Showing papers in "College & Research Libraries in 2016"
TL;DR: An online survey was developed and sent to employers to gauge perceptions of information literacy skills of college graduates and the use of the innovation of digital badges to represent competencies that students have accumulated.
Abstract: Digital badges are an educational innovation used to measure learning of specific skills, such as information literacy. However, few studies have quantitatively surveyed employers for their perceptions about information literacy skills or digital badges. An online survey was developed and sent to employers to gauge perceptions of information literacy skills of college graduates and the use of the innovation of digital badges to represent competencies that students have accumulated. Here are the results of the survey: information literacy and metaliteracy skills are valued in the workplace; employers would like more detailed representations of student skills; and digital badges are a possible way to showcase student achievement.
74 citations
TL;DR: A qualitative mixed-method study of students’ perceptions of place and space in an academic library identifies two distinct and contrasting models of place: a more traditional model based on individual study near stacks of books, and an emergent technologically-supported group study model.
Abstract: This article describes a qualitative mixed-method study of students’ perceptions of place and space in an academic library. The approach is informed by Scott Bennett’s model of library design, which posits a shift from a ‘book-centered’ to a technology supported ‘learning centered’ paradigm of library space. Two surveys gathered data on (a) students’ perceptions of places in an academic library, and (b) on occupancy rates in the same library. When triangulated, the results identified two distinct and contrasting models of place: a more traditional model based on individual study near stacks of books, and an emergent technologically-supported group study model. The results suggest that academic libraries should develop new metrics to measure library place and space in settings of technologically-supported group work.
49 citations
TL;DR: Binary logistic regression yielded results that indicate a strong positive predictive relationship between library use of any kind with both freshmen and sophomore retention, and suggest that academic libraries add value to institutional retention efforts.
Abstract: This study examined the predictive relationship between library use by individual students and their retention status in university settings. The methodology builds on a small number of previous studies to examine library use at the individual level to determine if use of specific library services is predictive of retention for freshmen and sophomores. Binary logistic regression yielded results that indicate a strong positive predictive relationship between library use of any kind with both freshmen and sophomore retention. These results suggest that academic libraries add value to institutional retention efforts.
48 citations
TL;DR: This study connects library user surveys, a common library assessment technique, to institutional data to demonstrate the value an academic library brings to student learning and student outcomes.
Abstract: This study connects library user surveys, a common library assessment technique, to institutional data to demonstrate the value an academic library brings to student learning and student outcomes. Using regression techniques, the study identifies multiple significant correlations, both positive and negative, between student use of the library and student learning and outcomes as measured by retention, graduation, and grade point average (GPA). The library factors associated with student outcomes change over the course of the four-year undergraduate experience. Methods used in this study could be a model for other institutions seeking a means for assessing the library’s relationship to student learning and outcomes.
40 citations
TL;DR: It is proposed that academic libraries respond to disruption by accelerating service innovation by fostering an innovation-supportive culture, tying performance evaluations and rewards to innovation outcomes, and creating dedicated innovation teams with high levels of decision-making autonomy.
Abstract: With the development of digital technologies, various disruptive innovations have emerged that are gradually replacing academic libraries in the information-seeking process. As academic libraries become less relevant to their users, it is imperative that they develop strategies to respond to disruption. We highlight the fact that the service mission of academic libraries is in alignment with service innovation and propose that academic libraries respond to disruption by accelerating service innovation. Applying the Resources-Processes-Values framework, we recommend that, to facilitate service innovation, high-level administrators become innovation leaders, foster an innovation-supportive culture, tie performance evaluations and rewards to innovation outcomes, and create dedicated innovation teams with high levels of decision-making autonomy. We also recommend that academic libraries involve their users and build partnerships with other libraries and with commercial communities to bring about service innovation necessary to respond to disruption.
38 citations
TL;DR: Students participating in the curriculum demonstrated greater gains than their peers in using suitable sources and presenting arguments and multiple viewpoints with evidence, but this learning did not translate to higher student achievement as represented by course grades and grade point average.
Abstract: A team at the University of California, Merced, collaborated to evaluate the value of integrating information literacy into introductory composition courses through a curriculum developed by librarians and writing faculty. Using a mixed-methods approach, the team investigated the impact of the curriculum on students’ learning and achievement at the end of their first semester of college. Students participating in the curriculum demonstrated greater gains than their peers in using suitable sources and presenting arguments and multiple viewpoints with evidence. This learning did not translate to higher student achievement as represented by course grades and grade point average.
33 citations
TL;DR: The study’s design and its results serve to contribute to discussion of best practices in information literacy pedagogy, online learning, instructional design, and the role of the librarian therein.
Abstract: This article builds on the 2007 College and Research Libraries article, “The Librarian, the Machine, or a Little of Bsoth.” Since that time, Oakland University Libraries implemented changes to its instruction program that reflect larger trends in teaching and assessment throughout the profession; following these revisions, librarians undertook a new study to assess the effectiveness of online library instruction in face-to-face courses in comparison to the hybrid model that had been in place. The study’s design and its results serve to contribute to discussion of best practices in information literacy pedagogy, online learning, instructional design, and the role of the librarian therein.
25 citations
TL;DR: This study is an initial step in a STEM library's long-term goal of measuring the library’s connection to, and impact on, student academic success markers such as retention and persistence.
Abstract: Engaging in ongoing assessment is key to libraries demonstrating their value to their institutions. This study is an initial step in a STEM library’s long-term goal of measuring the library’s connection to, and impact on, student academic success markers such as retention and persistence. Initial results showed that any library usage was always accompanied by a slightly higher achievement in GPA for the user. Results will serve as benchmarks for further study.
23 citations
TL;DR: The study found that, as students matured, they used library resources more frequently and librarian instruction and faculty source requirements both were associated with increased use of library resources.
Abstract: This longitudinal study at a large public university surveyed students of the 2008 freshmen cohort over four years about their use of websites and library resources for their research papers. The three goals of the study were to track changes in reported research behavior over time, to see if students’ reported source choices were associated with librarian instruction and/or if they were associated with instructors’ source requirements. The study found that, as students matured, they used library resources more frequently. Librarian instruction and faculty source requirements both were associated with increased use of library resources.
23 citations
TL;DR: This paper analyzes over 400,000 cited references made by authors affiliated with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration between 2009 and 2013 to suggest cited reference analyses should be periodically updated to reflect changes in authors' referencing behavior.
Abstract: Although cited reference studies are common in the library and information science literature, they are rarely performed in nonacademic institutions or in the atmospheric and oceanic sciences. In this paper, we analyze more than 400,000 cited references made by authors affiliated with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration between 2009 and 2013. Our results suggest that these methods can be applied to research libraries in a variety of institutions, that the results of analyses performed at one institution may not be applicable to other institutions, and that cited reference analyses should be periodically updated to reflect changes in authors’ referencing behavior.
21 citations
TL;DR: This analysis points to two sets of competencies: principal competencies reflected the most positive insights from students, while the secondary ones were the most weakly perceived and consequently the most in need of encouragement.
Abstract: Understanding perceptions of Library and Information Science (LIS) students on two dimensions—belief in the importance (BIM) of a set of core information competencies, and Self-Efficacy (SE)—is pursued. Factor analysis implementation raises a clear distinction between BIM and SE results. This analysis points to two sets of competencies: principal competencies reflected the most positive insights from students, while the secondary ones were the most weakly perceived and consequently the most in need of encouragement. This is one of the few studies on the subjective profile of LIS students, including improvement initiatives relating to the weakest competencies.
TL;DR: It was found that data information literacy skills were relevant to the work of meteorology students and the significance of these findings was limited by the modest target population under examination; as a consequence, the results were strongly linked to the specific setting.
Abstract: E-science has reshaped meteorology due to the rate data is generated, collected, analyzed, and stored and brought data skills to a new prominence. Data information literacy—the skills needed to understand, use, manage, share, work with, and produce data—reflects the confluence of data skills with information literacy competencies. This research assessed perceptions of data information literacy and attitudes on its instruction for graduate students in meteorology. As academic librarians have traditionally provided information literacy instruction, the research determined if they were perceived as having a role in data information literacy instruction. The modified Delphi method was applied to obtain the perspectives of a panel of experts, representing students, librarians, professors, and researchers, for the purpose of forecasting and consensus-making. Through the consideration of the University of Oslo’s Department of Geosciences’ Meteorology Section, the research found that data information literacy skills were relevant to the work of meteorology students. Stakeholders perceived that academic librarians could play a future role in general instruction but that they would have to overcome obstacles to be involved in data information literacy instruction. For librarians to enter this domain, they would need to improve their technical skills, enhance their discipline-specific knowledge, or rely on collaborations. The significance of these findings was limited by the modest target population under examination; as a consequence, the results were strongly linked to the specific setting. Further studies would be necessary to determine their generalizability.
TL;DR: This study examines the current state of librarians’ perceptions on workplace incivility and bullying and evaluates the effects of bullying from organizational and individual perspectives to understand the motivating structures, precipitating circumstances, and enabling structures that lead to bullying in the library.
Abstract: Recent media reports have increased awareness of workplace incivility and bullying. However, the literature regarding workplace incivility and bullying in academic libraries is under reported and under researched. This study examines the current state of librarians’ perceptions on workplace incivility and bullying and evaluates the effects of bullying from organizational and individual perspectives. Bullying was measured based on the librarian’s responses to the Negative Acts Questionnaire, including both experienced bullying and witnessed bullying. The authors introduce a conceptual framework to understand the motivating structures, precipitating circumstances, and enabling structures that lead to bullying in the library. A statistical analysis using a regression model revealed several factors that influenced bullying, including a librarian’s ethnicity, the number of years worked in the library, the type of institution, and a librarian’s academic status. The findings can be useful for discussions of improving workplace climate, increasing retention and recruitment for academic librarians, and helping early career librarians throughout the promotion and tenure processes.
TL;DR: Con Conversation analysis of live chat transcripts at two institutions establishes the importance of opening exchanges to shape the potential for teaching and shows evidence of successful strategies by librarians to shift chats from transactional openings to conversations with potential for engaged learning.
Abstract: Academic reference librarians frequently work with students who are not aware of their professional roles. In online interactions, a student might not even realize that the librarian is a person. The ways students initiate conversations reveal their understanding of the mutual roles involved in reference encounters. Conversation analysis of live chat transcripts at two institutions establishes the importance of opening exchanges to shape the potential for teaching. Chats that students open with relational cues (greeting, introduction, courtesy, verbal softeners) last longer than chats without these cues. Longer chats include more expressions of enthusiastic gratitude. The transcripts show evidence of successful strategies by librarians to shift chats from transactional openings to conversations with potential for engaged learning.
TL;DR: Females at libraries offering faculty status indicated poor work/life balance and high levels of stress compared to male colleagues and female librarians without faculty status; however, their reported job satisfaction was similar.
Abstract: This study measures job satisfaction, personal fulfillment, work/life balance, and stress levels of male and female librarians. Researchers surveyed 719 librarians at ARL institutions that either offer faculty status and tenure or offer neither. Females at libraries offering faculty status indicated poor work/life balance and high levels of stress compared to male colleagues and female librarians without faculty status; however, their reported job satisfaction was similar. Possible implications of the results are discussed.
TL;DR: Insight is offered into the potential benefits and disadvantages of faculty status in academic librarianship and it is suggested that faculty status improves relationships with teaching faculty, even if status alone cannot make them full peers.
Abstract: This study measures the opinions of ARL librarians concerning the benefits and disadvantages of faculty status in academic librarianship. Average responses from faculty and nonfaculty librarians, as well as from tenured and tenure-track librarians, are analyzed to determine the general perceptions of each group. Overall, faculty librarians reported more positive perceptions of faculty status than nonfaculty librarians. Tenured librarians generally reported more positive perceptions than tenure-track librarians. Despite the differences in opinion, these results offer insight into the potential benefits and disadvantages of faculty status in academic librarianship and suggest that faculty status improves relationships with teaching faculty, even if status alone cannot make them full peers.
TL;DR: A study that examined the development of pedagogical methods for increasing the visual literacy skills of a group of library and information science students revealed an overarching theme of frustration associated with the experience of developing image descriptions among the students.
Abstract: This paper reports on a study that examined the development of pedagogical methods for increasing the visual literacy skills of a group of library and information science students. Through a series of three assignments, students were asked to provide descriptive information for a set of historical photographs and record reflections on their experiences via blog posts. The three separate versions of the image descriptions submitted by the students were analyzed to discern changes using descriptive statistics, and their blog posts were examined to identify recurrent themes using the constant comparative method. Findings associated with the image descriptions indicate that students’ skill in describing the photographs show a modest increase across the three versions. Analysis of the blog postings revealed an overarching theme of frustration associated with the experience of developing image descriptions among the students. The underlying reasons for their frustrations are examined, and suggestions are provided for further increasing students’ abilities to describe images.
TL;DR: The authors generated data visualizations to compare sections of the library book collection, expenditures in those areas, student enrollment in majors and minors, and number of courses to offer a template to follow for others wishing to examine their collection.
Abstract: The authors generated data visualizations to compare sections of the library book collection, expenditures in those areas, student enrollment in majors and minors, and number of courses. The visualizations resulting from the entered data provide an excellent starting point for conversations about possible imbalances in the collection and point to areas that are either more developed or less developed than is needed to support the major and minor areas of study at the university. The methodology used should offer a template to follow for others wishing to examine their collection and may prove valuable for adjusting expenditures, suggesting service opportunities or for marketing pieces of the collection that had been hidden before graphical analysis.
TL;DR: It is concluded that library outreach on a student-run university Facebook group is manageable and can complement in-house marketing and reference efforts, and that library employees strategically focus on key periods during the semester and use photographs and contests to increase virtual engagement and spontaneous in-library event participation.
Abstract: Student-run Facebook groups offer librarians a new means of interacting with students in their native digital domain. Facebook groups, a service launched in 2010 enables university students to create a virtual forum to discuss their concerns, issues, and promote events. While still a relatively new feature, these groups are increasingly being utilized by students in universities and colleges throughout North America. Little research has been done on these groups and how they may be changing the way that students interact with each other and with their university on social media. A student-run university Facebook group was monitored for a year to measure library content and types of engagement. The purpose of this research was to systematically explore whether outreach to these new virtual forums are of value to librarians in term of effort and outcome, and to provide research-based insight into the best practices for librarians when confronted with similar unofficial student-run Facebook groups. Our findings suggest that library employees strategically focus on key periods during the semester and use photographs and contests to increase virtual engagement and spontaneous in-library event participation. Students used the Facebook group both as a source for library information and to thoroughly answer their peers’ general library questions; when confronted with more research-based questions, the students referred each other to the library for help. We conclude, that library outreach on a student-run university Facebook group is manageable and can complement in-house marketing and reference efforts.
TL;DR: In gathering information on the experiences, attitudes, and behaviors of faculty, librarians, and first-year students, the project team uncovered additional questions about the integration of IL in the FYS, the ways in which faculty and librarian work towards educational goals, and just what should be expected from students in their first year of college.
Abstract: Using surveys, interviews, and a rubric-based assessment of student research essays, the St. Mary’s College of Maryland Assessment in Action team investigated the relationship between faculty-librarian collaboration in a First Year Seminar (FYS) course and students’ demonstrated information literacy (IL) abilities. In gathering information on the experiences, attitudes, and behaviors of faculty, librarians, and first-year students, the project team uncovered additional questions about the integration of IL in the FYS, the ways in which faculty and librarians work towards educational goals, and just what should be expected from students in their first year of college.
TL;DR: Most respondents believe their articles had a greater impact as open access, expect to tap multiple sources to fund open access fees, and support the UC Open Access Policy and its goal of making research public and accessible.
Abstract: The Berkeley Research Impact Initiative (BRII) was one of the first campus-based open access (OA) funds to be established in North America and one of the most active, distributing more than $244,000 to support University of California (UC) Berkeley authors. In April 2015, we conducted a qualitative study of 138 individuals who had received BRII funding to survey their opinions about the benefits and funding of open access. Most respondents believe their articles had a greater impact as open access, expect to tap multiple sources to fund open access fees, and support the UC Open Access Policy and its goal of making research public and accessible. Results of the survey and a discussion of their impact on the BRII program follow.
TL;DR: This study demonstrates a two-step method by which librarians can assess the appeal of books in various formats: a nominal assessment of use or nonuse and a comparison of actual use to Percentage of Expected Use (PEU).
Abstract: Librarians often wish to know whether readers in a particular discipline favor e-books or print books. Because print circulation and e-book usage statistics are not directly comparable, it can be hard to determine the relative interest of readers in the two types of books. This study demonstrates a two-step method by which librarians can assess the appeal of books in various formats. First, a nominal assessment of use or nonuse is performed; this eliminates the difficulty of comparing print circulation to e-book usage statistics. Then, the comparison of actual use to Percentage of Expected Use (PEU) is made. By examining the distance between PEU of e-books to PEU of print books in a discipline, librarians can determine whether patrons have a strong preference for one format over another.
TL;DR: Four organizational level influences identified when making technology adoption decisions in the context of digital libraries were organizational structure, management style, focus and direction of the program, and relationships with external entities.
Abstract: The purpose of this study was to understand the organizational level decision factors in technology adoption in the context of digital libraries. A qualitative case study approach was used to investigate the adoption of a specific technology, XML-based Web services, in digital libraries. Rogers’s diffusion of innovations and Wenger’s communities of practice were the theories used to frame the study. The data collected through interviews were triangulated with documentary evidence and a comprehensive member check. Four organizational level influences identified when making technology adoption decisions in the context of digital libraries were organizational structure, management style, focus and direction of the program, and relationships with external entities. Attributes including program size, organizational culture and availability of financial resources contributed to these organizational level influences whereas program size did not appear to have an effect. Informal communication mechanisms were found to inform and influence the decision-making process.
TL;DR: The results of AACC’s AiA project have provided college practitioners and stakeholders with evidence of the extent to which graduating students demonstrate crucial information literacy skills and with data that can inform decisions about how to foster more effective teaching and learning.
Abstract: To get the best sense of how graduating students demonstrate information literacy skills and how the institution can improve student learning, the Assessment in Action (AiA) project at Anne Arundel Community College (AACC) deployed a combination of indirect measures and authentic assessment of student work, utilizing assessment tools flexible enough to be deployed across the college. The results of AACC’s AiA project have provided college practitioners and stakeholders with evidence of the extent to which graduating students demonstrate crucial information literacy skills and with data that can inform decisions about how to foster more effective teaching and learning.
TL;DR: The data collected through survey results from fifty-one institutions can inform the strategic decisions being made by other institutions considering an open access policy and illustrates the essential roles that academic libraries can play in the development and passage of open access policies.
Abstract: Recognizing the paucity of quantitative and qualitative data from North American educational institutions that have pursued open access policies, the authors devised a survey to collect information on the characteristics of these institutions, as well as the elements of the open access policies, the methods of promoting these policies, faculty concerns about the policies, and how those concerns have been addressed. The data collected through survey results from fifty-one institutions can inform the strategic decisions being made by other institutions considering an open access policy and illustrates the essential roles that academic libraries can play in the development and passage of open access policies.
TL;DR: It is indicated that implementation of a discovery system can lead to a reduction in interlibrary loan borrowing, and requests by undergraduates for locally owned or licensed materials dropped by 57 percent.
Abstract: Web-scale discovery services such as Summon (Serial Solutions), WorldCat Local (OCLC), EDS (EBSCO), and Primo (Ex Libris) are often touted as a single search solution to connect users to library-owned and -licensed content, improving discoverability and retrieval of resources. Assessing how well these systems achieve this goal can be challenging, however. This article describes the use of interlibrary loan borrowing request data as a means to evaluate whether the Summon discovery system was achieving its goal of improving retrieval. Four years following implementation of the discovery system, there was a 22 percent decrease in interlibrary loan borrowing requests. Requests by undergraduates dropped at a higher rate than faculty, staff, and graduate students. Undergraduate requests for articles dropped more than requests for loans. Two years’ postimplementation of the discovery system, the number of interlibrary loan borrowing requests by undergraduates for locally owned or licensed materials dropped by 57 percent, freeing up interlibrary loan staff to expand services into new areas. This study indicates that implementation of a discovery system can lead to a reduction in interlibrary loan borrowing.
TL;DR: A study was conducted at two research-intensive universities focused on identifying the need for new or retooled information services supporting health and biomedical researchers and their increasing use of digital resources.
Abstract: To better understand the value of current information services and to forecast the evolving information and data management needs of researchers, a study was conducted at two research-intensive universities. The methodology and planning framework applied by health science librarians at Emory University and The Ohio State University focused on identifying the need for new or retooled information services supporting health and biomedical researchers and their increasing use of digital resources. The lessons learned and outcomes described herein are informing the development and implementation of new information service models and can help forecast changing user needs across the broader library community.
TL;DR: Findings of the study indicate that three specific metadata elements are effective in enhancing discoverability of digital collections through Internet search engines, including Dublin Core metadata elements Title, Description, and Subject.
Abstract: This study analyzed digital item metadata and keywords from Internet search engines to learn what metadata elements actually facilitate discovery of digital collections through Internet keyword searching and how significantly each metadata element affects the discovery of items in a digital repository. The study found that keywords from Internet search engines matched values in eight metadata elements and resulted in landing visits to the digital repository. Findings of the study indicate that three specific metadata elements are effective in enhancing discoverability of digital collections through Internet search engines, including Dublin Core metadata elements Title, Description, and Subject.
TL;DR: This study uses citation analysis to assess the LGBTQ collection at Concordia University Libraries, to ascertain collection strengths and weaknesses, and to recommend collaborative collection development as a viable method of building an excellent collection in a multidisciplinary subject area.
Abstract: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) Studies and the broader discipline of sexuality studies are multidisciplinary fields that require a different approach to collection development in academic libraries. Many library collections budgets reflect the traditional divisions by academic department, and multidisciplinary fields often transcend these conventional boundaries. The concept of one selector for one department, while being a well-established and practical approach to collection building, is limited in breadth and scope and is not necessarily suitable for multidisciplinary fields. This study uses citation analysis to assess the LGBTQ collection at Concordia University Libraries, to ascertain collection strengths and weaknesses, and to recommend collaborative collection development as a viable method of building an excellent collection in a multidisciplinary subject area.