Diana K. Wakimoto

Information Literacy Instruction Assessment and Improvement through Evidence Based Practice: A Mixed Method Study

Objective— This study explored first-year students’ learning and satisfaction in a required information literacy course. The study asked how students understand connections between themselves and information literacy in terms of power, society, and personal relevance to assess if students’ understanding of information literacy increased after taking the course. Student satisfaction with the course also was measured. Methods—The study used pre- and post tests and focus group session transcripts which were coded and analyzed to determine student learning and satisfaction during the regular 2008-2009 academic year at California State University, East Bay. Results— Many students entered the course without any concept of information literacy; however, after taking the course they found information literacy to be personally relevant and were able to articulate connections among information, power, and society. The majority of students were satisfied with the course. The results from analyzing the pre- and post-tests were supported by the findings from the focus group sessions. Conclusion— The results of this study are supported by other studies that show the importance of personal relevancy to student learning. In order to fully assess information literacy instruction and student learning, librarians should consider incorporating ways of assessing student learning beyond testing content knowledge and levels of competency.

Google Scholar Retrieves Twice as Many Relevant Citations as PubMed and Provides Greater Full-Text Access for Quick, Clinical Nephrology Searches

Objective – To compare recall and precision of results retrieved by searches in PubMed and Google Scholar for clinical nephrology literature. Design – Survey questionnaire, comparative. Setting – Canada. Subjects – Practicing nephrologists with average age of 48 years and who have practiced nephrology for an average of 15 years. Methods – The researchers identified 100 systematic reviews in renal therapy published between 2001 and 2009. The primary studies cited in the systematic reviews served as the reference standard for relevant articles; 1,574 unique citations were identified and used to measure recall and precision. The researchers created a unique clinical question from each of the objective statements of systematic reviews and sent one question to a random sample of practicing nephrologists to determine the search strings they would use to search for clinical literature; the researchers collected 100 usable responses. Using the search string in both Google Scholar and PubMed, the researchers analyzed the first 40 retrieved results in each for recall of relevant literature and precision. The researchers also analyzed the availability of full-text articles in each database. A pilot study to test the methodology preceded the main study. Results – Google Scholar’s recall for the first 40 records was 21.9% and PubMed was 10.9%. Each database contained 78% of the relevant literature/reference standard set from the systematic reviews. However, 15% of the articles were in neither database. Precision results were similar (7.6% for Google Scholar and 5.6% for PubMed). Google Scholar had more full-text available at 15% of articles versus 5% for PubMed. Google Scholar and PubMed had similar numbers of relevant articles when all retrieved records were analyzed, but Google Scholar still provided more access to free full-text articles. Conclusion – Google Scholar provides better recall and provides more access to full-text than PubMed; however, search strings provided by nephrologists used in both databases failed to retrieve 80% of relevant articles. Therefore improving nephrologists’ ability to effectively search could enhance their ability to implement research in practice helping patients. The researchers suggest future studies should be conducted to determine the generalizability of the findings on recall and precision in other medical disciplines.

Experiencing archives at universities

Purpose – This paper aims to explore the varying ways in which academic archivists in the USA experience archives, how these experiences compare to those of academic librarians and how we can use these findings to improve communication and collaboration. Design/methodology/approach – Using a phenomenographic research approach, academic archivists were interviewed and the transcripts were examined to develop categories reflecting varying experiences. Findings – There are three different ways of experiencing archives: as organizational records, as archival enterprise and as connection. The connection category is a more complex way of experiencing archives as it incorporates the aspects of the other two categories as well as the awareness of archives connecting people to their histories. Research limitations/implications – This study is limited to academic archivists in the USA. Practical implications – Understanding that there are different ways of experiencing archives means that information professionals ...

Librarians and Graphic Design: Preparation, Roles, and Desired Support

Librarians often become de facto graphic designers for their libraries, taking responsibility for designing signage, handouts, brochures, web pages, and many other promotional, instructional, and wayfinding documents. However, the majority of librarians with graphic design responsibilities are not trained as graphic designers. This exploratory research study surveyed librarians to determine their graphic design training and preparation for their assumed design duties as well as the support and training they desire. Results from this study can be used by library administrators when providing support for librarians with graphic design duties.

Public Library Clients Prefer Formal Classes for Initial Training on Library’s Online Resources and Informal, On-Demand Assistance for Further Training

Abstract Objective – To discover public library clients’ needs and preferences for modes of training on the use of the Internet and the libraries’ online resources and to apply these findings to improve training offered by public library staff. Design – Multiple exploratory case study. Setting – Two public libraries in New South Wales, Australia: a regional library (Mudgee Branch of the Mid-Western Regional Council Library Service) and a metropolitan library (Marrickville Central Library). Subjects – A total of 24 public library clients. The participants were split evenly between the two libraries, with 12 from the Mudgee Branch and 12 from the Marrickville Central. The respondents were further subdivided into two groups based on age (35 to 44 years old and 65 or older) and evenly distributed by sex within the groups. Methods – This study used naturalistic inquiry to frame the multiple exploratory case study of two public libraries. Ruthven used maximum variation sampling to guide the selection of participants. Library staff helped the researcher to identify possible participants at Marrickville, while the researcher advertised for participants at Mudgee Library and at an Internet/database course taught at the Mudgee Business Enterprise Centre. She used snowball sampling to find additional participants at both sites. Ruthven conducted semi-structured interviews with the participants, with questions covering their preferences, recommendations, and needs for online resource training. The data from the interviews and search logs were analyzed using inductive data analysis. Main Results – Participants preferred small group, face-to-face, formalized instruction for initial training on online resources. For further training, participants preferred individualized assistance and immediate support instead of formal classes. They noted a lack of training opportunities and a lack of help from library staff as sources of frustration when trying to learn to use online resources at the public libraries. Conclusion – Public library staff should offer formalized classes for those beginning to learn about using online resources, and focus on ad hoc, individualized assistance for more advanced learners. Since offering this type of instructional program is dependent on staff knowledge and staff availability, library staff members need to be trained in the use of online resources and classroom presentation skills.

Library graphic design best practices and approval processes

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore graphic design best practices and approval processes used by librarians. Design/methodology/approach – This paper used an online, qualitative survey to collect data on librarians’ design processes and best practices. The responses were reviewed to determine categories and themes of librarians’ design processes and best practices to gain an understanding of the state of graphic design in libraries. Findings – The majority of the respondents reported that there were no formal guidelines, design committees or approval processes at their libraries. While some librarians were aware of and used graphic design best practices, many respondents were unsure of what constituted a best practice in graphic design. Research limitations/implications – The paper was exploratory and the respondents cannot be said to be representative of all librarians and, therefore, generalizations to all librarians are not possible. Practical implications – Findings may help librarians w...

Children Display Seven Distinct Roles When Searching Online at Home

Objective – To explore children’s Internet searching at home in order to make recommendations to designers, researchers, educators, and parents on how to assist children in becoming search literate through understanding children’s search roles. Design – Qualitative, exploratory study. Setting – Children’s homes in the urban areas of Maryland, Virginia, Delaware, and Pennsylvania. Subjects – 83 children (28 children were age 7, 29 were age 9, and 26 were age 11). 41 of the children were female and 42 were male. Parents of the children were also included in the study. 77% of the parent interviews were carried out with mothers, 15% were with fathers, and 8% were with both parents together. Methods – The authors conducted qualitative interviews both with the parents and the children. Parents were interviewed first and the interviews were audiotaped and transcribed. The interviews covered computer rules, children’s experience in searching, searching habits, and areas of frustration. Interviews with the children covered questions about frequency of computer use and reasons for searching. These interviews were video recorded and transcribed. After the interview, the children were asked to complete five search tasks, which were video recorded, and were asked if they had successfully completed the task and why they clicked the link results. The researchers also took notes throughout the interviews and search tasks. The researchers were able to analyze 80 transcripts from the children and 75 transcripts from the parents. The interview transcripts were coded using inductive, qualitative coding starting with open coding to identify categories of children’s search roles. The transcripts from the children interviews were coded three times by one researcher and the coding was verified by another researcher. The transcripts then were coded again using the code book developed by the first researcher. The researchers completed axial and selective coding to refine their search role categories. The researchers also analyzed the data in order to identify behaviours that distinguished the categories from each other. The same coding process was used for the parent interview transcripts. The results from the analysis of the parent interviews were used to verify findings from the children transcripts. Main Results – Children searching at home show seven different searching roles: developing, domain-specific, power, nonmotivated, distracted, rule-bound, and visual, with each search role being delineated by specific behaviors and/or abilities. Triggers for searching change as children age, with younger children searching based on personal interests while older children search for school-related information. Children rely on summaries shown on the results page, as well as familiarity with known websites, in deciding which links to click. Children are interested in both moving and still image results, with visual searchers, power, and distracted searchers frequently mentioning images in their interviews. Power searchers, those with the ability to use keywords and with an understanding of search engines, discussed less influence on their searches than others. Parents have more influence over younger children while school has more influence over older children. Parents helped and influenced their children’s searching in varied ways including demonstrating and offering advice for searching and setting rules for searching. Children often reported frustration with their searches, which was also reported by parents. Most of the children were unable to complete the complex search task as they were unable to separate the query into multiple parts. Few gender differences in searching were found, although researchers reported that games were a trigger for boys more often than girls, and boys declined to search more than girls. Girls were more influenced in their searching than boys and stopped searching due to boredom more often than boys. Conclusion – The authors suggest that the findings can help search engine designers, researchers, educators, and parents to assist children in becoming search literate. Designers should enable scaffolded, assisted searching in order to help searchers, especially with separating out multiple parts of a complex question and with encouraging fact-checking. Educators and parents can coordinate their efforts to more effectively help children overcome searching frustrations and challenges. Researchers could replicate the study to validate the search roles discovered by the authors and also extend the study to focus on searching in regards to gender and use of other devices, such as smartphones and tablets.

Ethnographic Methods are Becoming More Popular in LIS Research

A Review of: Khoo, M., Rozaklis, L., & Hall, C. (2012). A survey of the use of ethnographic methods in the study of libraries and library users. Library & Information Science Research, 34(2), 82-91. doi: 10.1016/j.lisr.2011.07.010 Objective – To determine the number of ethnographic studies of libraries and library users, where these studies are published, how researchers define ethnography, and which methods are used by the researchers. Design – Literature survey. Setting – The researchers are located at Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of America. Subjects – 81 ethnographic studies of libraries and library users. Methods – The researchers conducted a literature survey, starting with a pilot study of selected library and information science (LIS) journals, to find ethnographic studies and to determine key terms in research using ethnographic methods. The researchers used these terms in the main study to identify more LIS research using ethnographic methods. The same journals used in the pilot study were then searched online as part of the main study, along with three LIS databases (LISA, LISTA, LLIS). The researchers also searched the open web in order to capture grey literature in the LIS field. All literature found, including those sources found through secondary citations, was screened for inclusion in coding. Studies with non-LIS settings were excluded as were studies that utilized non-ethnographic methods. The screened studies were coded to determine categories of methods used. Main Results – The researchers found 81 articles, reports, and conference presentations that used ethnographic methods, which they compiled into a bibliography. This is an order of magnitude larger than that found by previous literature surveys. Of these studies, 51.9% were published after 2005. The majority (64.2%) of the studies were published in journals. Many studies did not provide clear or detailed definitions of ethnography and the definitions that were provided varied widely. The researchers identified themes which had been used to support ethnographic methods as a research methodology. These included using ethnographic methods to gain richer insight into the subjects’ experiences, to collect authentic data on the subjects’ experiences, and to allow flexibility in the methods chosen. They also included the use of multiple data collection methods to enable data triangulation. The five main method categories found in the literature were: observation, interviews, fieldwork, focus groups, and cultural probes. Conclusion – Based on the relatively large number of ethnographic studies identified when compared to previous literature surveys and on the upward trend of publication of ethnographic research over the past five years, the authors noted that their overview study (and resultant compilation of literature from disparate sources) was important and time-saving for researchers who use or are beginning to use ethnography as a research methodology.

Decline in Reference Transactions with Few Questions Referred to Librarian when the Reference Desk is Staffed by a Paraprofessional

A Review of: Dinkins, D., & Ryan, S. M. (2010). Measuring referrals: The use of paraprofessionals at the reference desk. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 36(4), 279-286. Objective — To determine the type and percentage of questions referred to a librarian by a paraprofessional (i.e., an individual without an MLIS) staffing the reference desk, whether the percentage of referrals would decrease over time, and any consequences from having a paraprofessional rather than a librarian staffing the desk. Design — Quantitative analysis of reference desk transaction statistics. Setting — Reference desk at the main library of Stetson University, a private university in the United States of America with approximately 2,500 FTE (full-time equivalent) students. Subjects — A total of 486 reference desk transactions recorded by a paraprofessional staffing the reference desk during the Fall and Spring semesters of the 2008-2009 academic year. Methods — The first year that he worked in the Library at Stetson University, a paraprofessional recorded all reference desk transactions during his shift from 10:00am to 12:00pm, four days a week, for the Fall and Spring semesters of the 2008-2009 academic year. This paraprofessional, with computer expertise, received “relatively minimal” (p. 281) training on “reference desk policies and procedures… the use of the catalogue and the subscription databases” (p. 281). For each transaction, the paraprofessional categorized the question as “direction,” “reference,” or “machine.” He was instructed to contact a librarian if he could not answer a reference question. The paraprofessional also completed a questionnaire regarding his level of comfort answering questions and his thoughts on the training at the end of his first year of staffing the reference desk. Main Results — In the Fall semester, 9.5% of all reference desk transactions were referred to a librarian. This decreased to 4.2% of the total transactions during the Spring semester. The percentage of reference questions referred to a librarian in the Fall semester was 21.9% and only 5.0% in the Spring semester. There was a 49.5% decrease in the number of reference desk transactions during the paraprofessional’s hours on the desk compared to the previous year when the desk was staffed by professional librarians. Overall, reference desk transactions for all hours decreased 4.1% compared to the previous year. The results from the questionnaire on his experiences at the reference desk showed that the paraprofessional was satisfied with his training, comfortable with referring questions to the librarians, did not use the print reference collection extensively, thought the “interface for searching the library’s catalogue/databases is dated at best” (p. 285), and felt that being close in age to many of the students was a disadvantage while working at the reference desk. Conclusion — The authors concluded that staffing the reference desk with a paraprofessional was a success and that the “referrals to librarians had been made appropriately and when necessary” (p. 285). The results corroborated previous studies that showed only a “small percentage of reference desk transactions would need to be referred to a librarian” (p. 285). In part, because of the success of staffing the desk with a paraprofessional, the authors suggest that reference desk staffing configurations at academic libraries should be reevaluated. Librarians freed from duties at the physical reference desk could use this time to “develop virtual reference services” and expand information literacy programs (p. 286). To explain the decrease in number of transactions during the paraprofessional’s time on the reference desk, the authors surmised four possibilities: patrons’ reluctance to ask questions of someone new on the desk, their dissatisfaction with the paraprofessional’s answers, the similarity in age between the paraprofessional and the “age of the student population” (p. 284), or the librarians being more conscientious in tallying every transaction. However, the authors doubted that users perceived the paraprofessional’s answers as “less satisfactory” as “patrons likely got a higher level of service on computer-related queries from the computer science-trained paraprofessional” (p. 284). Computer-related queries, coded as “machine” transactions, formed the majority of queries answered by the paraprofessional.

Collections, connections and change: differences in experiencing archives

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to describe different collective ways that archivists, librarians and those with dual-roles experience archives. Design/methodology/approach Using a phenomenographic approach, a total of 24 librarians, archivists and dual-role individuals were interviewed, and interview transcripts were analyzed to create categories that described the varying ways in which archives are experienced. Findings Librarians experienced archives in four ways: historical resources, preserving history, preserved access and political. Archivists experienced archives in four ways: accessible collections, connection, collaboration and stewardship. Dual-role individuals experienced archives in five ways: collections, preserved access, progress, connection and knowledge creators. There are variations among and within each group on how archives are experienced. However, there is a significant overlap in many categories in terms of access, preservation, use and collections. Practical implications Understanding each other’s different perspectives could lead to stronger partnerships among librarians, archivists and dual-role individuals. These partnerships have the potential to increase the visibility of archives, providing greater access and engagement for community members. Originality/value The study supports previous phenomenographic research on experiences of archives and provides a more nuanced understanding of information professionals’ varying collective experiences of archives.