Tools of Academic Library Assessment: the User Survey

ABSTRACT

Academic libraries are taking a closer look at how well they are serving the needs of their users. As a result assessment activities become more important. In this column, the authors will focus on and describe one major tool of assessment—the user survey.     

Instruction in radio and television in twenty‐five selected universities

The mushroom growth of radio and television instruction taking place since the end of World War II has left in its wake a patch‐work guilt of academic programs in colleges and universities from coast to coast. The importance of trying to answer the question ‘Where are we going?”; indicates a need for realistic stock‐taking and thorough curriculum evaluation.

In keeping with its policy of seeking to advance the field of knowledge as to education for broadcasting, the Journal presents a special report on the current state of the curriculum which, it is hoped, will prove of value to all those interested in education for broadcasting.     

Fair Use,Copyright Law and Digitized Works

Abstract

Many changes are taking place in the copyright law of digital media. Librarians are encouraged to review their current library policies, procedures and practices to determine if they are in compliance with or in violation of these recent changes.     

To watch or to read? The respective influence of televised political debates and media debate coverage on citizen learning

Courses: Media and Politics, Political Communication, Political Rhetoric, Media Effects.

Objective: By taking part in a classroom activity, students will explore how cognitive frames and media frames play a role in learning from political debates.     

The Role of an Indigenous Nations Library Program and the Advancement of Indigenous Knowledge

ABSTRACT

The Indigenous Nations Library Program (INLP) at the University of New Mexico is entering its twelfth year of program history and developing a unique venture into Indigenous librarianship. Rather than taking a passive role of information literacy and content support, INLP is participating as an active cognitive participant in Indigenous knowledge contextualization. INLP has done this in various ways including designating culturally sensitive learning spaces, collection development, and Indigenous knowledge promotion.     

Digital Democratic Voices: Intersecting Student Research,Twitter, and Presidential Debates

Courses: Mass Communication and Public Opinion, Political Communication

Objectives: Often, there are media events (e.g., local and national elections, the Super Bowl) that match up with what we hope to accomplish in a particular class. The purpose of this semester-length project for students was threefold: (1) to read and comprehend literature related to communication studies, media, and political strategy; (2) to collect and analyze data; and (3) to participate in civic engagement by taking part in Presidential DebateWatch events, both as an audience member and through the use of Twitter.     

The rhetoric of campus architecture

Courses: Rhetorical Criticism, Persuasion, Rhetoric and Architecture, Visual Rhetoric.

Objectives: This single class activity is designed to raise student awareness about the rhetorical nature of architecture and campus planning; to shift student perceptions away from taking their physical surroundings as “a given” and toward seeing them as the product of strategic human choices and decision making; to foster a spirit of curiosity about how buildings can influence our emotions and behavior; and to reduce student uncertainty about unfamiliar course content.     

Is RFID Right for Your Library?

ABSTRACT

RFID technology is taking off in libraries at an increasingly rapid pace. Though there are few libraries employing this technology today, the benefits are great. The cost is still prohibitive however. This article discusses some of the benefits and drawbacks to RFID to provide information for librarians that will be useful when deciding if the technology should be employed.     

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.     

Changes in the Courthouse-Electronic Records,Filings and Court Dockets

Abstract

This article describes the electronic revolution that is currently taking place within court systems across the nation. Digital archiving of documents is becoming a well-established practice. Electronic filing of documents is gathering momentum as a viable method of conducting the daily business of the courts. Although court functions remain relatively the same, the manner in which their daily business is being affected is changing dramatically.     

The consequences of framing digital humanities tools as easy to use

Abstract

This article examines the recurring ways in which some of the most popular DH tools are presented as easy to use. It argues that attempts to couch powerful tools in what is often false familiarity, directly undermines the goal of encouraging scholarly innovation and risk taking. The consequences of framing digital tools as either easy or more difficult shapes the relationship between librarians and the students and faculty whose research they support, and, more broadly, the role and viability of libraries as spaces devoted to skill acquisition.     

Tweet for support,blog for peace

Courses: Intercultural Communication

Objectives: Students will achieve the following learning outcomes: (1) demonstrate knowledge of intercultural systems by identifying roots of intercultural communication conflict, (2) address intercultural problems by taking action within the context of their own lives, (3) collaborate with peers to problem solve based on voices from Twitter, assigned academic resources and intercultural competence theories in class, and (4) assemble and deliver their plan through a blog and 15-minute presentation.     

From service to synergy: Embedding librarians in a digital humanities project

ABSTRACT

Definitions of the term digital humanities vary, and its place in the academic library is still being explored. Yet exploration is indeed taking place, at large research institutions as well as, increasingly, at smaller colleges and undergraduate libraries. This article details an innovative digital humanities project carried out at an institution of 2,300 undergraduates, where a creative institutional partnership was the key to its success. The project has provided an outstanding opportunity to address the ACRL Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education, while embracing the growing trend on many campuses to showcase student research.     

Lessons from a Library Fire

ABSTRACT

In August, 1992, during a two-week hiatus between summer school and fall semester, Illinois State University's Milner Library suffered an arson fire. Nine days later, the library opened its doors and offered complete services. Although recovery was quick and damage minimal, staff learned the value of what may prove useful to others: revising disaster plans, taking proactive steps to secure building safety, on-going staff training, and jointly planning recovery actions with maintenance personnel.     

Durational differences in speech production under normal and delayed auditory feedback

The relationship between an individual's social perspective‐taking capacity and the complexity of that individual's dimensions for construing the behavior and character of others was examined within a general constructivist framework. A significant correlation was found supporting the hypothesis that the more differentiated the construction system of the individual the better he/she should be able to construe the perspectives of others in social situations. Evidence is also offered demonstrating the validity and reliability of the Social Perspective Task as a research instrument for examining the mode of construal of the individual.     

An Amicable Divorce: Programmatic Derivation of Faceted Data from Library of Congress Subject Headings for Music

Abstract

Music catalogers have embraced in current cataloging the flexibility, intuitiveness, and expressivity afforded by the Library of Congress’s new faceted vocabularies. In order to realize the full benefits to discovery these vocabularies offer, however, methods for programmatically assigning faceted terms retrospectively to existing metadata for music resources are required in order to mitigate the costs of manual enhancement of legacy data. This article describes efforts to repurpose existing Library of Congress Subject Headings as faceted data, taking advantage of recent developments in the MARC 21 formats. Limitations inherent to this process and ideas for future directions are described.     

The operation of congruity in an oral communication situation

The principle of congruity was proposed several years ago as an explanation for certain behavioral changes in communication situations. In this article the principle of congruity is offered as an explanation for attitude change in an oral communication situation. A predictive model is developed, taking a listener's attitude toward the speaker, the speech topic, the speaker's delivery, and the stylistic treatment of the speech topic as the significant variables in determining what the listener's attitude toward the speaker and the speech topic will be after listening to the speech. An experiment to test the predictive model is reported. The results generally support a principle of congruity in this type of oral communication situation.     

A note on “Clozentropy: A procedure for testing English language proficiency of foreign students”

This study investigates whether attributions made while observing compliance‐gaining interactions always are a matter of perspective. We propose that Construct Differentiation moderates the effects of perspective on causal judgments, such that highly differentiated individuals are more responsive than less differentiated persons to information from interaction that their psychological perspective makes salient. Participants viewed three videotaped compliance‐gaining interactions, one each while taking the perspective of the message source, the message target, and a third‐party observer. Then they rated causes for the target's actions and the target's intent. As predicted, Construct Differentiation was positively associated with intrapersonal variability in ratings of causal judgments across the three perspectives, and positively associated with actor/observer differences when taking the perspective of message source versus target. Implications for interpersonal communication, constructivism, and attribution theories are discussed.     

Cover Me,I’m going in: Exploring the needs of student veterans

Abstract

The number of military veterans taking advantage of post-911 educational benefits has increased significantly, and institutions of higher education have responded by creating veteran-friendly campuses. Accordingly, academic librarians have engaged in proactive, ongoing conversations about providing services to this unique student population. The authors went on reconnaissance to assess the needs of student veterans and their response to a recently created veterans lounge space in the library. The information gathered from this survey can help provide insight and possible strategies to improve library outreach and services.     

The Limitations of Polyethylene Glycols: Some Advice and Warning

Abstract

Over a wide range of the higher illumination levels the eye has virtually the same capability of detecting small colour differences. The level at which this capability begins to deteriorate is a useful criterion of the minimum desirable level of illumination for a picture gallery. Experiments are described in which this minimum level was determined for a number of normal observers (picture restorers and other experts). The results indicate 30 lux as a practical lower limit of illumination from the point of view of colour discrimination, taking into consideration the less-experienced viewers of pictures and assuming proper adaptation and absence of glare.