Scholarly Learning Commons

Author(s):  
Jin Chen ◽  
Xiaoyuan Lan ◽  
Qinling Huang ◽  
Jue Dong ◽  
Chen Chen

First, this chapter analyzes the theoretical research on the effects of Scholarly Learning Commons (SLC) in China from the perspectives of concept, instance analysis, and ideas for construction. The results can be summarized in the following three stages of SLC development in China: preliminarily integrated stage, double fusion stage, and highly integrated stage. With this structure and the concept of being “user-centered,” this chapter concludes that Chinese academic libraries mainly adopt two methods of building an SLC: independent construction by libraries, and joint construction with other units of the university. Finally, this chapter demonstrates construction strategies, elements, and service in SLCs, and it shows five typical cases of SLC construction in Chinese academic libraries.

2021 ◽  
pp. 096100062110055
Author(s):  
Clare Thorpe ◽  
Lyndelle Gunton

The United Nation’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development identifies 17 goals as a shared blueprint for peace, prosperity, people and the planet. Australian academic libraries have started documenting and planning how academic libraries contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including the identification of assessment frameworks and key performance indicators. In 2019, the University of Southern Queensland (USQ) Library stepped through an exercise of understanding how our day-to-day work and annual planning targets mapped to the SDGs. The article is a case study. The authors outline how an academic library’s services, projects and action plans were mapped to the SDGs and how the mapping exercise was communicated to the community. The article will situate this activity among the broader approaches being taken by the Australian library community, including the 2030 stretch targets for Australian libraries. USQ Library staff found that existing services, collections and projects correlated to eight of the 17 SDGs. Activities were mapped to these eight goals and reported to senior executive of the University. The mapping exercise increased the awareness of library staff about the broader cultural and societal implications of their roles. The communication strategy led to conversations that increased university leaders’ awareness of the SDGs and the value and impact of USQ Library in improving access to information as well as the library’s role in transforming the lives of USQ students and community. By undertaking an exercise to map collections, services and projects to the SDGs, USQ Library has been able to demonstrate how their knowledge and information infrastructures which enable student achievement and research excellence. The SDGs can be used by university libraries as a benchmarking tool and as a challenge to set stretch targets aligned with the United Nation’s 2030 agenda.


2015 ◽  
Vol 76 (3) ◽  
pp. 339-352 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian Quinn

George Ritzer, a sociologist at the University of Maryland, has proposed an influential thesis that suggests that many aspects of the fast food industry are making their way into other areas of society. This article explores whether his thesis, known as the McDonaldization thesis, is applicable to academic libraries. Specifically, it seeks to determine to what extent academic libraries may be considered McDonaldized, and if so, what effect McDonaldization may be having on them. It also investigates some possible alternatives to McDonaldization, and their implications for academic libraries.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Julia Katherine Hart

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] The Academic Libraries National conference is a professional development opportunity for academic librarians. This study analyzed differences in preferred learning style of conference attendees based on years of library experience and the ability of the conference to meet the stated mission. Quantitative results indicated insignificant differences between preferred learning style and years of library experience. Qualitative results revealed support for meeting two of three mission components. Recommendations support modifications in practice for conference organization at the overarching, survey design, and future areas of study. These recommendations support efforts to create comprehensive evaluation of the conference.


Author(s):  
Rachel W. Gammons ◽  
Karina Kletscher ◽  
Kelsey Elizabeth. Corlett-Rivera

While children's services are traditionally associated with public libraries, the increase in students with dependent children means that academic libraries are increasingly being called to provide family-friendly spaces. Using the University of Maryland Libraries as a case study, the authors detail the process of developing, implementing, and overseeing family-friendly services, including a family study room and activity kits for children. They argue there is value in welcoming families into the academy and projects, such as a family study room, worthy not only for the contributions they make to the community but also for the opportunity to enact joy in our daily practice as academic librarians.


Infolib ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 36-39
Author(s):  
Victoria Levinskaya ◽  

Any contemporary academic library is created to meet the needs of the faculty member, researchers, and students in providing access to educational and scientific resources that go beyond traditional sour-ces of information such as books, textbooks, and magazines. Building a library collection is a scrupulous process involving not only librarians, but also the academic staff of the university. This process is highly dynamic, since it should ensure the quality of the provided educational services of the university, as well as contribute to the development of its scientific potential. This article reveals the main challenges facing academic libraries in creating an developing, recent and balanced library collection.


Author(s):  
Ingrid J. Ruffin ◽  
Michelle H. Brannen ◽  
Megan Venable

This chapter illustrates ways that academic libraries can engage with students to build and support campus communities. At the University of Tennessee Libraries, librarians seek opportunities for cultural enhancement of the campus community through creative outlets and activities that meet students in the spaces they frequent, both inside and outside the library. Librarians interact with students informally through contests and games, residence life programming, open houses, and street fairs that showcase the library as the campus main street.


2009 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 93 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cheri Smith ◽  
Anastasia Guimaraes ◽  
Mandy Havert ◽  
Tatiana H. Prokrym

<span>Academic libraries handle missing items in a variety of ways. The Hesburgh Libraries of the University of Notre Dame recently revamped their system for replacing or withdrawing missing items. This article describes the new process that uses a customized database to facilitate efficient and effective communication, tracking, and selector decision making for large numbers of missing items.</span>


2020 ◽  
Vol 36 (4) ◽  
pp. 365-375
Author(s):  
Serdar Temiz ◽  
Lakshmi Pradip Salelkar

Purpose While universities are using more digital tools such as learning management systems (canvas, blackboard, etc). or massive open online courses (MOOCS) such as MIT, OpenCourseWare, edX, Coursera, digitalization has also influenced university libraries. Digital services of academic libraries need exploration on how they provide digital services and how they respond to COVID-19. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to explore and map digital services of academic libraries and their response to COVID-19 in Sweden. Design/methodology/approach Qualitative research approach is used in this study. Through a Web search, data was gathered from all 39 universities in Sweden through two means: visiting university and their respective library websites; examination of other documents provided by the university such as press releases, announcements. Evaluation of the content and digital services and libraries response to COVID-19 is conducted by thematic coding. Findings In response to the ongoing COVID-19 spread, a general trend seen among all is limited working hours, shutting down physical libraries for general public, unmanning operations. All 39 number of universities in Sweden have moved their offerings toward using online tools. The main themes that have been identified from our study are as follows: Availability of Information, Accessibility of resources, Collaboration with other actors, Increased use of existing services, motivation and support to practice social distancing. Research limitations/implications Owing to the limitations of COVID-19 conditions, time and other aspects, there was not any opportunity to visit the university libraries or book time to interview librarians or students, which led to limited level and imperfect research. There are many other activities that university libraries are offering to their employees and using their internal newsletters and email groups to reach their audience; as a result, some of digital services that are offered during COVID-19 might have not been noticed. Practical implications These findings can provide base to other universities on how to react to COVID-19 and bring more discussion. Social implications COVID-19 has big social impact on people. The findings present that libraries can go beyond their responsibilities and provide emotional and psychological support the community towards social distancing such as videos, social online meetings, live video workshops. Originality/value The findings from this study call for a review digital services of academic libraries and their response to COVID-19 in Sweden, so that best reactions and services could be understood.


2007 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gail Herrera

In March 2003 the University of Mississippi Libraries made our MetaSearch tool publicly available. After a year of working with this product and integrating it into the library Web site, a wide variety of libraries interested in our implementation process and experiences began to call. Libraries interested in this product have included consortia, public, and academic libraries in the United States, Mexico, and Europe. This article was written in an effort to share the recommendations and concerns given. Much of the advice is general and could be applied to many of the MetaSearch tools available. Google Scholar and other open Web initiatives that could impact the future of MetaSearching are also discussed.


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