Effectiveness of ICT training for public library staff in the UK: staff views

This article reports on a research project on the lnternet training needs of public library staff in the Greater Manchester region. The methods used were built around six repeat sessions of a one-day course. The course was a positive experience for participants and provided quantitative and qualitative data. The findings show that the research methods were highly effective, and that an interest in the facilities of the' lnternet quickly develops if staff are guided to material directly relevant to their work. With the forth-coming investment in ICT training, the methods could be replicated to assess their impact.

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Makerspaces and boundary work: the role of librarians as educators in public library makerspaces

Journal of Librarianship and Information Science ◽

10.1177/0961000617742467 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 51 (3) ◽

pp. 801-813 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Rachel D. Williams ◽

Rebekah Willett

Keyword(s):

Teaching And Learning ◽

Boundary Work ◽

Public Library ◽

Social Resources ◽

Library Staff ◽

Public Librarians

This article explores public librarians’ performance of boundary work in relation to teaching and learning in library makerspaces. Boundary work occurs when individuals delineate their domain of knowledge. We use interviews with 23 library staff to analyze the forms and characteristics of boundary work connected with the role of libraries and librarians in makerspace programming. Our findings show that public librarians perform boundary work in relation to the roles of (1) libraries as spaces for book-based and maker-based experiences, (2) librarians as information specialists and educators, and (3) libraries as spaces to access individual and social resources for learning. The forms and characteristics of boundary work include coordination, identification, justification, reflection, and change.

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Ask Live! UK public libraries and virtual collaboration

Library and Information Research ◽

10.29173/lirg146 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 27 (86) ◽

pp. 43-50 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Linda Berube

Keyword(s):

Public Libraries ◽

Public Library ◽

Virtual Collaboration ◽

Virtual Reference ◽

Digital Reference ◽

Reference Service ◽

The Uk

Ask A Librarian, the UK public library digital reference service, has been piloting LSSI's Virtual Reference Toolkit. The pilot, managed by Ask administrator Co-East, went live to public users in May 2003 and will continue through September 2003. The pilot objectives include not only an evaluation of the software and support offered by LSSI, but also the eventual integration of the chat component with the main web-form service, and the implications for uptake and sustainability. This article combines a report of the largely positive initial findings of the pilot with an overview of digital reference service and UK public libraries.

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Shifting the Sands of Summer Reading

IASL Annual Conference Proceedings ◽

10.29173/iasl7781 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Joanne De Groot

Keyword(s):

Public Libraries ◽

Research Question ◽

Public Library ◽

Reading Program ◽

Reading Programs ◽

Reading Interests ◽

Staff Members ◽

Summer Reading ◽

Library Staff ◽

Summer Reading Programs

This study investigated ways in which summer reading programs (SRPs) support children’s recreational reading interests and habits and help to promote reading and literacy throughout the summer months. The primary research question was: How do children, parents, and library staff experience their public library summer reading program? This paper will present selected findings from the study related to children’s reading experiences in school and during the summer, reading games and incentives, and designing summer reading programs that emphasize the social aspects of reading. Findings from this study suggest that school and public libraries should consider moving away from traditional summer reading programs that include reading games and rewards and focus instead on providing children, their parents, and library staff members with greater opportunities to interact with books and reading, and one another, throughout the summer.

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Opioid overdose in public libraries: Results from a five state survey

10.1101/2020.06.05.20123422 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Rachel Feuerstein-Simon ◽

Margaret Lowenstein ◽

Roxanne Dupuis ◽

Xochitl Luna Marti ◽

Abby Dolan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Substance Use ◽

Public Libraries ◽

Public Library ◽

Opioid Overdose ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Public And Private ◽

The Past ◽

Library Staff ◽

One Year ◽

The One

AbstractIntroductionPublic libraries are increasingly impacted by the overdose crisis. A 2017 survey of public librarians in the state of Pennsylvania revealed that 12% had reported an on-site overdose in the previous year. There are increasing public and private efforts to equip public libraries with the opioid overdose antidote, naloxone.MethodsWe conducted a cross-sectional web-based survey of all public library branches in Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Michigan, and Virginia. Survey questions. We used descriptive statistics to report frequencies of responses and crude odds ratios were calculated to predict the dichotomized variable of endorsement of naloxone uptake.ResultsLibrary staff reported witnessing on-site alcohol (45%) and injection drug (14%) use in the past month. The one-year cumulative incidence (12% overall) of on-site overdose ranged from a low of 10% in MI, to a high of 17% in FL. Among libraries with on-site overdoses, a minority (21%) stocked naloxone, and 12% had administered naloxone. Overall, 11% of libraries stocked naloxone on-site. Although 24% of respondents reported attending at least one training regarding SUD in the past year, 91% wanted more training on the topic.ConclusionsPublic library staff routinely address issues related to substance use and overdose in their institutions. This work highlights the importance of including public libraries as part of a comprehensive public health strategy to address substance use-related morbidity and mortality in the U.S.

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A new page? The public library in austerity

Social Policy Review 32 ◽

10.1332/policypress/9781447341666.003.0010 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 227-248

Author(s):

Emma Davidson

Keyword(s):

Local Government ◽

Social Security ◽

Public Services ◽

Marked Decrease ◽

Public Library ◽

The Public ◽

Communal Space ◽

Clear Shift ◽

The Uk

This chapter demonstrates how, in the UK, austerity has not been limited to the provision of social security. Most government departmental budgets were cut and there was a clear shift in responsibility from central to local government, which also had its budgets slashed. The cuts to local government have also resulted in a marked decrease in the provision of key services. The chapter finds that libraries can be important spaces for support workers to meet clients, as well as for those with fewer resources to access computers, books, or simply a safe communal space outside of their home. Future lack of investment in universal public services may perpetuate and further widen the inequalities in access to these resources.

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Public libraries and public primary school literacy: a Kenyan case study

Library Management ◽

10.1108/lm-04-2020-0068 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 41 (8/9) ◽

pp. 689-701

Author(s):

Peter Mose

Keyword(s):

Public Schools ◽

Public Libraries ◽

Public Library ◽

School Type ◽

Content Type ◽

The Public ◽

Staff Members ◽

Library Staff ◽

Teachers And Parents

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explain how public libraries have been instrumental in early child school literacy teaching and learning. Most African public schools do not usually afford enough core textbooks and supplementary readers.Design/methodology/approachThis was a qualitative case study in Western Kenya amongst public library staff members, public primary school teachers and parents of library children clients. The following questions were addressed: What is the book situation in public primary schools in the study site? What school-type literacy-related services are offered by the sampled public library? and What are library staff members’, teachers’ and parents’ feelings about the public library services offered? Observations, interviews and document studies were used to collect data. Data were analysed thematically.FindingsPublic schools do not have enough core textbooks and the situation is worse for supplementary readers; the public library branch studied offers critical school-type literacies to school children both at the library building as well as at public schools registered with it; and library staff members, teachers, and parents express positive feelings about the services offered.Research limitations/implicationsThis was a case study whose findings might not apply to the larger situation and the study did not confirm actual literacy benefits of the library services amongst school children by, for instance, conducting literacy tests. The findings are, however, an index to the possible situation in the macro context.Practical implicationsThe relevant stakeholders should find ways of co-opting public libraries as associates of public schools in literacy teaching. This relationship is not straight forward in Kenya.Originality/valueThe findings reported are from original research.

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Networking Historic Environmental Standards to Address Modern Challenges for Sustainable Conservation in HBIM

Applied Sciences ◽

10.3390/app10041283 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (4) ◽

pp. 1283 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Oriel Prizeman ◽

Camilla Pezzica ◽

Ahmed Taher ◽

Mahdi Boughanmi

Keyword(s):

Knowledge Sharing ◽

Energy Use ◽

Public Library ◽

Energy Retrofit ◽

Building Information ◽

Building Components ◽

Cost Efficient ◽

Sustainable Conservation ◽

The Uk ◽

Library Buildings

Awareness of the logic and context of original (and subsequent) design priorities is critical to informing decisions relating to valorisation, repair, refurbishment, energy retrofit or re-use of built heritage. A key benefit of collating data through Historic Building Information Modelling (HBIM) should be to assist others facing similar challenges. Here, examples for sharing understanding of how components belong to a system are outlined in the context of a newly completed dataset of public library buildings in the UK funded by Andrew Carnegie, predominantly built between 1900 and 1914. Demands for the functionality and economy of public library buildings, coupled with the emergent standardisation of building components at the time, provide a specific condition with potential for further iteration to other buildings of the period or related typologies. The work highlights the urgency of providing cost-efficient knowledge sharing structures in an era of altered priorities with respect to energy use for modern heritage. We propose the means for mapping common features to network knowledge amongst stakeholders through relevant open source pathways. The results demonstrate that integrating geographic approaches to knowledge sharing in HBIM with environmental considerations also supports wider questions of risk management related to the stewardship of historic buildings in the context of climate change.

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