Liaison Librarians Research Articles

Mobile Technology and Academic Libraries: Innovative Services for Research and Learning. Robin Canuel and Chad Crichton, eds., for the Association of College and Research Libraries. Chicago: American Library Association. 2017. 284p. $68.00.

Providing content, collections, and services to mobile users is increasingly important in contemporary libraries. In Mobile Technology and Academic Libraries: Innovative Services for Research and Learning , Robin Canuel and Chad Crichton curate a collection of practical case studies of libraries adapting technologies, piloting new initiatives, and building new tools to meet the needs of mobile users. This volume is oriented toward academic libraries but is diverse within this constraint. Canuel is the Head of the Humanities and Social Sciences Library at McGill University, and Crichton is a Liaison Librarian at the University of Toronto Scarborough. Both have presented and published on the use of mobile technologies in libraries. The case studies come from academic institutions, but the selection features libraries of different types, including research libraries, archives, law libraries, and health sciences libraries. The volume also includes examples from functional units across the library, including public services, collections, web services, and instruction.

Exploring the efficacy of training and development for liaison librarians at Deakin University, Australia

ABSTRACTAustralian universities are operating in a complex, dynamic and competitive global market. Increasingly university administrations are seeking the competitive edge over rival institutions. In order to support their institution’s strategic agenda and maintain their relevance to their institution, libraries will need staff who are highly skilled and able to adapt to the rapidly changing digital world. At Deakin University Library, senior librarians understand the imperative of developing liaison librarians’ capabilities in order to meet the information needs of teaching and research academics. A scaffolded training program (the Program) was developed and a Training Needs Analysis was administered prior and post training programs to determine training priorities. Exploring the Program through the lens of self-determination theory provided an opportunity to critique the Program at a deeper level and situate the Program within a broader context of emerging skill and knowledge capabilities required by all who undertake knowledge-intensive work.

Embedded Librarians as Providers of Knowledge Services

This article considers the evolution of the professional librarian from a collection-centered liaison librarian to a service-oriented, embedded specialist. It analyzes the competencies required to provide embedded library services and describes a process for establishing an embedded librarian model in a university library in an "Expert Librarian" project. Examples of services and products that libraries could provide are suggested. The article also discusses the possible transformation of embedded librarians into providers of a service known as knowledge process outsourcing.

Enabling Authentic Assessment: The Essential Role of Information Literacy

We report on a study of an authentic assessment task in an Australian business school, where the 2015 ACRL framework for information literacy was applied to support the development of critical thought. Contextualised in an ongoing, meaningful partnership between a liaison librarian and an academic, the study involved pre- and post-engagement evaluation of learners’ decision-making about information sources that would best support a business presentation to a senior executive team. The pre- and post-evaluations were mediated by engagement with learners on the constructed and contextual nature of authority, which involved a detailed set of guidelines and online discussion facilitated by an information services librarian and the academic convening the subject. We found that students are already sensitive to a constructivist paradigm in selecting information sources. However, the depth of critical enquiry in evaluating ‘authority’ was uneven. Notwithstanding the robustness of the guidelines that we developed to support the evaluation of information sources, we found that it is important to provide further support to learners in working through the application of a constructivist frame.

What did the Disruptive Media Learning Lab ever do for us?

Picture this. The Lanchester Library, Coventry University, 2014. The Disruptive Media Learning Lab (DMLL) opens on the top floor amongst a flurry of raised eyebrows and unanswered questions. ‘What is it?’, ‘Why is it in the Library?’ and ‘Who designed the wooden hill?’ Our Academic Liaison Librarian team were asked to move in there alongside a DMLL team comprising educational researchers and principal project leads, each specializing in a flavour of teaching practice such as open, flipped and gamification. A learning technologist, project and admin staff and student activators add to the mix. Still not sure what that would mean for a library? Neither were we. This article will take you through the reasons behind this alien landing, past the hill and the grass and onto the plains of what the DMLL ever did for the Library and our students.

Closing the divide: Subject librarians and scholarly communication librarians can work together to reach common goals

As ACRL President, I am very interested in the changes that our members and the profession are experiencing and in making connections to our goals in the ACRL Plan for Excellence.1 Our plan enables ACRL to invest member resources in shaping policies and practices that enable us to meet the needs of our users and our institutions as they change over time. Over the past year, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about scholarly communication and the role of academic librarians, particularly subject or liaison librarians.

Book Review: Collaborating for Impact: Special Collections and Liaison Librarian Partnerships

As academic libraries restructure their services to meet the needs of 21st-century users, librarians and library administrators look to collaborative partnerships as a way increase library usage and visibility. Numerous successful collaborative partnerships between librarians and faculty and other campus stakeholders have been documented in scholarly research, and such partnerships are now commonplace among academic libraries of all sizes. Although these partnerships are undoubtedly beneficial, it is easy to overlook the need for collaborative partnerships within the library. Collaborating for Impact: Special Collection and Liaison Librarian Partnerships makes a strong case for partnerships between public services and special collections departments.

Providing Health Sciences Services in a Joint-Use Distributed Learning Library System: An Organizational Case Study

ABSTRACTThe purpose of this organizational case study is to describe the complexities librarians face when serving a multi-campus institution that supports both a joint-use library and expanding health sciences academic partnerships. In a system without a centralized health science library administration, liaison librarians are identifying dispersed programs and user groups and collaborating to define their unique service and outreach needs within a larger land-grant university. Using a team-based approach, health sciences librarians are communicating to integrate research and teaching support, systems differences across dispersed campuses, and future needs of a new community-based medical program.

Extreme Makeover: A Blueprint for Redefining the Role of the Liaison Librarian in the Academic Library

ABSTRACTUtilizing the concepts of change management and intentional change theory, this column delves into the issues facing new liaison roles and provides tips for those who are undergoing a similar process through a lens of organizational change that addresses reviewing what is working, as well as what is not, developing a clear vision and direction, breaking down the change into smaller segments, cultivating a sense of identity through shared purpose, and supporting new habits.

Education Library 2.0: The Establishment of a Dynamic Multi-Site Liaison Program

Using a combination of marketing, Web 2.0 tools, videoconferencing, face-to-face instruction and site visits, a library presence including systematic information literacy instruction is embedded into multiple programs at sixteen sites in a growing college of education with nearly 6000 students and over 115 full-time faculty members. As the needs of the students and faculty evolve, the library program responds. This article describes the education library liaison program for Arizona State University’s College of Teacher Education and Leadership, including both successes and challenges, within the context of university, college, and library change.

Data, Information, Knowledge & Disruptive Technologies in an Age of Uncertainty

Claire Carter, Academic Liaison Librarian at the University of Bedfordshire, reports back on last year’s eclectic and stimulating CILIP Conference.
 Keywords: CILIP, Disruptive Technologies, Data, Knowledge Managment

Re-visioning a Library Liaison Program in Light of External Forces and Internal Pressures

ABSTRACTLiaison librarian roles have existed for many years within the academic environment. Initially taking the form of reference, instruction, and collection development – often with subject specialization – the activities of liaisons have adapted and evolved in response to changing library user needs. In response to such changing needs and internal pressures, the Health Sciences Library at McMaster University is in the process of re-visioning its liaison program. The result is a set of proposed models informed by the literature and institutional context which contributed to the selection of a new direction for liaisons. Key steps reported in this article include a review of the literature, rationale and context, a librarian survey, and final decision.

Faculty and Instructor Perceptions of Open Educational Resources in Engineering

ABSTRACTAs open education initiatives aiming to lower the cost of course materials appeared at two universities, librarians became involved in identifying open educational resources (OERs) for university courses. However, when considering a number of subject areas—particularly in colleges focused on upper-division instruction—librarians encountered problems related to the availability of resources and materials selection processes. For this project, librarians selected one prominent subject area at their respective institutions—engineering—and worked to identify best practices for introducing OERs into courses. They surveyed engineering faculty and instructors to better understand their perceptions and needs related to OERs and, based on this work, they suggest best practices for liaison librarians in specialized fields who wish to incorporate OERs into their outreach work with a focus on upper-division courses.

Librarians in transition: Scholarly communication support as a developing core competency

ABSTRACTModern digital scholarship requires faculty to navigate an increasingly complex research and publication world. Liaison librarians are uniquely suited to assist faculty with scholarly communication needs, yet faculty do not identify the library as a provider of these services. Proactive promotion of scholarly communication services by librarians is needed. In this article, scholarly communication training developed for librarians at a mid-sized public university is described. Two surveys—describing faculty digital scholarship needs and librarian attitudes toward scholarly communication services—are presented. Articulating scholarly communication support as a core competency affirms the importance of this developing role for librarians.

The Evolution of a Writing Program.

Scholarly writing is required in nursing, and some students are unable to communicate effectively through writing. Faculty members may struggle with the grading of written assignments. A writing team, consisting of a nursing faculty member, the school of nursing library liaison, and members from academic support services, implemented strategies including workshops, handouts, and use of exemplars to improve student writing and to provide support to faculty. Few students sought help from the writing team. An online writing center within the existing learning management system was developed to address nursing students' and faculty's scholarly writing needs. The writing center includes guides, tutorials, and exemplars. Anecdotal evidence indicates the use of the writing center during afternoons and evenings and prior to due dates of written assignments. Online writing resources were used more frequently than face-to-face support. Further research is needed to evaluate the effectiveness of the program. [J Nurs Educ. 2017;56(7):443-445.].

GIS and the humanities: Presenting a path to digital scholarship with the Story Map app

ABSTRACTWorking collaboratively, a scholarly resources librarian and a subject liaison librarian at a small, public liberal arts college have created a GIS story mapping workshop for fellow information professionals. Using GIS, the librarians are bridging the gap between humanities and sciences in a liberal arts environment. The librarians' experience of being introduced to GIS and creating training for others enabled them to support their library's data services and digital scholarship initiatives. By helping connect the humanities with science and technology using story maps, librarians can create a neutral environment for learners to conduct interdisciplinary research and develop spatial literacy.

ACRL honors the 2017 award winners, part 2: A recognition of professional development

Deborah L. Schaeffer, instruction and reference librarian and liaison librarian to the School of Social Work (retired) at California State University-Los Angeles, is the recipient of the Education and Behavioral Sciences Section (EBSS) Distinguished Education and Behavioral Sciences Librarian Award.This award honors a distinguished academic librarian who has made an outstanding contribution as an education and/or behavioral sciences librarian through accomplishments and service to the profession.

教育に携わる図書館員として活躍するには : これからのリエゾン・ライブラリアン( 図書館員のヒント)

教育に携わる図書館員として活躍するには : これからのリエゾン・ライブラリアン( 図書館員のヒント)

Librarians as Teachers: Forming a Learning and Teaching Community of Practice

As liaison librarians embedded in the faculties and disciplines of the University of Adelaide, Learning and Research Services staff are working to significant changes in educational philosophies and practices. In 2016, we formed a Learning and Teaching Community of Practice (CoP), designed to ground our teaching of research skills and digital literacies in current pedagogy and new teaching methodologies. Our CoP was aligned with the university's commitment to 'Small Group Discovery Experience’ teaching enhanced by the 'flipped classroom' model and new educational technologies. This article examines the benefits and opportunities created by our community of practice and considers options for future development.

Book Review: Embedded Business Librarianship for the Public Librarian

New public librarians will get a solid return on their investment with Barbara A. Alvarez’s new release, Embedded Business Librarianship for the Public Librarian. Alvarez offers libraries a step-by-step guide to make business services in public libraries a success. As Alvarez points out, not all public librarians have business degrees, and providing business services in public libraries can be daunting to those new to the profession. Luckily, this primer by Alvarez, who served as a business liaison librarian, gives the rest of us a guide for serving as an embedded librarian for the business sector through organized and systematic involvement in the community.