Showing papers in "College & Research Libraries in 1971"
40 citations
TL;DR: It is concluded that neither method is superior, although the guided exercise continues to be used, for the reasons given, and improvements in the program are suggested.
Abstract: What should be taught in a library instruction program for general biology students is presented and two ways of providing the instruction are discussed. The two methods, lecture-demonstration and guided exercise (form of programmed instruction), are described, and evaluated for their effectiveness. The evaluations considered are students' ability to collect a satisfactory bibliography, scores on two objective exams on library skills, and students' attitudes toward the library instruction program. It is concluded that neither method is superior, although the guided exercise continues to be used, for the reasons given. Improvements in the program are suggested.
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TL;DR: The present article will address itself mainly to problems of the smaller institutions rather than those of the major university libraries, where both librarians and faculty members participate in building collections.
Abstract: -ALTHOUGH BUILDING THE COLLECTIONS is one of the most important tasks of librarians, comparatively little attention has been given to this aspect of professional work. The system in current use has been practiced for many years with little systematic scrutiny and with little discussion of possible alternatives. This applies to nearly all academic libraries, but the present article will address itself mainly to problems of the smaller institutions rather than those of the major university libraries. How are books selected for academic libraries? While patterns vary from one extreme to the other, in most institutions both librarians and faculty members participate in building collections. Many problems arise, for while faculty members play a major role in selection, librarians know very well that faculty selection is often of questionable merit. Among the most conspicuous deficiencies are: ( 1) many faculty members are already overburdened with other duties; ( 2) some of them lack acquaintance with the world of books; ( 3) some do not care ( the textbook is enough) ; ( 4) a few suffer from a constitutional inclination toward laziness; ( 5) some select books in their own narrow field of specialization without regard for the needs of students; and ( 6) some believe that only they are capable of selecting. While this list could be extended, these are some of the major shortcomings of
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TL;DR: Systems work is discussed here as a point of view; a logical, coherent, from the top down, preface to decision-making and resource allocation which utilizes a very powerful body of sophisticated techniques.
Abstract: THIS ARTICLE IS DIRECfED toward the novice in systems work. Its purpose is to generalize at a very elementary level a methodology or approach which can be used in conducting a systems study. Systems work is discussed here as a point of view; a logical, coherent, from the top down, preface to decision-making and resource allocation which utilizes a very powerful body of sophisticated techniques. The approach and techniques reviewed in this paper, however, will be those on the most elementary level. No attempt will be made to discuss the techniques of queueing, inventory management, linear programming, simulation, marginal analysis, game theory, statistical inference, or any of the other highly sophisticated techniques available to the operations research/ systems analysis (OR/ SA) analyst. When the systems approach is clearly understood and properly used, it becomes a potent weapon in the arsenal of the administrator. Rather than a review of the tools themselves, a delineation of this systems methodology and point of view will be considered in this article. The methodology discussed here embraces a number of standard techniques used by the systems engineer, time and motion analyst, operations researcher, and occasionally, even the li-
TL;DR: Attention is focused squarely on ourselves as librarians to see what gaps exist between perceived importance and actual involvement in the area of the academic librarian's professional development and to develop action planning on the basis of the data.
Abstract: A distinguished anthropologist, Ashley M ontagu, once wrote, "The deepest personal defeat suffered by human beings consists of the difference between what one was capable of becoming and what one has, in fact, become."1 The purpose of this article is to focus attention squarely on ourselves as librarians to see what gaps exist between perceived importance and actual involvement in the area of the academic librarian's professional development and to develop action planning on the basis of the data.
TL;DR: Over 1,500 fellowships have been granted under the Title II-B program since its incep-tion in fiscal year 1966 as mentioned in this paper, which seems to have contributed to an improvement in the quality of students recruited into library programs.
Abstract: Over 1,500 fellowships have been granted under the Title II-B program since its incep-tion in fiscal year 1966. The Title II-B program seems to have contributed to an improvement in the quality of students recruited into library programs. The mafority of the fellows successfully completed their programs and have become well-trained librarians. The Title II -B program also seems to have had the effect of str-engthening institutional programs of instruction and improving the quality of library education.
TL;DR: The author began the task of revitalizing and rebuilding the Florida Atlantic University library after the collapse of a much-heralded and publicized attempt to create the "only fully automated University Library in the world" in fall 1967.
Abstract: IN FALL, 1967, the author began the task of revitalizing and rebuilding the Florida Atlantic University library after the collapse of a much-heralded and publicized attempt to create the \"only fully automated University Library in the world.\" The disappointment, frustration, disillusionment, anger, and bitterness which were part of the aftermath of failure infected everyone involved: the library staff, the staff of the computer center, the university administration, the office of the State Board of Regents, ·and the faculty and students of the university, who ultimately had to b~ar the real burdens of a library unable to function. The Technical Services Division was the focal point of the effort to bring the computer into the library. It was theresponsibility of this division to create the machine-readable data base which would support the management information system, create the necessary bibliographic records (including a computerbased book catalog), and make possible large scale programs in the area of in-
TL;DR: The burden of this editorial is to make a plea for the establishment of a National Institute for Library Science whose sole function would be to use the medium of television to preserve that which is now being lost: the unique and creative personalities of the profession.
Abstract: It is an interesting, if depressing, paradox that the library profession whose raison d, etre is the conservation of knowledge permits so much of its own cumulative experience to slip away unrecorded and without possibility of recall. I refer to the fact that as yet we have not utilized the medium of television to preserve important aspects of the careers of a relatively small number of leaders of the profession who have played crucial roles in the development of library services at all levels over the past three to four decades. These are the individuals whose intellectual energies, personal charisma, and dedication have moved libraries in the direction of network for the acquisition, bibliographic control, and dissemination of knowledge on a global scale. The published research of this group is, of course, available. At its best, it represents their cumulative experiences refined and purified through a critical dialectic. At its worst, it is similar to much of library literature; descriptive, pedantic, and dull. And herein lies another paradox. Although library literature on the whole is deadening, many of the people who produce it and the issues it reflects are exciting and intellectually challenging. Modern technology, specifically television, provides the means of recording what the literature often only hints at-or misses completely-the personalities of the leadership of the profession and the atmospherics of the professional environment in which they have labored. The burden of this editorial is to make a plea for the establishment of a National Institute for Library Science whose sole function would be to use the medium of television to preserve that which is now being lost: the unique and creative personalities of the profession. Taped seminars analogous to those moderated by David Susskind might be a fruitful approach. No formal speeches, lectures, no bull sessions, but true seminars bringing together the leaders of the profession and moderated in such a manner that the focus is continually on the historical, immediate, or future problems and issues facing the profession. The possibilities for individual seminars are legion, but one in particular leaps to the forefront-an exchange of ideas between Seymour Lubetsky and several of the people whose views carried the day in the writing of the Anglo-American Rules for Descriptive Cataloging. What a shame it is that death has made impossible a seminar featuring Joe Wheeler and the opponents of cataloging-in-source. A program such as this sustained over a long period would result in several contributions to librarianship. First, by making the video
TL;DR: This paper describes the cooperatively funded reference and interlibrary loan service located at Ohio State University which serves the twelve state-assisted universities in Ohio.
Abstract: This paper describes the cooperatively funded reference and interlibrary loan service located at Ohio State University which serves the twelve state-assisted universities in Ohio. During its first year, fiscal year 1969-70, this service received 7,126 requests, filled six out of seven requests, and provided other locations for two-thirds of the . unfilled requests. Each request cost approximately $2.44 to fill, exclusive of photocopy charges, and required .514 man hours. Mean cycle time for processing was 5.45 working days.
TL;DR: In this paper, a self-service charge-out system was used to control the number of books withdrawn without being checked out in the library and the percentage of borrowers who admitted to this practice.
Abstract: An approach to library circulation control based on the motivational factors underlying the borrowers' noncompliance with book withdrawal procedures resulted in the installation of a self-service charge-out system. The number of books withdrawn without being checked out and the number of borrowers who admitted to this practice decline significantly. The statistical procedure (chi square) used to analyze these data tests the null hypothesis that the new system has no effect and that the results are merely due to chance. The conclusion is that there is less than one chance in a thousand of obtaining these statistical values if the system were not actually effective.
TL;DR: An analysis of the 1969/70 music materials budgets of university libraries, forty-six in the United States and two in Canada, which illustrates both the value of and the need for library statistical information at the subject level in order to validate more specifically increased budget requests.
Abstract: An analysis of the 1969/70 music materials budgets of forty-six university libraries, forty-four in the United States and two in Canada, which illustrates both the value of and the need for library statistical information at the subject level in order to validate more specifically increased budget requests. The study presents statistical information of special interest to music librarians attempting to establish a minimum annual budget where a maximum one is not possible.