It's Academic

With less than two weeks away until the annual PaLA Conference we here at It’s Academic are continuing our preview of CRD-sponsored sessions available at the conference.  This week we are taking a look at a topic familiar to many of us, as well as a topic that is breaking new ground for academic libraries.

Title: There’s Nothing to Fear but Fear Itself…and Negative Faculty Feedback: Building Relationships with Faculty through Weeding.

Presenters: Ronalee Ciocco, Director of Library Services, U. Grant Miller Library/Washington & Jefferson College
Samantha Martin, Research & Collections Librarian, U. Grant Miller Library/Washington & Jefferson College
Beth Miller, Copyright & Subscription Services Librarian, U. Grant Miller Library/Washington & Jefferson College
Jacqueline Laick, Systems Librarian, U. Grant Miller Library/ Washington & Jefferson College

Abstract: To prepare for a library renovation we were tasked with reducing our library’s collection by 30%. In order to complete this project we knew that we would need to collaborate closely with our faculty to obtain their support. With more than 20 years since a significant weed had occurred, and none of the faculty or staff having participated in a weeding project of this scale, this was a new undertaking for all! Join us for this discussion-based session as we share what worked for us and what we wish we had done differently. While our session will be focused on our experience in an academic library, the importance of relationship building and clear communication when it comes to major projects will be applicable to all types of libraries.

Time: Monday, October 15th 2:00pm-3:15pm

Title: Game On! Building Successful Tabletop Game Collections in Academic Libraries

Presenter: Emily Hardesty, Instructional Services Librarian, Lycoming College

Abstract: Progressively more academic libraries are building their own tabletop game collections to cater to a booming trend amongst their patrons. Board, card, and dice games also appeal to faculty because certain games can stimulate critical thinking and promote teamwork. This session will explore how Snowden Library at Lycoming College started a tabletop game collection. Learn about how our small academic library promotes and assesses our collection, and we’ll share our plans for supporting our institution’s curriculum with games, as other libraries have already done. You’ll be able to walk away with ideas for starting a game collection at your own library.

Time: Monday, October 15th 10:30am-11:45am

Our look at PaLA Annual Conference sessions sponsored by CRD continues with a look at two sessions focused on information literacy.  The first session listed focuses on introducing audio books to students (especially those who don’t enjoy reading), while the second session dives into the idea of focusing information literacy sessions across multiple disciplines on consistent outcomes instead of specific assignments.

Title: Are You Hearing This? Introducing College Age Reluctant Readers to the Joy of Audio Books

Presenter: Annie Jansen, Reference and Instruction Librarian, Penn State Brandywine

Abstract: This session will relate the findings of a pre- and post- cohort survey of students in an entry level composition class for students with low SAT scores. The survey asked about levels of engagement with “leisure” reading texts before and after the semester, which included two book club lunches and small group discussions of a book of their choosing. The book was available on a Kindle Fire, which allowed for reading text, listening to audio, or simultaneous text and audio. Research shows that literacy skills are built using audio just as much as with visual reading. Audio is used to improve fluency, expand vocabulary, and increase motivation to interact with books. Students are able to listen to the text and follow along, but most importantly, are able to jump the hurdles that may have impeded them from reading.

Time: Sunday, October 14th 4:00pm-5:15pm

Title: Seamless Library Instruction: Scaffolding Lessons across the Curriculum

Presenters: Jill Carew, Librarian, HACC-York
Kathleen Heidecker, Librarian, HACC-Gettysburg
Andrea Metz, Librarian, HACC-Gettysburg
Allyson Valentine, Librarian, HACC-York

Abstract: Librarians strive to design unique lessons to support specific assignments and work diligently with classroom instructors to address information literacy. Yet, there are concerns that library instruction is repetitive and generic. Often classroom faculty request the same type of lesson across multiple disciplines and course levels. HACC has eight full-time and 16 adjunct librarians who provide instruction across five campuses and virtually. In 2017, librarians taught 958 faceto-face classes and were embedded in 143 virtual classes. The challenge is teaching consistently in courses across campuses and meeting the needs of a diverse student population. We addressed this challenge by building a scaffolded instruction program that connects course learning outcomes with the Association of College & Research Libraries (ACRL) framework. After listing course learning outcomes, we identified library activities corresponding with those specific outcomes. We then connected specific ACRL frameworks to our scaffolded lessons. This allowed us to look at student learning as a whole, moving instruction from assignment specific to outcome specific. It offered an opportunity for campuses to share and organize lessons and opened conversation between librarians and classroom faculty about scaffolded library instruction. Join us for this session to discuss how you can implement a similar structure at your institution.

Time: Monday, October 15th 9:00am-10:15am

With PaLA’s annual conference rapidly approaching we here at It’s Academic! want to shed some light on the upcoming conference sessions that CRD is sponsoring. We will be devoting some space to each program over the next five weeks, and if you read something you like make sure to check out the session at the annual conference! We will lead off this series with a session focusing on collaboration across colleges and the support of at-risk first-year students.

Title: Teamwork Makes the Dream Work: Inter-College Collaboration Using IL Instruction to Support At-Risk First-Year Students

Presenters: Christine Iannicelli, Instructional Technology Librarian, Ursinus College
Diane Skorina, Director of Research, Teaching & Learning Services, Ursinus College
Ronalee Ciocco, Director of Library Services, Washington and Jefferson College Samantha Martin, Research & Collections Librarian, Washington and Jefferson College

Abstract: Librarians from five colleges, funded by an Institute for Museum and Library Services Sparks! Ignition grant, collaborated to develop an information literacy instruction program based on the ACRL Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education. The project was designed to investigate the impact of information literacy instruction on the success and persistence of at-risk first year students. Representatives from the institutions will report on how they collaborated with experts and each other to develop the instructional activities and assessments and build partnerships with faculty. They will also present the research findings and their goals going forward. Presenters will then facilitate discussion around potential collaborative efforts inspired by the Framework.

Sunday, October 14th 2:30pm-3:45pm

https://library.uoregon.edu/digital-scholarship-services

Scholarly output today is not just text anymore. This statement may now seem axiomatic. If it is, however, libraries cannot afford to simply acknowledge it; they must embrace it. But not every library has access to all the latest tools for enabling digitally-oriented research, much less the capacity for such things as developing mobile apps designed to aid meta-analysis or to disseminate big data visualizations. What every library does have is the ability to consider the range of its activities, to ask what makes the most sense. Is it OA publishing? Is it makerspaces? What’s the scope of the disciplines to be served? Whose involvement is required?

A first step can be to begin a conversation around emergent forms of scholarly communication. Next discuss what service nodes should your library provide: teaching & learning, technology & tools, and/or spaces & expertise.  Then decide what resources need to be redistributed so that your library can meet the digital scholarship needs of the community you serve. And keep asking throughout: What do we want to do and why are we doing it? You may be community building by bringing disparate pockets of scholars together in new and interesting ways, or simply facilitating collaboration that exists to do more. Ongoing honest needs assessment is necessary.

Some libraries provide consultation services. Others host workshops and events. While still others build cyberinfrastructure for digital curation and preservation. There is no one correct path for every library when it comes to supporting digital scholarship. Examining what you have and what you do is critical. While simply ceding space, without committing some library involvement is a mistake.

It is essential to explain what you have and what you do. Be sure to keep a public list of activities or project involvement. Be clear about the relationship between mission and priorities. Be certain to foster stakeholder champions. Interest cannot be conjured. It needs to be intentionally fostered. Always be ready to answer the question: Why the library?

Here are a few nascent responses. If the mission of the library is to support research and promote scholarship, then today that must include e-research and digital scholarship. If the library is for everyone, then a culture of technical expertise is required given the pervasiveness of technology in our society, and not just electronic computing but even virtual reality. If we are to prepare our users for an increasingly globalized knowledge base, economy and ecosystem, then we must immerse ourselves and invest in shaping competencies and instilling best practices.

The entrée for a lot of libraries is still digital humanities. Some may still be mystified because the match seems star-crossed, and yet libraries cannot afford to ignore the signs. One short report that may help is “Building Capacity for Digital Humanities: A Framework for Institutional Planning” (https://library.educause.edu/resources/2017/5/building-capacity-for-digital-humanities-a-framework-for-institutional-planning).