Library Assignments Research Articles

EBSCO and Summon Discovery Generator Tools: How Accurate Are They?

Most college and university libraries in British Columbia are using either EBSCO or Summon Discovery search services as a “one stop shop” for users to find, save, and cite resources for their projects. The citation generators that both EBSCO and Summon offer simplify the process of inserting citations into essays, however the citations need to be accurate for users to be able to submit citations that are error free. Considering this, this article looks at the accuracy of the citation generators each service offers. A total of twenty resources were picked from student library assignments for print books, eBooks, and articles in APA, Chicago, and MLA styles to determine the number and types of errors that occur for EBSCO and Summon Discovery. The error rate was substantial enough that caution must be used when creating citations using these tools and librarians should advise users that Discovery citation generators cannot be relied upon to provide accurate citations.

ANALISIS TEMATIK ARTIKEL DALAM JURNAL IFLA EDISI SPECIAL ISSUE: KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT AND LIBRARY INNOVATION IN A CHANGING WORLD

This study aims to map the themes discussed in the articles in the journal. This study is qualitative with theme-based approach. Data collection methods is text documents analysis. The selected documents were analyzed using ATA (Applied Thematic Analysis). The results showed that IFLA Journal Vol. 46, No. 1, March 2020 edition of the Special Issue: Knowledge Management and Library Innovation in a Changing World contains articles with 8 themes, namely library assignments in knowledge management, knowledge management in academic libraries, library restructuring by applying knowledge management principles, knowledge management in college libraries, problems that occur after the implementation of knowledge management, city library networks based on the concept of knowledge management, knowledge sharing activities within institutions, and the weakening of library functions if they do not apply the concept of knowledge management. The conclusion of this study is that the articles published in the journal have the theme of adapting the principles of knowledge management in academic and city library activities along with constraints to alternative solutions. This journal also provides an overview of the problems that will occur if the library has not implemented knowledge management.

Maintaining Quality While Expanding Our Reach: Using Online Information Literacy Tutorials in the Sciences and Health Sciences

Abstract
 
 Objective – This article aims to assess student achievement of higher-order information literacy learning outcomes from online tutorials as compared to in-person instruction in science and health science courses.
 
 Methods – Information literacy instruction via online tutorials or an in-person one-shot session was implemented in multiple sections of a biology (n=100) and a kinesiology course (n=54). After instruction, students in both instructional environments completed an identical library assignment to measure the achievement of higher-order learning outcomes and an anonymous student survey to measure the student experience of instruction. 
 
 Results – The data collected from library assignments revealed no statistically significant differences between the two instructional groups in total assignment scores or scores on specific questions related to higher-order learning outcomes. Student survey results indicated the student experience is comparable between instruction groups in terms of clarity of instruction, student confidence in completing the course assignment after library instruction, and comfort in asking a librarian for help after instruction.
 
 Conclusions – This study demonstrates that it is possible to replace one-shot information literacy instruction sessions with asynchronous online tutorials with no significant reduction in student learning in undergraduate science and health science courses. Replacing in-person instruction with online tutorials will allow librarians at this university to reach a greater number of students and maintain contact with certain courses that are transitioning to completely online environments. While the creation of online tutorials is initially time-intensive, over time implementing online instruction could free up librarian time to allow for the strategic integration of information literacy instruction into other courses. Additional time savings could be realized by incorporating auto-grading into the online tutorials.

Find the gap:

Academic libraries deliver library instruction, but how good are practitioners at measuring the effectiveness of their efforts? One medium-sized Canadian university library undertook a new approach to assessing its library instruction programme by collaborating with faculty members and engaging with their course content. Looking initially at recently-offered information literacy (IL) sessions, the study challenged commonly-held assumptions on the programme, and established a number of broad conclusions. All faculty members from two disciplines were invited to submit syllabi for courses taught in the past few years. In addition to those courses that regularly scheduled sessions in the library, the authors received course content from instructors that had not traditionally booked library instruction, providing a unique opportunity for analysis and to learn about research content in the course, requirements of independent use of the library, inclusion of standards on academic integrity, inclusion of a cumulative project, the presence of library instruction, critical thinking, library assignments, general reference to the library and its resources, and whether professors conduct library-type instruction. The findings point to a number of strengths and weaknesses of the library’s instruction programme for these departments, and challenged a number of assumptions. The absence of a library instruction session did not mean the absence of a research requirement or required library usage. The conclusions from the syllabi analysis suggest a need for diversification of services associated with library instruction and increased collaboration between librarians and faculty to support student learning and research. The impact of this study will be seen in both future library instruction programme evaluation and the strengthening of that programme. The results, with the potential to expand to other disciplines, will help inform the development of new methods of delivering library services that support faculty instruction patterns, consultative course planning and collaborative teaching. This project has presented new lines of inquiry for long-term IL programmes across undergraduate curricula within each discipline.

Does Information Literacy Lead to Transferable Information Problem Solving Skills on the Job? Based upon a Presentation at the National University 2013 Academic Assembly: Re-Imagine Your Library Assignments

For at least two decades academic librarians have offered instruction on the theoretical level, hoping to create effective “word” researchers. They seek to solve the perennial problem of how to find source work for the formal assignment. In the 1990s we introduced our patrons to online databases, and in the early 2000s we introduced the virtual librarian (no need for our questioners to travel), and then we had to ascertain how to make complex searching strategies understandable now that we had gained a contingent of academic e-mail customers. Fast forwarding to 2015, we now need to retreat from our theory and emphasize employability. We cannot depend upon social media to replace our service. We are literature specialists who are trained to locate credible and reliable academic information. But we are also expanding our service to consider patrons’ career intentions.This study considers a new iteration of library instruction, and seeks to follow a very specialized form of library literature in the areas of information literacy, and its applicability to graduates entering the workforce.

Evolution of Various Library Instruction Strategies: Using Student Feedback to Create and Enhance Online Active Learning Assignments

This case study traces the evolution of library assignments for biological science students from paper-based workbooks in a blended (hands-on) workshop to blended learning workshops using online assignments to online active learning modules which are stand-alone without any face-to-face instruction. As the assignments evolved to adapt to online learning supporting materials in the form of PDFs (portable document format), screen captures and screencasting were embedded into the questions as teaching moments to replace face-to-face instruction. Many aspects of the evolution of the assignment were based on student feedback from evaluations, input from senior lab demonstrators and teaching assistants, and statistical analysis of the students’ performance on the assignment. Advantages and disadvantages of paper-based and online assignments are discussed. An important factor for successful online learning may be the ability to get assistance.

The Librarian and the Collaborative Design of Effective Library Assignments: Recommendations for Faculty on Question Design for Student Success in Research Assignments

The success of library research assignments depends to some extent on the quality of the research question posed to students. Librarians can help teaching faculty craft more effective research assignments through intentional partnerships where librarians discuss with faculty how to pose well-structured research questions, what library resources are available to support the research and what a faculty member expects a student to learn from the exercise.

Patricia Knapp's Landmark Project to Develop a Plan of Curriculum-Integrated Library Instruction

Patricia Knapp's Landmark Project to Develop a Plan of Curriculum-Integrated Library Instruction

Balancing both lives: issues facing librarians working in Second Life and real life worlds

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to analyze the ongoing issues and concerns of Second Life librarians who are attempting to balance both their virtual library tasks and assignments along with their real world library tasks and assignments.Design/methodology/approachMembers of the Library and Information Technology Association and, in addition, members of the Second Life Librarians group are invited to participate in an online survey during the summer of 2008. In addition to sharing issues and concerns of balancing their work lives in both virtual and real life worlds, survey participants suggest solutions for problem resolution.FindingsData from 161 survey participants show that virtual world librarians are passionate about their commitments to virtual world libraries to the extent that most librarians completed virtual library work at home and are not compensated by their libraries for this work. Issues and problems shared by respondents include inadequate computers and slow internet connections at work, lack of support by library administration, blocking of virtual world software by network technicians, and little response to requests for scheduled time for virtual world library tasks.Research limitations/implicationsThe number of respondents is comparatively small. The authors feel a larger percentage of members may have participated if the survey was conducted during either fall or spring semesters of the academic calendar year. A second survey may be conducted in spring 2009 to compare findings and to track solutions and concerns.Practical implicationsLibrarians may have more time to devote to real life library work and will not need to complete virtual world library tasks at home if they are provided adequate computers and Internet connections at work and are also scheduled for virtual library work.Originality/valueThis paper provides empirical data on the perceived allocations of virtual library work time for virtual librarians and also discusses suggested solutions for better time management of virtual work.

Library Sandbox: An Experiment in Integrating Research Skills into WebCT

We can’t be the only academic librarians who woke up one morning and thought: “There has to be a better way”. After three years of teaching 2030 introductory library sessions to relatively disinterested undergraduate students in a span of two months, technically-minded Heather had begun to question whether she would ever make it through year four without moving some of the labour online. Having completed her B.Ed and MLIS and witnessed several crash-and-burn library assignments, pedagogicallyminded Sarah had both the experience and ideas for developing appropriate student-centred learning activities. And the Library Sandbox was born.

Faculty Information Assignments: A Longitudinal Examination of Variations in Survey Results

A one-time survey may give a falsely precise indication of local usage. Examining four iterations of a library assignment survey reveals large within-discipline variation; even individual faculty members are inconsistent in their use of library assignments from year to year. Additional causes of variation include changing faculty and pedagogy. This article examines data from a survey sent to faculty about library assignments in their courses in 1996–1997, 2001–2002, and 2003–2004 at a small private masters-level college, and in 2004–2005 at a large public doctoral-intensive university. The researcher expected to discover how coursework in different disciplines required different levels of independent information seeking (“library usage”). The survey method was chosen when the contents and formats of course syllabi proved too inconsistent to yield the needed information about usage of library assignments. Use of library assignments was expected to be relatively consistent from year to year, and from institution to institution, because of the assumption that discipline strongly affects use of library information sources. Each time, the survey achieved a good response rate and gave apparently valuable information about current library assignments. However, the expected disciplinary consistency was much less than anticipated. The variation from year to year within disciplines – an average of sixteen percentage points – was almost as great as the variation between disciplines in any one year—an average of 18 to 29 percent. This article describes the intent, scope, focus, and initial findings of the original surveys, then uses the data from the four together to explore potential causes of the year to year variation. The results of this secondary analysis suggest that faculty use of information-seeking assignments is much more volatile than any one-time survey might show.

Positive Faculty/Librarian Relationships for Productive Library Assignments

Abstract Faculty/librarian collaboration is a topic that receives almost as much coverage in the library literature as information literacy. It is probably safe to say that information literacy efforts cannot succeed without positive collaboration between classroom faculty and librarians. The most common scenario for such collaboration is the library instruction session, in which an instructor takes the class to the library, or invites the librarian to the classroom. Other types of collaboration occur- or should occur-at the time the instructor gives a library research assignment. Librarians can provide “faculty development” to their colleagues from across the disciplines as to how best to work with librarians to achieve course content and information literacy goals. A non-threatening and collegial approach can be most effective. This article summarizes one librarian's experience in conducting such a faculty development session. Content adapted from the session handout is provided.

Library Assignments in the Humanities and Social Sciences

Library Assignments in the Humanities and Social Sciences

Library Assignments: Challenges that Students Face and How to Help

any undergraduate college stu dents perennially dread library or research assignments, re garding them as either unrequited drudgery or a source of unrewarding anx iety. I would like to discuss the challenges that students face when grappling with a research assignment, provide examples of situation and design problems, and offer some solutions. Using the library productively and re searching efficiently are less intuitive and more complicated tasks than they might appear. Effective library assignments are difficult to create, and most students (indeed, most researchers) are dedicated to the Principle of Least Effort, also called the Principle of Information-Pro cessing Parsimony, documented by Thomas Mann (1993, 91):

Lessons of a Decade

Summary In 1987, a new two-semester freshmen-level course in World Civilizations was piloted at Washington State University. Included within the course was a library component offering the question analysis that seemed appropriate to a richly historical, interdisciplinary course. The authors involved with the course from the very beginning, discuss their decade of work on the World Civ project in terms of the project's successes and unrealized hopes, its collegial component, and its growth and adaptation over the years (including examples of library assignments). As a university-wide project, World Civilizations was a forerunner of other projects nationwide and an outstanding example of librarians collaborating with teaching faculty to promote instruction.

First Contact

With the reduction in the number of elementary, middle, and secondary school libraries, more and more students must turn to other resources for assistance in collecting materials for their homework assignments. This can be a challenging experience as cutbacks in funding and hours of operation often limit the resources found at any library. If little or no communication is established between the classroom instructor and the library, what results is confusion and frustration on everyone's part, particularly, the students'. What follows are proposed homework guidelines for library assignments that can be easily implemented by instructors and aid in fostering a positive and communicative working relationship with the library, whether it be your school's or the local public or academic library.

Integrating Library User Education with the Undergraduate Music History Sequence

ABSTRACT An important goal of the undergraduate music history sequence is to provide students with both knowledge and tools for life-long learning. Fundamental to this goal is the ability to use the library effectively. The authors established a library user education program for music majors, integrating it into the music history sequence. This graduated series of library assignments, with accompanying worksheets, can be reinforced from term to term, while the library program enhances the quality of student projects. Larger projects, e.g., a research paper, integrate and solidify the students' research techniques. The authors outline their program and its development as well as indications of its success.

Introduce Successful Library Assignments to Students in Biological Sciences

Introduce Successful Library Assignments to Students in Biological Sciences

Building Alliances:

College librarians are convinced that using the library is an essential part of a college education, a conviction not necessarily shared by faculty. Integrating library research into courses can be especially difficult at community colleges where faculty have heavy course loads and the curricula are very practical. However, at Hudson Valley Community College, library skills are now part of the College Objectives as well as the English Composition syllabus. Library assignments occur in most general education courses and are the means for adding general education concepts to courses in technology, sciences, business, etc. The librarians have found that by building alliances with the faculty, they can take advantage of opportunities to build library skills into the curricula.

Alternatives to the Term Paper:

The inadequacies of the traditional term paper are well-known to reference and instruction librarians. Term papers often fail to develop appropriate and mature research habits in undergraduates. Unless carefully monitored by teaching faculty, students procrastinate, do not formulate appropriate search strategies, fail to think critically about library sources consulted, and, in some cases, engage in academic dishonesty. Librarians can offer teaching faculty alternative assignments to the traditional term paper, assignments that encourage better use of library materials, stimulate student interest, develop a more holistic perspective on the artificial divisions of academia, and perhaps most important, facilitate growth in critical thinking. Robert Ennis' critical thinking goals are offered as a foundation for planning alternative library assignments - goals that include such behaviors as focussing on an issue, analyzing arguments, asking clarifying questions, evaluating reliability of sources, and examinin...