Subject Rooms: connecting you to resources as fuss-free as possible
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The story of how NTU Libraries started using Wordpress to create library guides.
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Subject Rooms: connecting you to resources as fuss-free as possible
- 6. Learning Points Framework Expand hunting beyond usual sources Basic level of depth Web Technologies Seamless round the clock access Understand the limits Hunt & Gather Lack of Subject Expertise Copyright and attribution Selecting good sources
- 8. Thank you!
Editor's Notes
- This presentation is about the creation of 35 Subject Rooms by the NTU subject librarians in 2010. We planned a total of 41 rooms and have published 35 as of February 2011. The project has 2 key outcomes: Subject-specific library resources selected and consolidated by subject librarians in a way that users find convenient and easy to use. Online learning journals for subject librarians to display their subject knowledge. Let me quickly show you what some of them look like: Chemistry Aerospace Engineering Journalism Physics Civil Engineering
- 3 ingredients make up each subject room: 1. An Organizing Framework that influences how subject-specific resources from a variety of sources and formats are organized. 2. Web technologies such as Wordpress MU are used to support the delivery of the rooms and their content online. 3. Gathering and hunting of content by subject librarians from library-subscribed materials and the Internet.
- Organizing framework The framework has 3 main sections: The Resources section is organized according to 12 format categories. We are fully aware of the argument that users do not care about the format or type. The problem is they should care because by knowing how the information they need are organized, it makes their lives easier. So, we will keep preaching it. We also highlight popular resources such as past year exam papers, red-spot books, final year reports and theses. Guides basically are resource lists regarding specific subject matters, research topic or courses. For example, ICT 4 Development. Guides doesn’t need to be academic and serious. Journalism in the Movies is a thematic exhibition of books and AV. The Learning & Research section showcase library tools and tips for academic writing and research ethics. We are planning to include articles on skills needed for academic excellence.
- The 2nd ingredient is Web technologies What you are seeing is the Wordpress dashboard. We decided to use Wordpress and not the popular LibGuides by Springshare. Primary reasons are cost and support. Wordpress MU is free and is supported by our IT department. LibGuides is fee-based and we need about 40 user accounts which comes up to quite a bit of money. Our librarians’ familiarity with Wordpress and the ability to display eye-catching banners clinched the deal for us. Other web technologies used include: Canned searches. For example, book lists that bring users back to search results in the Library Catalogue. Embedded files. For example, using Scribd.com to embed PDF files. We also use persistent links, embedded videos, proxy links, and RSS feeds.
- Hunting & Gathering of content is a critical ingredient. Around 35 subject librarians worked on gathering subject-specific content while a small project team checked links, proofread, edited and uploaded content to the rooms.
- What have I learnt from this project? Organizing Framework Having an organizing framework that is consistently applied to all rooms has “forced” librarians to expand their hunting and gathering beyond the usual stuff. I believe it forces them to scan their subject domain landscape and not just look at what’s within reach. Some have said that it is like a boilerplate and makes the rooms look similar. That’s the whole point, at least in the beginning. Web Technology Leveraging on existing library tools & web technologies such as link resolving, canned searching, embedding documents and persistent links have allowed us to create direct, off-site and round the clock access to subject-specific resources. We understood that web technology has its limitations. It is an enabler not a change driver. Hunt & Gather Some tricky issues surfaced during the content building phase : 1. Newer subject librarians express concern over their lack of subject expertise. 2. Copyright and proper attribution of sources. 3. Authority and credibility of web sources. Librarians also need to learn how to distinguish between good and bad sources, esp. online videos. 4. What is the best way to present resources online? There is a need to strike a balance between information literacy and getting to the point. For example, when we compile a database list, do we explain what a database is? A basic standard of quality and consistency for all published subject rooms was achieved. We are currently developing written guidelines for the creating and updating of the rooms.
- Moving Forward The focus is on Hunt & Gather First, we have 6 more rooms to publish before August 2011. Get subject librarians to update and add new content to their rooms a. As mentioned, we are coming up with some written guidelines b. We are also setting up a Best Subject Room Award 3. Develop new content related to scholarly communication and academic skills Promotion & Publicity Last but not least, improve the discoverability of our pages at the search engines. We have observed that students rely heavily on search engines to find things. Even databases. They will key in the name of the databases + NTU and run a search instead of going to the NTU Library website to access the database. So, I am looking at some search engine optimization techniques. Getting them on schools’ websites and the students’ learning platform where users congregate online.
- Moving Forward The focus is on Hunt & Gather First, we have 6 more rooms to publish before August 2011. Get subject librarians to update and add new content to their rooms a. As mentioned, we are coming up with some written guidelines b. We are also setting up a Best Subject Room Award 3. Develop new content related to scholarly communication and academic skills Promotion & Publicity Last but not least, improve the discoverability of our pages at the search engines. We have observed that students rely heavily on search engines to find things. Even databases. They will key in the name of the databases + NTU and run a search instead of going to the NTU Library website to access the database. So, I am looking at some search engine optimization techniques. Getting them on schools’ websites and the students’ learning platform where users congregate online.