PDF File Creating Subject Guides for the 21st Century Library by Buffy Hamilton

CREATING SUBJECT GUIDES
FOR THE 21ST-CENTURY
LIBRARY

presented by Buffy J. Hamilton
ALA TechSource
September 20, 2011

What is your library

Group Poll
environment?

Defining the Subject Guide
 A set of resources
designed to help
patrons fully research
and explore a topic
 Before the web, print
resources dominated a
pathfinder
 Pathfinders are now
dynamic and organic

Do you create subject

Group Poll
guides for your library?

part 1 context: part 2 elements part 3:
shifts in the and process: threads to
information tools and weave together
landscape and strategies for the fabric of
what counts as cultivating the contemporary
authority; 21st century subject guides
implications of research guide
these shifts for
networked
learners

part 1: a shifting information landscape and
concepts of authority and implications for
networked learners

Image used with permission under a Creative Common License from
http://www.flickr.com/photos/cobalt/2297933452/sizes/l/

what is authority?

who decides what
counts as
authority?

who are the
experts?

determining authority is now muddier

cc licensed flickr photo by harold.lloyd (won't somebody think of the bokeh?):
http://flickr.com/photos/safetylast/4068790874/

information sources are more diverse

today’s web is more participatory

knowing which information sources to trust, when to
trust, and why to trust is increasingly complex

“we're on the cusp of profound changes in
the scholarly process”

~laura cohen~

“We can no longer be content to train
students to understand the difference
between peer-reviewed journals and popular
magazines, to appreciate the value of books,
newspapers and reference sources, and to
understand how to evaluate garden variety
web sites.”

Laura B. Cohen, Web Support Librarian, University at Albany, SUNY

Source: http://liblogs.albany.edu/library20/

“The practice of scholarship in which the use
of social tools is an integral part of the
research and publishing process. Social
scholars may blog, share bookmarks, data
and other resources, participate in social
networks, make their works-in-progress
available for review, and deposit their
publications in open access repositories.”

Laura B. Cohen, Web Support Librarian, University at Albany, SUNY

Greenhow, C. (2009). Social Scholarship: APPLYING SOCIAL NETWORKING TECHNOLOGIES TO RESEARCH PRACTICES. Knowledge Quest, 37(4), 42-47.
Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
Source: http://digitalscholarship.wordpress.com/2008/03/04/social-scholarship-in-the-humanities/

Do you incorporate social media

Group Poll
networks and information streams
into your research guides?

Have you observed your patrons
(students, instructors, adults)
utilizing any of these resources in
their research?

blogs tweets videos

podcasts wikis web forums

social citation/ social
curation
bibliography bookmarking

images and
rss mobile apps
graphics

CC image via http://thenextweb.com/socialmedia/2011/09/16/social-media-is-everywhere-but-is-print-still-
valuable/

“embrace the potentials and
challenges of this [participatory]
emerging culture not as a replacement
for existing print practices but as an
expansion of them”

~henry jenkins~

Source: http://henryjenkins.org/2010/02/learning_in_a_participatory_cu.html

CC image via http://www.flickr.com/photos/dullhunk/202872717/sizes/l/in/photostream/

a focus on knowing how and
when a particular
information source
is the right fit
for an information seeking
task

Credibility Changes With…
• Source cues
• Point of view
• Information seeking task/needs
• Timeliness
• Credentials of author(s)
• Transparency of peer review

Source: Debbie Abilock,
http://www.noodletools.com/debbie/literacies/information/6assess/digital_authority.pdf

how do we help
learners negotiate
this friction
between
traditional
and
new media?
Joyce Valenza

what do students need for the
journey of
learning and
information fluency?

what navigation tools can librarians provide through subject
guides to help students find their way in a vast sea of
diverse information sources?

carefully constructed
subject guides can
help learners access
quality information
more
efficiently

subject guides
also scaffold
learners’ efforts to
construct personal
learning networks
and environments
for organizing,
managing, and
publishing
information and
original content

http://teachweb2.blogspot.com/2010/01/personal-learning-
environments-student.html

AASL Standards for 21st Century Learners
 1.2.2 Demonstrate confidence and self-direction by
making independent choices in the selection of
resources and information.
 3.1 Participate and collaborate as members of a social
and intellectual network of learners.
 3.1.4 Use technology and other information tools to
organize and display knowledge and understanding in
ways that others can view, use, and assess.
 4.1.6 Organize personal knowledge in a way that can be
called upon easily.
 4.1.7 Use social networks and information tools to
gather and share information.

subject guides can also help cultivate network
and attention literacy while modeling
information dashboards organization
strategies/possibilities for learners

CC image via http://bit.ly/r8oa8n

subject guides can be a vital point of contact
for collaboration and cultivating partnerships
for learning
CC image via http://goo.gl/C7zHC

Q&A

Q&A
CC image via http://www.flickr.com/photos/oberazzi/318947873/sizes/l/in/photostream/

part 2: tools and strategies for cultivating the
21st century research guide

subject guide seeds
• learning objectives
• standards
• learning activities
• learner needs
• forms of
assessment

Step 1: Communicate and
Collaborate

cc licensed photo from http://www.flickr.com/photos/brandoncripps/3156373103/sizes/o/

Step 2: Begin the design process and
selection of resources

consider the full spectrum of
resources
• databases • audio based resources
• web-based resources • human resources
• print books • tutorials (video or
• digital books written)
• rss feeds • standards for learning
• instructional • student work samples
materials • interviews or feedback
• assessment tools from teachers, students

Step 3: Make adjustments if needed during the
implementation of the project

Step 4: Reflection and action for future
directions (praxis)

Step 5: Help Patrons Learn How To Construct
Their Own Subject Guides

(strategies for librarians as well as students in part 3 today)

unpacking web
2.0 tools for
social
scholarship,
networked
learning, and
engagement
Image used under Creative Common License with permission from
http://www.flickr.com/photos/talekinker/2393380504/

Two primary tools for creating
organic subject guide elements
 RSS feeds
 Embed code

RSS Feeds
rss=real simple
syndication, a
web feed or
stream format
designed to
deliver content

CC image via http://www.flickr.com/photos/dullhunk/3541653049/sizes/o/

RSS Feeds
 Databases
 News sources
 Blogs
 Websites
 Online journals/magazine
publications
 Photo streams
 Forums, Social Networks

RSS Feeds
Most websites and
online publications now
provide a menu of
specific RSS feeds for
free

podcasts
http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=290783428

social bookmarking

Source: http://twitter.com/#!/LIS_learns/status/115491285565054976

Flickr/Images as Primary Sources

Twitter

Image used under a CC license from
http://www.flickr.com/photos/stevegarfield/3616155715/sizes/o

potpourri

CC Image via http://www.flickr.com/photos/anna_debenham/4428704459/sizes/l/

Connect to library social spaces for learning

Q&A

Q&A
CC image via http://www.flickr.com/photos/drachmann/327122302/sizes/l/in/photostream/

part 3: threads to weave together the fabric of
contemporary subject guides

Group Poll
What platform/tool do
you use to create your
subject guides for your
library?

Platforms/Tools for Housing Subject
Guides
• Library website created with traditional web
authoring platforms
• Subscription or open source subject guide
services
• Blogs
• Wikis
• Social Bookmarking Services
• Free Sources: Netvibes, Live Binders, Symbaloo,
Scoop.it

Points of Consideration When Choosing a
Subject Guide Platform
 Cost: Free vs. Paid
 Technical Support
 Ease of Replicating Content
 Types of Embed Code Supported

Points of Consideration When Choosing a
Subject Guide Platform
 Ability for multiple users to manipulate
the guides and/or tools for creating the
guides
 Is content sharable within a
community?
 Does the platform generate a mobile
version or have an app?
 Is the guide searchable?

Open Source Subject Guide Applications
 Subjects Plus (open source)
 Library a la Carte (open source)
 LibData (open source)

conceptualize subject guides as a medium for
inviting and sustaining conversations for learning

CC image via http://www.flickr.com/photos/marcwathieu/2979581445/sizes/l/

“No risk, no art. No art, no
reward.”

Seth Godin
CC image via http://www.flickr.com/photos/pure9/2606460947/sizes/o/
Seth Godin, September 2010 http://bit.ly/9Vkh1K

CC image via
http://www.flickr.com/photos/xjrlokix/5097846224/si
zes/l/in/photostream/

Q&A

Q&A
CC image via http://www.flickr.com/photos/f-oxymoron/5005673112/sizes/l/in/faves-10557450@N04/

contact information

buffy.hamilton@gmail.com
http://theunquietlibrarian.wordpress.com
http://theunquietlibrarian.wikispaces.com
@buffyjhamilton (Twitter)

PDF File Creating Subject Guides for the 21st Century Library by Buffy Hamilton

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