Academic libraries are changing significantly due to new technologies and user behaviors. Libraries need to adapt services to support digital scholarship, provide online access to resources, and help users navigate large amounts of information. Skills for libraries are expanding beyond traditional areas to include areas like data mining, digital curation, and supporting new forms of scholarly communication and impact. The roles of libraries and librarians are evolving in fundamental ways to meet changing user needs in research, teaching, and learning.
This is a second version of the slides to support my presentation at Forth Valley College, incorporating Margaret McKay's slides on accessibility and inclusion.
This is a second version of the slides to support my presentation at Forth Valley College, incorporating Margaret McKay's slides on accessibility and inclusion.
Virtual session done for the Lambda Moodle Users Community. Chad Leaman from Lambda did the last half of the presentation which was a live demo of how to import an ePub book into Moodle.
Open Textbook Summit - Open Access, OER, and the Next Generation BCcampus
Presentation slide for Open Textbook Summit, April 16-17, 2014 by:
Nicole Allen (@txtbks)
Director of Open Education, SPARC
Nick Shockey (@R2RC)
Director of Programs & Engagement, SPARC
Director, Right to Research Coalition
English (updated) version of my presentation about the new library portal of Fontys University of applied science. First time I did this one was for a delegation from Uzbekistan.
Promoting Collaboration in Open Online ProgramsTom Mackey
As part of this year's Association for Continuing Higher Education (ACHE) Northeast Metropolitan Spring Conference, CDL Dean Tom Mackey presented, "Promoting Collaboration in Open Online Programs." This year's conference was sponsored by the Stony Brook School for Professional Development and took place on Friday, June 14, at Stony Brook University in Manhattan. The theme of this year's event was Distance Education: Access, Quality, Opportunities, and Cautions.
How I Learned How To Stop Worrying And Learned To Love Wikipedia
Brian C. Housand, PhD
North Carolina Gifted Conference (NCAGT)
Winston-Salem, NC
March 26, 2009
Virtual session done for the Lambda Moodle Users Community. Chad Leaman from Lambda did the last half of the presentation which was a live demo of how to import an ePub book into Moodle.
Open Textbook Summit - Open Access, OER, and the Next Generation BCcampus
Presentation slide for Open Textbook Summit, April 16-17, 2014 by:
Nicole Allen (@txtbks)
Director of Open Education, SPARC
Nick Shockey (@R2RC)
Director of Programs & Engagement, SPARC
Director, Right to Research Coalition
English (updated) version of my presentation about the new library portal of Fontys University of applied science. First time I did this one was for a delegation from Uzbekistan.
Promoting Collaboration in Open Online ProgramsTom Mackey
As part of this year's Association for Continuing Higher Education (ACHE) Northeast Metropolitan Spring Conference, CDL Dean Tom Mackey presented, "Promoting Collaboration in Open Online Programs." This year's conference was sponsored by the Stony Brook School for Professional Development and took place on Friday, June 14, at Stony Brook University in Manhattan. The theme of this year's event was Distance Education: Access, Quality, Opportunities, and Cautions.
How I Learned How To Stop Worrying And Learned To Love Wikipedia
Brian C. Housand, PhD
North Carolina Gifted Conference (NCAGT)
Winston-Salem, NC
March 26, 2009
This is the "after" part of a series of posts on creating great slides for teaching. An earlier post at "Web 2.0 Tools for Teaching" focused on finding the images for this presentation.
http://web20toolsforteaching.blogspot.com/2010/02/finding-photos-for-your-slides.html
This post shows how these slides have been edited to create for final slide deck - the "after" slides.
"OK, This is Just Too Weird": Identifying Outreach Opportunites in FacebookElizabeth Edwards
The tremendous popularity of social networking sites like Facebook presents libraries with unique opportunities for reaching students. What many organizations fail to recognize, however, is that Facebook is perceived by its users as a primarily social space, and that the presence of professors, librarians, or parents can be intrusive, unwelcome, or just plain "weird" for the very students they're trying to reach. The George Washington University's Gelman Library decided to take a step back and ask a critical question: what do our students want? How do our students really use Facebook, and what part can the library play in this social environment? This presentation will offer an overview of this study and its findings in light of contemporary thinking and practices among librarians.
How have libraries responded to the enormous change of the last 15 years? Join the confersation as Kathleen Johnson embarks on an exploration of this question, examing innovative and interesting ideas including the Library of Things, the Learning Commons, the evolving library role in learning, the socially networked library and more.
Challenges and opportunities for academic librarieslisld
Research and learning behaviors are changing in a network environment. What challenges do Academic libraries face? What opportunities do they have? A presentation given at a symposium on the future of academic libraries at the Open University.
Keynote Address, Sydney CEO TL ConferenceSyba Academy
'Converging the Parallels', Primary & Secondary Teacher Librarian, Cross Regional Conference.
Presented on Friday 10 September 2010. Conference held at The Terry Keogh Conference Centre, CEO Southern Region, Revesby (Sydney).
Ken spoke at the University College London (UCL) and Ciber research event ‘Digital textbooks: where are we?’ in May 2018. He outlined some of the drivers and themes that are influencing the future of e-textbooks and digital learning resources. He focused on the student as consumer, the user experience, digital platforms and the importance of data and analytics.
Convenient isn't always simple: Digital Visitors and Residents.Lynn Connaway
Connaway, L. S. (2019). Convenient isn't always simple: Digital Visitors and Residents. Presented at the University of Adelaide, February 18, 2019, Adelaide, Australia.
Presentation given as part of a Research Support Workhop at the SCONUL Conference, Edinburgh, 12th June 2008.
The notes that accompany this presentationa re available from http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=ah9bmbprh49p_27pt8h53f9
Introduction to AI for Nonprofits with Tapp NetworkTechSoup
Dive into the world of AI! Experts Jon Hill and Tareq Monaur will guide you through AI's role in enhancing nonprofit websites and basic marketing strategies, making it easy to understand and apply.
Operation “Blue Star” is the only event in the history of Independent India where the state went into war with its own people. Even after about 40 years it is not clear if it was culmination of states anger over people of the region, a political game of power or start of dictatorial chapter in the democratic setup.
The people of Punjab felt alienated from main stream due to denial of their just demands during a long democratic struggle since independence. As it happen all over the word, it led to militant struggle with great loss of lives of military, police and civilian personnel. Killing of Indira Gandhi and massacre of innocent Sikhs in Delhi and other India cities was also associated with this movement.
The Roman Empire A Historical Colossus.pdfkaushalkr1407
The Roman Empire, a vast and enduring power, stands as one of history's most remarkable civilizations, leaving an indelible imprint on the world. It emerged from the Roman Republic, transitioning into an imperial powerhouse under the leadership of Augustus Caesar in 27 BCE. This transformation marked the beginning of an era defined by unprecedented territorial expansion, architectural marvels, and profound cultural influence.
The empire's roots lie in the city of Rome, founded, according to legend, by Romulus in 753 BCE. Over centuries, Rome evolved from a small settlement to a formidable republic, characterized by a complex political system with elected officials and checks on power. However, internal strife, class conflicts, and military ambitions paved the way for the end of the Republic. Julius Caesar’s dictatorship and subsequent assassination in 44 BCE created a power vacuum, leading to a civil war. Octavian, later Augustus, emerged victorious, heralding the Roman Empire’s birth.
Under Augustus, the empire experienced the Pax Romana, a 200-year period of relative peace and stability. Augustus reformed the military, established efficient administrative systems, and initiated grand construction projects. The empire's borders expanded, encompassing territories from Britain to Egypt and from Spain to the Euphrates. Roman legions, renowned for their discipline and engineering prowess, secured and maintained these vast territories, building roads, fortifications, and cities that facilitated control and integration.
The Roman Empire’s society was hierarchical, with a rigid class system. At the top were the patricians, wealthy elites who held significant political power. Below them were the plebeians, free citizens with limited political influence, and the vast numbers of slaves who formed the backbone of the economy. The family unit was central, governed by the paterfamilias, the male head who held absolute authority.
Culturally, the Romans were eclectic, absorbing and adapting elements from the civilizations they encountered, particularly the Greeks. Roman art, literature, and philosophy reflected this synthesis, creating a rich cultural tapestry. Latin, the Roman language, became the lingua franca of the Western world, influencing numerous modern languages.
Roman architecture and engineering achievements were monumental. They perfected the arch, vault, and dome, constructing enduring structures like the Colosseum, Pantheon, and aqueducts. These engineering marvels not only showcased Roman ingenuity but also served practical purposes, from public entertainment to water supply.
Palestine last event orientationfvgnh .pptxRaedMohamed3
An EFL lesson about the current events in Palestine. It is intended to be for intermediate students who wish to increase their listening skills through a short lesson in power point.
Macroeconomics- Movie Location
This will be used as part of your Personal Professional Portfolio once graded.
Objective:
Prepare a presentation or a paper using research, basic comparative analysis, data organization and application of economic information. You will make an informed assessment of an economic climate outside of the United States to accomplish an entertainment industry objective.
Biological screening of herbal drugs: Introduction and Need for
Phyto-Pharmacological Screening, New Strategies for evaluating
Natural Products, In vitro evaluation techniques for Antioxidants, Antimicrobial and Anticancer drugs. In vivo evaluation techniques
for Anti-inflammatory, Antiulcer, Anticancer, Wound healing, Antidiabetic, Hepatoprotective, Cardio protective, Diuretics and
Antifertility, Toxicity studies as per OECD guidelines
Model Attribute Check Company Auto PropertyCeline George
In Odoo, the multi-company feature allows you to manage multiple companies within a single Odoo database instance. Each company can have its own configurations while still sharing common resources such as products, customers, and suppliers.
A Strategic Approach: GenAI in EducationPeter Windle
Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies such as Generative AI, Image Generators and Large Language Models have had a dramatic impact on teaching, learning and assessment over the past 18 months. The most immediate threat AI posed was to Academic Integrity with Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) focusing their efforts on combating the use of GenAI in assessment. Guidelines were developed for staff and students, policies put in place too. Innovative educators have forged paths in the use of Generative AI for teaching, learning and assessments leading to pockets of transformation springing up across HEIs, often with little or no top-down guidance, support or direction.
This Gasta posits a strategic approach to integrating AI into HEIs to prepare staff, students and the curriculum for an evolving world and workplace. We will highlight the advantages of working with these technologies beyond the realm of teaching, learning and assessment by considering prompt engineering skills, industry impact, curriculum changes, and the need for staff upskilling. In contrast, not engaging strategically with Generative AI poses risks, including falling behind peers, missed opportunities and failing to ensure our graduates remain employable. The rapid evolution of AI technologies necessitates a proactive and strategic approach if we are to remain relevant.
Honest Reviews of Tim Han LMA Course Program.pptxtimhan337
Personal development courses are widely available today, with each one promising life-changing outcomes. Tim Han’s Life Mastery Achievers (LMA) Course has drawn a lot of interest. In addition to offering my frank assessment of Success Insider’s LMA Course, this piece examines the course’s effects via a variety of Tim Han LMA course reviews and Success Insider comments.
June 3, 2024 Anti-Semitism Letter Sent to MIT President Kornbluth and MIT Cor...Levi Shapiro
Letter from the Congress of the United States regarding Anti-Semitism sent June 3rd to MIT President Sally Kornbluth, MIT Corp Chair, Mark Gorenberg
Dear Dr. Kornbluth and Mr. Gorenberg,
The US House of Representatives is deeply concerned by ongoing and pervasive acts of antisemitic
harassment and intimidation at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Failing to act decisively to ensure a safe learning environment for all students would be a grave dereliction of your responsibilities as President of MIT and Chair of the MIT Corporation.
This Congress will not stand idly by and allow an environment hostile to Jewish students to persist. The House believes that your institution is in violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, and the inability or
unwillingness to rectify this violation through action requires accountability.
Postsecondary education is a unique opportunity for students to learn and have their ideas and beliefs challenged. However, universities receiving hundreds of millions of federal funds annually have denied
students that opportunity and have been hijacked to become venues for the promotion of terrorism, antisemitic harassment and intimidation, unlawful encampments, and in some cases, assaults and riots.
The House of Representatives will not countenance the use of federal funds to indoctrinate students into hateful, antisemitic, anti-American supporters of terrorism. Investigations into campus antisemitism by the Committee on Education and the Workforce and the Committee on Ways and Means have been expanded into a Congress-wide probe across all relevant jurisdictions to address this national crisis. The undersigned Committees will conduct oversight into the use of federal funds at MIT and its learning environment under authorities granted to each Committee.
• The Committee on Education and the Workforce has been investigating your institution since December 7, 2023. The Committee has broad jurisdiction over postsecondary education, including its compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, campus safety concerns over disruptions to the learning environment, and the awarding of federal student aid under the Higher Education Act.
• The Committee on Oversight and Accountability is investigating the sources of funding and other support flowing to groups espousing pro-Hamas propaganda and engaged in antisemitic harassment and intimidation of students. The Committee on Oversight and Accountability is the principal oversight committee of the US House of Representatives and has broad authority to investigate “any matter” at “any time” under House Rule X.
• The Committee on Ways and Means has been investigating several universities since November 15, 2023, when the Committee held a hearing entitled From Ivory Towers to Dark Corners: Investigating the Nexus Between Antisemitism, Tax-Exempt Universities, and Terror Financing. The Committee followed the hearing with letters to those institutions on January 10, 202
2. “A university is just a group of buildings gathered around a library.” Shelby Foote
3. The Times They Are A-Changin‘ Bob Dylan dhammza. changes. http://www.flickr.com/photos/dhammza/2227347832/
4. “Turning more of the knowledge that is generated in UK universities into jobs and growth, especially by bringing businesses and universities together to collaborate.” Lord Mandelson http://nds.coi.gov.uk/clientmicrosite/content/Detail.aspx?ReleaseID=408199&NewsAreaID=2&ClientID=431
5. “Universities have enjoyed a benign financial climate over recent years. Growth based so heavily on state funding cannot continue ....... “ BIS http://www.bis.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/publications/Higher-Ambitions-Summary.pdf
6. “There will be a consumer revolution for students with each course labelled with key facts about their drop-out rates, students' future earnings and contact hours with senior tutors.” Lord Mandelson http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2009/nov/03/peter-mandelson-university-review-modernisation
7. “The importance of curriculum design is prompting many institutions to rethink the processes, systems and procedures involved in planning, designing and administering programmes of study.” http://www.jisc.ac.uk/media/documents/publications/managingcurriculumchange.pdf
8. “Literacy practices are changing. Writing has moved from a paper-based to a largely screen based medium. Associated searching and editing software has profoundly changed the way in which writing is typically constructed.” http://www.jisc.ac.uk/whatwedo/projects/elearningllida.aspx
9. Developing the REF: framework Outputs Impact Environment Quality and sustainability of the environment: assessed through narrative and indicators Quality of outputs: assessed through a combination of bibliometrics and expert review Engagement with users and the public: assessed through narrative and indicators Impact of research: assessed through a portfolio of evidence Source:: Chaplin, H (2009) The Research Excellence Framework. AUA Annual Conference 2009. http://www.hefce.ac.uk/research/ref/resources/AUA_AnnConf.ppt
10. Serials costs are rising dramatically Source: Kyrillidou, Martha [2000]. Research library trends: ARL statistics. The Journal of Academic Librarianship 26(6): 427-436 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0099-1333(00)00177-4
11. The impact on open access on publishing and libraries
12. “ ........ more than any other area of academic life, libraries are being forced to respond to deep and disruptive changes in both what they do and how they do it.” Gaynor Backhouse http://librariesofthefuture.jiscinvolve.org/2009/03/25/holding-out-for-a-hero-technology-the-future-and-the-renaissance-of-the-university-librarian/
14. 2. Post all academic output publicly - IGNORE Copyright 3. Text mine everything 4. Put 2nd year students in charge of developing educational technology 8. Close the library science building and move to departments 10. Publicly campaign for openness Peter Murray-Rust, Internet Librarian 2009
15. “Let’s face it: the library, as a place, is dead ..... Kaput. Finito. And we need to move on to a new concept of what the academic library is.” Suzanne Thorin, Dean of Libraries, Syracuse University http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/11/06/library
17. “To interact with one another — to talk, to collaborate, to think, to communicate, to be with one another,” he said. “Isn’t that what we do in our best libraries?” Rick Luce, Director of University Libraries, Emory University http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/11/06/library
18. Information Commons at the University of Sheffield Paolo Màrgari. empty brains in the information commons. http://www.flickr.com/photos/paolomargari/758421322/
19. “The traditional ways in which libraries and academics define the research environment for students is now being bypassed by most users, who regard tools such as reading lists as a back-up rather than a starting point.” S. Hampton Reeves (2009) Students’ Use of Research Content in Teaching and Learning. Preston: UCLAN. http://www.jisc.ac.uk/media/documents/aboutus/workinggroups/studentsuseresearchcontent.pdf
20. “Users overwhelmingly use keyword searches” Cellanr. OLPC at Kagugu Primary School, Kigali. http://www.flickr.com/photos/rorycellan/3933612995/in/photostream/
21. It used to be that the problem was finding relevant stuff .... Paxsimius. library card catalog. http://www.flickr.com/photos/paxsimius/2235761852/
22. § “The biggest problem faced by users is the sheer volume of information available on most subjects.*” Librarian by Day. The EEE vs The Mini 9. http://www.flickr.com/photos/librarianbyday/3686346119/
23. “Users expect to be able to access research content immediately and prefer online access.” Brianjmatis. Day 166 - Let there be internet! http://www.flickr.com/photos/brianjmatis/3631670054/sizes/l/
24. The researchers of the future (and quite a few researching now) come from the born digital age and will use information differently, so what is information literacy? Rachel Bruce (2009) “… to engage or not engage…” the choice for libraries. JISC DATA Environment Team Blog, http://infteam.jiscinvolve.org/2008/11/12/%E2%80%9C%E2%80%A6-to-engage-or-not-engage%E2%80%A6-the-choice-for-libraries/
25. “Users want more guidance and clarity on how to find research content and on how to assess its worth as well as its relevance.” S. Hampton Reeves (2009) Students’ Use of Research Content in Teaching and Learning. Preston: UCLAN. http://www.jisc.ac.uk/media/documents/aboutus/workinggroups/studentsuseresearchcontent.pdf
26. “Information literacy needs to be broadened to include – or be supplemented with – communication and media literacies. It makes little sense to support information literacy’s in isolation from other communications and media practices. The agenda needs to be clearly formulated around informed and critical use of technology for learning.” JISC (2009) Learning literacies in a digital age. http://www.jisc.ac.uk/whatwedo/projects/elearningllida.aspx
27. “If librarians invented Google – you’d need an hour’s training just to perform a keyword search.” Llordlama http://twitter.com/llordllama
29. “If you're a library that supports an educational institution, then your collection development policy should be "See course catalog.” Rick Anderson, University of Utah
31. Sharp drop in print acquisitions Kwerfeldein. Reading Jonee. http://www.flickr.com/photos/kwerfeldein/2166817992/
32. Ebooks first, where available Much more user-driven acquisition Much less librarian-driven acquisition More focus on local/unique documents Less focus on acquiring copies
33. 145 articles downloaded per FTE user 82 e-book accesses per FTE student 40 book, journal or DVD issues per FTE student Figures from the 2007/8 academic year
34. You don’t own e-resources, you license them Choconancy1. Rob Cottingham's Keynote capture. http://www.flickr.com/photos/choconancy/3299027020/
39. Libraries should support innovative scholarship. We’re now in a complex world where the web is a platform of “mass creativity” but offers real opportunities for innovative scholarship. Rachel Bruce (2009) “… to engage or not engage…” the choice for libraries. JISC DATA Environment Team Blog, http://infteam.jiscinvolve.org/2008/11/12/%E2%80%9C%E2%80%A6-to-engage-or-not-engage%E2%80%A6-the-choice-for-libraries/
40. Licenses should allow text and data mining ... .. but most don’t Alarch. Drift of Harrachov Mine. http://www.flickr.com/photos/alarch/308587800/
42. Systematic Review Support Chickenlump. Stethoscope. http://www.flickr.com/photos/chickenlump/2038512161/sizes/o/
43. “We’ve been raised as experts at keeping our physical environment well ordered, but our homespun ways of maintaining order are going to break—they’re already breaking—in the digital world.” David Weinberger, Everything is Miscellaneous
44. <<xs:complexContent mixed="true"> − <xs:restriction base="xs:anyType"> − <xs:sequence> <xs:anyprocessContents="lax" minOccurs="0" maxOccurs="0"/> </xs:sequence> <xs:attribute ref="xml:lang" use="optional"/> </xs:restriction> </xs:complexContent> </xs:complexType> <xs:element name="any" type="SimpleLiteral" abstract="true"/> <xs:element name="title" substitutionGroup="any"/> <xs:element name="creator" substitutionGroup="any"/> <xs:element name="subject" substitutionGroup="any"/> <xs:element name="description" substitutionGroup="any"/> <xs:element name="publisher" substitutionGroup="any"/> <xs:element name="contributor" substitutionGroup="any"/> <xs:element name="date" substitutionGroup="any"/> <xs:element name="type" substitutionGroup="any"/> <xs:element name="format" substitutionGroup="any"/> <xs:element name="identifier" substitutionGroup="any"/> <xs:element name="source" substitutionGroup="any"/> <xs:element name="language" substitutionGroup="any"/> <xs:element name="relation" substitutionGroup="any"/> <xs:element name="coverage" substitutionGroup="any"/> <xs:element name="rights" substitutionGroup="any"/> − <xs:group name="elementsGroup"> − <xs:annotation> − <xs:documentationxml:lang="en"> This group is included as a convenience for schema authors who need to refer to all the elements in the http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/ namespace. </xs:documentation> </xs:annotation> Dublin Core, METS, ETD, LOM are as important as MARC, perhaps more so
45. IT Literacy is not enough wili hybrid. Office: Research in Progress. http://www.flickr.com/photos/wili/242265276/
50. “Information is the fourth resource, alongside people, finance and property. It is therefore vital to invest in good management of information across the University and especially in electronic information as this is more vulnerable to loss or unauthorised access.” UoL (2009) Digital Information Assets business case.
A university is just a group of buildings gathered around a libraryis the traditional view of an academic library.
But things are changing quickly.
Only last week the Government released a report called The Future of Universities in the Knowledge Economy. Among the things happening are much greater collaboration between business and HE, whether this is in working together on curriculum design to develop courses focused on the needs of business or in research, where there is a sharper focus on the economic and social impact of research carried out by universities.
We’re in a recession and funding is being cut for teaching and research. In today’s THES, BIS asks why £2bn gap between research costs and income persists.Earlier this week the long-awaited (by VC’s) review of tuition fees was announced. If the fees cap is abolished, the US gives an idea of what might happen. 58 US institutions now charge fees of more than $50,000 (£29,850) a year. Last year, just five colleges exceeded this mark.
This is belated official recognition of a situation we are already in. Students are acting as consumers. There expectations have changed – libraries are expected to meet there demands for information immediately.Not every one likes it though. MacLeod, Donald (2007) Academics fight back against rule of the student customer. The Guardian, 24th September, ttp://www.guardian.co.uk/education/mortarboard/2007/sep/24/aspiritedattackonthe
Institutions aim to be increasingly demand led, responsive to cultural and economic change, and capable of providing opportunities for learners to acquire both knowledge and skills for employability and lifelong learning.”The emphasis on e and blended learning, collaboration and group work, enquiry based / PBL , involvement of industry are leading to changes.
“Literacy practices are changing. Although, the idea of the digital native, the Google generation is a myth, there are changes. Changes to the way people access information, read, write and in fact what constitutes a text.
There are major changes and challenges to the way research is funded.The RAE 2008 saw research excellence funded wherever it was found rather than concentrating funding on elite institutions. The recently published HEF calls for funding to be concentrated on elite institutions.The new REF has seen a major debate on the use of bibliometrics and now on measuring the social and economic impact of research.The way research grants are awarded is challenged. It is argued that the system is failing scientists and in response the Wellcome Trust have announced major changes to the way they will award grants.
The cost of providing access to materials has risen dramatically.
And the open access movement, who want to make journal articles, textbooks and monographs freely available online poses a major challenge to publishers and is an opportunity for libraries who are heavily involved in promoting and supporting this initiative.
More than any other area of academic life, libraries are being forced to respond to deep and disruptive changes in both what they do and how they do it.There is a sense we need to save libraries but “When we shift our attention from “save newspapers libraries” to “save society scholarship”, the imperative changes from “preserve the current institutions” to “do whatever works.” —Adapted from Clay ShirkyAnd there has never been a better time to be an acdemic librarian. There are so many opportunities to do new and interesting and useful things!Taken from Bourg, Chris, Ross Coleman, and Ricky Erway. 2009. Support for the Research Process: An Academic Library Manifesto. Report produced by OCLC Research. Published online at: www.oclc.org/ research/publications/library/2009/2009-07.pdf.
So lets look at the sorts of things libraries should be doing. Peter Murray-Rust is a Chemist who has strong views on what libraries need to do.He says we need to have a vision for the future
Helpfully, he has a 12 point plan for the library some of which I’ve reproduced here.His views aren’t that far from the mainstream – with the possible exception of copyright.Post all academic output publicly - IGNORE CopyrightText mine everythingPut 2nd year students in charge of developing educational technologyClose the library science building and move to departmentsPublicly campaign for openness
“The scientists have mostly gone online with their library needs,” Thorin said. “Cutting-edge scholars in the humanities are going the same way. Students prefer online access.Universities, are either moving their books to off-campus storage facilities or disposing of hard copies. Libraries everywhere are opting for online over print provision.
There is abundant evidence that scientists (and many science) students don’t use the library building (although many of them still use the digital library. This doesn’t mean that librarians aren’t required, its just that they should be embedded in the departments working more closely with the students and researchers.There is a model for this. The Clinical Librarian (CL) Service at UHL NHS Trust takes information services into the clinical setting, responding to information needs that arise there.
There is a counter argument. Libraries were founded as places where materials were collected and stored, shifted focus toward connecting clients with resources, and now are orinetated to towards allowing people to interact with each other. The argument goes that this how people work in the real world. This is not a universally popular view.
And institutions are investing millions in library buildings to provide an experience and to build collaborative spaces. Do you like the changes to the library here?And if you’re going with this the library has to be 24 hour, as we are, and the only cost effive way to do this is via self service.
The way resources are accessed is changing. Course reading lists and tutorial advice are are no longer seen by users as the primary way to discover research content.
Users overwhelmingly use keyword searches to discover the existence of research content which are inputted into a mixture of tools usually including internet search engines, library catalogues and specialist subject databases.
It used to be that the problem was finding stuff. But if you did it was usually from the library. The library acted as a filter – it collected things that were useful and that were peer reviews / scholarly.
“The biggest problem faced by users is the sheer volume of information available on most subjects.” Information overload is seen as a huge problem. Clay Shirky argues that the problem isn’t too much information, its that we don’t have good filters. Users struggle to identify relevant content from mass that is available because they don’t have the filtering tools they need.*S. Hampton Reeves (2009) Students’ Use of Research Content in Teaching and Learning. Preston: UCLAN. http://www.jisc.ac.uk/media/documents/aboutus/workinggroups/studentsuseresearchcontent.pdf
Users expect to be able to access research content immediately and prefer online access but will, for the moment, visit the library if necessary.The issues around finding, filtering and using information have implications for the training we provide and the tools we build to enable users to access information.
Information literacy is important. Training is important. It’s critical to what we do but what and how we deliver is changing.
A lot of what we do is about guiding users (staff and students) to the different sources of content and equipping with the skills to assess its worth. A kind of filtering.
“Information literacy needs to be broadened to include – or be supplemented with – communication and media literacies.”The key point that we can learn from other areas and that this will impact on the training we deliver.
If we think about searching for a moment. Students (and some staff) need guidance on how to find research content. This is more about where to find rather than how to search for it.“If librarians invented Google – you’d need an hour’s training just to perform a keyword search.” I’m sure you all know how easy to use Google is. Now think about Metalib.There is a learning cost associated with using search tools. Google is easy. Library tools have to be easy too or you have to be able to demonstrate value in spending time to get to know them.
There is a learning cost associated with using search tools. Google is easy. Library tools have to be easy too or you have to be able to demonstrate value in spending time to get to know them. And that isn’t easy.Cross-disciplinary is good too.
What should we collect? Traditionally we build a collection against possible future need. This is inefficient. A lot of what why buy never get used. We should buy what people need now and not try to second guess what they may need in future. There is no real role for librarians in selecting materials in this model.
And print is dying. Journals are online. We along with many other libraries have a policy that says that we will only buy journals online unless there is an exceptionally good reason why not. And where we have journals online we aren’t keeping the print.
Books are going online too. This year for the UoL is the tipping point. I think we’ll start to see an major increase in e-book acquisitions and a sharp decrease in print acquisitions. And we tend to buy collections of e-books rather than individual titles. No prints books, less processing, less shelving, fewer issues, smaller queues at the issue desk – major changes to the way the library operates.
So to sum our policy going forward is likely to be:Ebooks first, where available, Much more user-driven acquisition, Much less librarian-driven acquisition, More focus on local/unique documents, Less focus on acquiring copiesFewer prints books, less processing, less shelving, fewer issues, smaller queues at the issue desk – major changes to the way the library operates.
We haven’t just decided to do this – these are the numbers!
You don’t own e-resources, you license them which has implications for what you can do with them. Essentially, you need librarian /lawyers
We’re competing globally. We’re not just designing systems and services for students in Liverpool or the UK, we have to support students across the globe. 53 countries currently. Different local laws, variations in internet access, cultural issues and time zones. Support has to be 25 hour – its is at UoL. 9:30pm to 8:30am support is outsourced to NOMAN.
We’re delivering services to schools, school children, teachers, mature students. We have to design and develop services to met their needs. It isn’t just current staff and students, its potential staff and students we provide a service to,
The government are keen to provide services to local SME’s in knowledge industries. We’re sitting on lots of stuff that they could use, but we’re struggling to make it available. Licensing issues mainly.
There is increasing demand to provide services for alumni – particularly now Uni’s see them as potential sources of income to fund endowments.
Its not just about finding and reading things. Libraries should support innovative scholarship.
This could take a number of forms but to give a couple of examples. Opening up our e-collections to allow data and text mining.
AndDigitising primary research materials we hold like the First World War poetry Archive and making them available.
Embedding librarians into offer bespoke support in expert literature searching and reference management for any group undertaking a systematic review.
Traditional skills are important. Not so much cat and class as we live in a miscellaneous electronic world.
But having good metadata is critical to delivering the kinds of innovative scholarship I was talking about and to delivering on the promise of the semantic web.
We need librarians (or at least library staff that can code). IT literacy isn’t enough. There is so much that can be done if you have people that can make use of Api’s, hack the catalogue etc. See the work of Dave Pattern at Huddersfield for an example.
Alex Parker, 2nd year Comp sci undergrad developed a tool where he presents library data in three different ‘galaxy’ views where library books are represented as moving stars that change speed and location according to how popular they are within a given course. They also join together in constellations to show books on connected topic, while orbited by meteors representing the courses of the students using those books.Perhaps we should leave it to the undergrads?
Whether that is buying managing funds to pay open access author charges to allow researchers to publish their work.
Buying building an institutional repository and archiving copies of all of the research outputs produced by researchers at the institution, making that openly available online, linking this in with other systems to provide data for RPM, to go into CV’s and for web pages.
Managing the institutions digital assets – reports, strategies, student work etc that libraries traditionall have had no role in.
Or by contributing to the management of primary research data generated by researchers within the institution.