It's Academic

CRD’s 2008 SPRING WORKSHOP

How to Hit a Research Homerun: Tips and Tricks from Some Heavy Hitters

Brian Mathews, The Ubiquitous Librarian blogger and User Experience Librarian at Georgia Tech, spoke about his experiences doing focus group studies. He is all about engaging library users. Tour Guides and Campus Celebrities are two of the groups that he targets to populate his focus groups. He doesn’t record, but he does make use of ice breakers and other activities to stimulate conversation. He uses 10 new undergraduates each year to be “mystery shoppers.” The thing that Brian said that resonated with me the most is that “things are always changing because the students are always changing.”

Judi Briden, Digital Librarian for Public Services and Brain & Cognitive Sciences Librarian at the , discussed some of the methods used in Studying Students: The Undergraduate Research Project at the University of Rochester. Not only did she talk about the various approaches that they used for their qualitative research, but she also shared some of the techniques that they used to stimulate creativity. Judi emphasised that “my library is not your library,” but that much of what they did could be adapted to suit any size library.

“Ask-the-Experts” Panel Session

Panelists (l to r): Joe Fennewald, Head Librarian, Penn State Hazleton; Marianne Goodfellow, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Sociology, Lebanon Valley College; Brian Mathews, User Experience Librarian, Georgia Institute of Technology.

Panelists (l to r):Judi Briden, Digital Librarian for Public Services, University of Rochester; Tim Wherry, Associate Professor and Library Director, Penn State Altoona; Nancy Dewald, Reference Librarian, Penn State Berks.

Blended Librarian Webcast: Opening New Windows of Opportunity: Creating Breakthrough Instructional Experiences

I just got an email that Brian Mathews, the Ubiquitous Librarian who will be speaking at the CRD Spring Workshop in Altoona on June 9, is a guest of the Blended Librarians Online Learning Community on Thursday, May 15, 2008 at 3 pm. EST, hosted by PA librarians Steven Bell and John Shank, co-founders.

Brian’s ‘event’ is called ‘Opening New Windows of Opportunity: Creating Breakthrough Instructional Experiences.’ Brian will “speak on ‘breakthrough opportunities’ as he shares his latest ideas on creating interactive library experiences for students. This session will feature tactics for engaging students in both the classroom as well as in digital environments. Brian will also discuss possibilities for the library and librarians to become a more integrated part of campus and will highlight his ubiquitous ‘push-out’ philosophy.”

The event is free, but advance registration is required. You also need to be a member of the Blended Librarians Online Learning Community. Here’s a link to the Web page with a link to join. Sounds interesting.