Collaborative Learning

Summary

The many concerns over the costs and benefits of higher education have created an often intense dialogue across university departmental borders. In response, many departments have moved to collaborative efforts to reinforce the necessity and usefulness of the Liberal Arts curriculum for students. Academic service departments, including archives, seek to have their resources more actively used by the student base. The authors collaborated on an assignment requiring student use of primary source materials held at the Michigan State University Archives and Historical Collections. The dialogue this assignment created and the projects it produced was of benefit to all involved: instructors, faculty, and students.     

Indonesia Electronic Library Design Plan for Supporting a Distance Learning Environment

Abstract

Indonesia is answering the need for a more skilled work force by using distance education and technology to reach more students. This paper describes the development of an electronic library to support these students by member libraries of the Indonesia Distance Learning Network.     

Re-visioning a Library Liaison Program in Light of External Forces and Internal Pressures

Liaison librarian roles have existed for many years within the academic environment. Initially taking the form of reference, instruction, and collection development – often with subject specialization – the activities of liaisons have adapted and evolved in response to changing library user needs. In response to such changing needs and internal pressures, the Health Sciences Library at McMaster University is in the process of re-visioning its liaison program. The result is a set of proposed models informed by the literature and institutional context which contributed to the selection of a new direction for liaisons. Key steps reported in this article include a review of the literature, rationale and context, a librarian survey, and final decision.     

Adult Learning Theory and Reference Services: Consonances and Potentials

Summary

There is a long history of exchange between librarians and adult educators. This history not only points to previous successes but also highlights a tension of defining an appropriate focus within libraries for the provision of adult education. The similarities between contemporary adult education thought and reference services can provide some interesting possibilities in looking toward the future of reference in a digital age, both in terms of service and professional development.     

Distance Learning Librarianship Research Over Time

Abstract

This paper informally presents the results of a study using a combined survey/interview technique that asked experienced extended, distance and/or distributed library services librarians for their advice to novice librarians in the field. The primary recommendation is to build relationships. Other strategies are offered in the areas of marketing, gathering information, evaluating policies, remaining flexible, keeping up with technology, and using the ACRL Guidelines for Distance Library Services.     

Using Needs Assessment to Determine Library Services for Distance Learning Programs

ABSTRACT

This article provides guidance in using the needs assessment process as a planning tool specifically for library services supporting distance learning programs. The first section covers pre-assessment planning activities, which include defining the specific purpose or purposes of the assessment, assigning responsibility for various aspects of the project, establishing time frames, and defining target groups. The section related to conducting the assessment itself discusses, along with other issues, selecting data collection tools and constructing questions. Promotion of the assessment and methods of encouraging participation are also considered. Since Interlibrary Loan and Document Delivery personnel are an integral part of library services, they may be called upon to support distance learning programs. Thus, topics discussed in this article will be applicable to their situations.     

Planning for Distance Learning

Abstract

The article examines the role that student support services plays in planning a distance learning program, especially the services offered by a university library. The content of the paper is based on the experience the author acquired as a member of Texas Tech University's Distance Learning Council. The Council's efforts to plan a program that will include strong support from the Library are discussed.     

Providing Leadership for Change in Distance Learning

Abstract

Change in distance learning is occurring at a rapid pace. As new technologies appear, institutions of higher education incorporate them into their course delivery options. Library services must also change to meet new user needs. This article examines the meanings of change and leadership within a distance-learning setting. After describing several strategies used by the author to lead change, the process is outlined in a checklist, with notes to especially relevant current literature. The checklist is intended to help others work through a similar process.     

Learning how to teach unfamiliar subjects: developing training on writing for publication and presentation of research for health libraries

Academic librarians with teaching responsibility have traditionally delivered training in discovering and organising information. However, in recent years, there has been an increased emphasis on supporting researchers through all stages of the research lifecycle. While librarians are ideally placed to provide training in writing for publication and presentation of research, very few in the United Kingdom appear to be doing so. However, there are clear benefits to teaching these subjects. Based on feedback from faculty on user needs, the University of Cambridge Medical Library’s training programme was expanded to include training and support in the publication and presentation of research outputs. This article recounts the process by which the new courses were developed, and the techniques used by the library’s teaching staff to gain understanding of conventions and requirements of forms of written communication with which they were unfamiliar. It also evaluates the impact of the new courses, discusses next steps and provides advice for other librarians wishing to develop similar courses. D.I.     

Embedded & Clinical Librarianship: Administrative Support for Vital New Roles

ABSTRACT

Medical libraries continue to face the challenge of demonstrating relevance and value in hard economic times. Job titles such as “embedded librarians,” “clinical medical librarian,” and “informationist” have become more common as medical libraries strive to meet patrons at the point of need within a natural workflow. This article provides an overview of such positions, including necessary skills and expertise, added value, administrative challenges, and a discussion of evaluation.     

新形势下高校图书馆的教育职能

新形势下高校图书馆的教育职能将更加强化 ,包含的内容将更加丰富 ,履行的模式将更加多样化。高校图书馆应该而且能够通过从多方位参与教学活动 ,在对学生实施通才教育、培养其多种能力、提高其人文素质等诸多方面 ,充分发挥自身的教育职能。     

Public Library Services for Veterans: Selected Brief Case Studies

Public libraries across the country design and deliver programs for military veterans and their families, often collaborating with other organizations and agencies. The examples were assembled from both general and specialized interviews with librarians, and literature and Internet searches, with summaries of programs assembled and written by multiple researchers. The specific limitations on the listing in this article are clearly outlined in the first section. Overall, however, the article provides a good introductory overview of what’s going on in veteran’s programs and services in America’s public libraries in over seventy libraries in forty states. We hope this list of what public libraries have organized or are doing will supply other public librarians with ideas on how to provide new services or enhance their existing ones.     

Future Directions for Government Information

No abstract available for this article.     

Services to Distance Learners: Planning for E-Reserves and Copyright

Abstract

This paper focuses on the outreach to over 3,000 students taking classes at over 80 locations within the State of Maine, as well as students taking classes nationally via the Web through the University of Maine System Network (UNE1). The discussion will briefly note the wide range of collections and services available through the University of Maine System's digital library and the Off-Campus Library Services Office. In particular, the discussion will center on reserve services for students at remote locations, using traditional paper copies and particularly electronic reserves, and the copyright issues that surround the e-reserve service.     

Graduate Students' Perceptions of Library Support Services for Distance Learners

Abstract

A survey was conducted in Spring 1999 to assess the library support services for distance learning within the Texas A&M University System. Graduate students actively enrolled at remote sites in one or more courses taught on the system's interactive video network were surveyed. Results of this survey provide insight for improving library services.

“People want what they want when they want it. They don't want something else, they don't want less than they want, and they certainly don't want it at some other time” (Forsha, 1992).     

The Changing Face of Distance Learning

Abstract

Change in distance learning is occurring at a rapid pace. As new technologies appear, institutions of higher education incorporate them into course delivery options. Library services must also change to meet new user needs. This article examines the process used to change a distance learning service model. After describing the strategies used by the author, a literature review analyzes the works that are especially relevant. Finally, a checklist for initiating change is provided to help others work through a similar process.     

与教师合作——高校图书馆服务开发的新路径

针对目前高校图书馆与教师之间的关系状况，提出高校图书馆应发展与教师间的合作关系，并在调查基础上分析我国高校图书馆的相关实践状况，介绍发达国家高校图书馆在与教师合作方面所做出的努力和成绩。最后指出，目前国内高校图书馆应进一步借鉴国外高校相关经验，提高合作的主动性, 增强合作的吸引力, 并面向教师进行服务设计。     

Embedded Clinical Librarianship: Bringing Medical Reference Services Bedside

This article was written by Patti Gibbons and Debra A. Werner. Patti is the Head of Collection Management at the University of Chicago Library’s Special Collections Research Center and holds a MLIS from the University of Illinois and a MA from the University of Washington. Debra is the Librarian for Science Instruction & Outreach and Biomedical Reference Librarian at the University of Chicago Library and the University of Chicago’s Pritzker School of Medicine’s Director of Library Research in Medical Education and she holds a MLIS from Dominican University. This article covers an experimental project at the University of Chicago where the library’s medical librarian teamed up with the hospital’s clinical team during patient rounds to provide real-time reference services. The project’s effectiveness was studied by a medical student who found that the embedded librarian’s services improved the clinical team’s evidence-based medical decision-making abilities without increasing the length of bedside rounds.     

工科院校图书馆开展素质教育的措施

工科院校图书馆在素质教育中应侧重于对大学生进行“人文教育”。本文探讨了在素质教育中图书馆的主要工作措施以及面临的问题和解决办法。