Multimedia Bootcamp

Abstract

As students entering college, graduate, and professional schools have increased needs and preferences for multimedia in instruction, faculty need to learn appropriate techniques for integrating technology into their educational duties. Instructional designers at the Claude Moore Health Sciences Library at the University of Virginia developed and implemented aMultimedia Bootcamp to help faculty and their support staff develop the skills necessary to integrate technology into teaching.     

Building Alliances:

College librarians are convinced that using the library is an essential part of a college education, a conviction not necessarily shared by faculty. Integrating library research into courses can be especially difficult at community colleges where faculty have heavy course loads and the curricula are very practical. However, at Hudson Valley Community College, library skills are now part of the College Objectives as well as the English Composition syllabus. Library assignments occur in most general education courses and are the means for adding general education concepts to courses in technology, sciences, business, etc. The librarians have found that by building alliances with the faculty, they can take advantage of opportunities to build library skills into the curricula.     

Interlibrary Loan Internet Accessible Database (ILLiad)

Abstract

One year after the implementation of the Interlibrary Loan Internet Accessible Database (ILLiad) software, a patron satisfaction Interlibrary Loan user service study was conducted at Ellender Memorial Library, Nicholls State University, by the Interlibrary Loan Librarian. A questionnaire with sixteen questions was distributed to faculty, staff, graduate and undergraduate students. The data received was entered into Microsoft Excel and converted into the SPSS system. Frequency tables were produced. The outcome of the user study was recorded in a PowerPoint presentation with slides of statistical data graphs. The ILLiad user study produced a high rating of the ILLiad system and confirms that sixty percent of the participants were faculty members who are committed to research and in need of accessing additional research resources for their writing, presenting and publishing of professional papers. Faculty and students have shown their gratitude to Interlibrary Loan Services, confirming the main purpose of interlibrary loans is for research and degree programs. Many institutions provide this privilege only for their faculty and graduate students. Ellender Memorial Library encourages undergraduate students who are striving for excellence in their studies to use Interlibrary Loan Services. It can be surmised that the ILLiad electronic and web-based services are more efficient, and that patrons are more computer literate than ever before and favor the new technology and advanced services in our institution.     

To Infinity and Beyond: Reducing Textbook Costs Through Librarian/Faculty Collaborations

As subject and distance learning librarians, we have a special interest in supporting our faculty and their needs as they explore alternative and more affordable textbook options for their students. In an increasingly digital environment, there are a wealth of resources available at little or no cost to students. Unfortunately, finding these resources can be challenging and time consuming for faculty. This is where librarians step in. Through careful planning and collaboration with faculty, we can help transition course reading to online and open resources. Librarians can assist in this process by helping faculty identify appropriate resources, helping integrate resources into online learning environments, and providing support for student access to materials. This paper will describe this process from start to finish, utilizing our experience supporting a faculty member with an Ethnobotany course textbook as it was transitioned to an online textbook option.     

Just the Facts: An Examination of E-Book Usage by Business Students and Faculty

Business students and faculty expect the electronic delivery of content within their multiple disciplinary subject areas. The speed of acceptance and the rate of migration from print to electronic sources within the various business disciplines outpaces the acceptance rates in the humanities and other social sciences. Business students and faculty exhibit information-seeking behaviors that are unique to the practice-oriented nature of a business education. Electronic resources re-enforce this information-seeking behavior. The technology utilized in the creation of e-books enables business students and faculty to successfully locate specific data, both textual and numeric within the resource, further reinforcing their behaviors and accelerating the demand for additional e-books. Business students and faculty use e-books as reference books.     

Information-seeking behavior and use of social science faculty studying stateless nations: a case study

The information-seeking behavior of social science faculty studying the Kurds was assessed using a questionnaire, citation analysis, and follow-up inquiry. Two specific questions were addressed: how these faculty locate relevant government information and what factors influence their seeking behavior and use of such information. Results show that besides using traditional methods for locating relevant government information, social science faculty studying the Kurds use the World Wide Web (Web) and electronic mail (e-mail) for that purpose, suggesting that these faculty are aware of, and utilize, new information technology to support their research. Results also show that the information-seeking behavior of social science faculty studying the Kurds is influenced by factors similar to those influencing other social science faculty. Moreover, results also show that accessing the needed materials is a major information-seeking activity that should be added to David Ellis' behavioral model, and that faculty examined here employ somewhat a more elaborate “differentiating” information-seeking activity than the one described in the model. Some elements of interdisciplinarity of Kurdish studies as a field of research have been discovered, however, further research is required to verify that. Implications for library services and suggestions for future research are presented.     

When Faculty Behave Like Students

ABSTRACT

Each semester, the instructional designers at the University of Central Florida facilitate an innovative course for faculty only. IDL 6543 is an eight-week professional development course that prepares faculty to teach online.

IDL 6543 models how to teach online using a combination of seminars, labs, consultations, and Web-based instruction. A librarian was typically invited to a lab session to present information about the library's online resources. Because there was so much information, this portion of the course was migrated to the online environment in the fall semester of 2004. The in-person presentation was transformed into an online learning module for the faculty to read and participate in at their own pace.

This poster session will address collaborating with instructional designers, creating an online module of library information aimed at teaching faculty, moderating a faculty discussion of library resources, and comparing the in-person training session with an online module.     

Career Levels and Their Effect on Scholarly Output and Impact of Women Scientists

In this article we examined the scholarly output and impact of 81 women scientist at the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences at Mount Sinai. The group was divided into three career level sub-groups based on the first year of publication of each scientist. We examined the number of publications, citations, readership and social media attention per each group. Our findings show that although senior faculty have more publications and overall citations, junior faculty receive more citations and more readership per paper. We also found that different career level faculty members receive different social media mentions. Mid-career faculty see more tweets that mention their research while senior faculty get more likes, shares and clicks via Facebook.     

Teaching the teachers to teach information literacy: A literature review

As part of the ongoing debates over the best methods for teaching information literacy, some librarians have argued for a “teach the teachers” strategy. In this approach, librarians concentrate some of their instructional energies on teaching disciplinary faculty to teach information literacy. In this paper, multiple examples of “teach the teachers” efforts are reviewed, in order to provide insight into the impact that taking this approach might have on librarians, faculty, and students. Results indicate that the “teach the teachers” approach shows promise as one method by which librarians can support the integration of information literacy into the curriculum, but that more assessment is needed to determine the long-term impact of such initiatives on faculty teaching practices and students' information literacy development.     

Visual Tutorials for Point-of-Need Instruction in Online Courses

ABSTRACT

This paper will discuss a method of incorporating demonstrations into online information and technology literacy courses. The demonstrations are designed to increase the visual component and to address point-of-need questions and problems. Also discussed will be experimentations with this method in other library services, such as electronic reference services, one-shot course-related instruction, subject research guides, and outreach to faculty for their own professional development and as a way to incorporate information and technology literacy in their courses. Recent developments in tutorial software have made it possible to quickly create brief demonstration modules to visually illustrate information literacy concepts and research tools. The primary example presented here is the incorporation of short, task-oriented demonstrations into lesson modules, answers to student questions, and assignment instructions and feedback in an online information and technology literacy course. Initial comments from students and instructors indicate high satisfaction with this method.     

Technology Help 2.0: Solutions for the Information Commons

ABSTRACT

Access services librarians at Southeastern Louisiana University's Sims Memorial Library observed patrons' technology help needs and created an interactive training manual that empowers library faculty and staff to provide public service technology help in the Information Commons. The new training manual takes technology help in the academic library to the next level, “Technology Help 2.0,” because it allows librarians to learn about technology by directly observing the needs of patrons, develop new skills at their own pace, and adapt to the constantly evolving technology demands of the Information Commons.     

A pilot study of the effects of faculty status for medical librarians in the United States

Objectives:Within many institutions, there are debates over whether medical librarians should be classified as faculty or professional staff, a distinction that may have considerable effect on the perception of librarians within their local institutions. This study is a pilot exploration of how faculty status may affect the professional experiences of academic medical librarians within their local institutions.Methods:Surveys were sent to 209 medical librarians listed as having some instructional function at Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) accredited medical institutions in the United States. Survey responses were captured using Qualtrics survey tool and analyzed for frequencies and associations using SPSS version 27.Results:Sixty-four medical librarians at academic medical institutions completed the survey developed for this study. Of the respondents, 60.9% indicated that librarians at their institution have faculty status, while 71.9% believe that librarians at their institution should have faculty status. Ninety percent of librarians with faculty status reported that they are expected to generate scholarly materials, compared to 28% of those without faculty status.Conclusions:Many medical libraries offer faculty status to librarians. While many medical librarians are active in instruction, research, and other activities normally associated with faculty status, it is not clear if faculty status impacts how librarians are perceived by other health care workers within their institutions.     

Participation of Teaching Faculty in Library Book Selection

Teaching faculty members have expertise in their specialized areas, and their participation in library book selection is very important for academic librarians in their collection building. Yet, while some members of the faculty participate actively in library book selection, many others select only a few books or make no selection at all. This study at a Midwestern university shows that years of teaching, age, number of graduate courses taught, publication activities, and professional contacts of the teaching faculty are significantly correlated to the degree of their native participation in library book selection.     

FROM THE EDITOR

Abstract

This paper reports on a survey of faculty perceptions of the role of the library in online distance education. The study is second in a series of related studies exploring The Pennsylvania State University's library services to patrons at a distance. In 2004, faculty of the World Campus (Penn State's online distance education program) were surveyed on their perceptions of e-learners' research needs. The faculty responded to questions on how their students access research information for their courses, whether they require their students to use the library as part of their courses, and their expectations of the library as an academic support service. The survey revealed that 60% of the responding faculty supply all of the required research information to students in their courses, and 62% do not require students to use the library as part of their course(s). The study concludes that online, distance-education faculty members have minimal to moderate expectations of the library in supporting their teaching and their students' research needs. Moreover, the study shows a significant lack of faculty awareness of existing library services and resources available to the e-learning community.     

Reference Education and the New Technology

This paper discusses some current concerns about education for reference services in this time of rapid technological change. Emphasis is placed on issues raised by the development of optical disc technology, particularly in the areas of ethics, end-user searching, library use ~nstruction,a nd user behavior. The results of a survey of reference faculty at ALA-accredited schools are presented to set the backdrop and to provide information on the ways that schools are adapting to and integrating the new technologies into the core reference curriculum.     

Business Faculty's Attitudes: Open Access,Disciplinary Repositories,and Institutional Repositories

Business faculty were surveyed to determine their attitudes toward institutional repositories, disciplinary repositories, and open access journals. The majority of faculty was unaware of institutional repositories at their local institutions. However, approximately one third are using disciplinary repositories and are receiving encouragement from their departments to do so. Likewise, many faculty are unaware of open access journals. Open access journals are seen as lacking prestige and being lower quality publications in the business field due to the lack of prestigious publishers and editors. Many faculty believe their prestige would fall if they published in an open access journal.     

Challenges of getting faculty status: Perception of university librarians in Pakistan

Abstract

Objective:To find out the university head librarians’ perceptions about the issues in getting faculty status.

Methodology:A qualitative research design was used to explore the issue through personal and telephonic interviews with 15 chief librarians of 18 university libraries located in Islamabad and Rawalpindi. The textual data was content-analyzed and coded. The emerged themes and subthemes have been presented with the frequency of their occurrences. The findings have been supported by the selected quotations of the interviewees.

Findings:A majority of the librarians had vague understanding of the notion of faculty status. Almost all of them desired for granting faculty status to the university librarians. However, their opinion was divided on the prerequisites for faculty status. Most of them supported the same criteria for employment and promotion of faculty librarians, as is used in case of their teaching faculty counterparts. The study has identified that the main barriers in getting faculty status are the librarians themselves, lacking preparedness in terms of qualifications and research output.

Implications:The study brings into light both the possibilities of granting faculty status to the university librarians and barriers in this regard. Besides, the findings though extracted from a small number of respondents, may be of interest to other countries in the region.

Originality/value:This exploratory investigation identifies barriers in getting faculty status and is the first ever study on the subject in the local literature.

Conclusion:Faculty status will help in improving visibility, image and respect of librarians. Therefore, there is a need to prepare university librarians for faculty status, and to struggle for getting it.     

Online journals' impact on the citation patterns of medical faculty.

PURPOSE: The purpose was to determine the impact of online journals on the citation patterns of medical faculty. This study looked at whether researchers were more likely to limit the resources they consulted and cited to those journals available online rather than those only in print. SETTING: Faculty publications from the college of medicine at a large urban university were examined for this study. The faculty publications from a regional medical college of the same university were also examined in the study. The number of online journals available for faculty, staff, and students at this institution has increased from an initial core of 15 online journals in 1998 to over 11,000 online journals in 2004. METHODOLOGY: Searches by author affiliation were performed in the Web of Science to find all articles written by faculty members in the college of medicine at the selected institution. Searches were conducted for the following years: 1993, 1996, 1999, and 2002. Cited references from each faculty-authored article were recorded, and the corresponding cited journals were coded into four categories based on their availability at the institution in this study: print only, print and online, online only, and not owned. Results were analyzed using SPSS. RESULTS: The number of journals cited per year continued to increase from 1993 to 2002. The results did not indicate that researchers were more likely to cite online journals or were less likely to cite journals only in print. At the regional location where the number of print-only journals was minimal, use of the print-only journals did decrease in 2002, although not significantly. CONCLUSION/DISCUSSION: It is possible that electronic access to information (i.e., online databases) has had a positive impact on the number of articles faculty will cite. Results of this study suggest, at this point, that faculty are still accessing the print-only collection, at least for research purposes, and are therefore not sacrificing quality for convenience.     

Serving Community Faculty Through a Dedicated Liaison

Community-based medical schools rely heavily on volunteer faculty to provide medical education. Volunteer faculty consist of health care professionals, primarily physicians, who commit to educating medical students and residents. While these volunteer faculty are typically unpaid, many medical schools provide some benefits to them for volunteering their time. One such benefit, although rarely noted in library or medical education literature, is access to academic medical library resources and services. This article highlights a library services liaison model dedicated to the support of volunteer faculty at a community-based medical school.