs
Election Fraud & Reform: A Historical Perspective Using Government Documents
No full textFree and fair elections are the cornerstone of representative,democratic government. They allow citizens to hold their leadersaccountable and express their political will. However, throughoutU.S. history election fraud and interference have surfacedat various levels of government, undermining public trust andprompting reforms. This paper examines three election interferenceand fraud cases: the 1997 Miami Mayoral Election,the 2004 Washington Gubernatorial Election, and the 2000U.S. Presidential Election. Each case represents a different levelof government and illustrates how election-related challengesmanifested and were resolved. This paper focuses on officialgovernment documents produced during and in the aftermathof each controversy. In doing so, the paper examines the detailsof these cases and reflects on how past experiences can informcurrent conversations about election security and reform
Editor’s Corner: Keep Shining
No full textAs I noted in my editorial in our Spring 2025 issue, the currentfederal administration’s actions have been troubling, withlarge impacts throughout the government information landscape.At that time, I encouraged readers to focus on the lights in the darknessand how small efforts could culminate into larger impacts.1 Iwould like to extend that message of hope to this editorial as wel
Book Bans: An Exploration of the Intersection Between Prisons, School Libraries, and Public Libraries in Texas
No full textIn recent years, the increase in censorship attempts via book challenges and bans has been a large part of public discourse. This has only escalated recently with the shuttering of the Institute of Museum and Library Services and the changing political landscape. The research in this paper is focused on a single state, Texas, but is representative of censorship efforts being documented across the country. Texas was selected due to having one of the highest rates of incarceration in the nation and one of the highest rates of book bans. For a variety of unique reasons, materials are heavily restricted for people who are incarcerated, many of which share the same genres and themes found unsuitable for public schools and libraries. Across all three institution
Reference Services and Instruction: Five Good Things: Incorporating Relational Teaching Practices in Reference Services
No full textIn her book Connected Teaching: Relationship, Power, and Mattering in Higher Education, Harriet Schwartz uses the relational cultural theory from psychology as a framework for creating connections and relationships between students and instructors. Schwartz explores relationships not as an additional element to teaching and learning but “as a site and source for learning” itself (emphasis added). In other words, relationships are where learning actually occurs. Schwartz posits that “connected teaching consists of and creates five elements that drive learning.” These elements parallel the five components (or “Five Good Things”) of mutual empowerment, developed by psychologists Miller and Stiver. These components that lead to strong emotional relationships between client and psychologist were the foundations of relational cultural theory (or therapy). The Five Good Things are . .
Alert Collector: Looking Inside: What Coloradans Who Are Incarcerated Like to Read
No full textA recent episode of the Pulitzer-Prize-winning podcast Ear Hustle titled “A Little Streets, a Little Romance, a Little Deception,” explores the reading tastes of incarcerated people in San Quentin, a California prison. The episode was so funny and insightful it inspired me to write about what people read in our Colorado prison libraries, with the hope that it will provide collection development guidance about what books this underserved population loves to read. Donations are a lifeblood to so many prison libraries, but unfortunately much of what is sent by well-meaning donors doesn’t meet the needs of the readers I serve