scholarly journals Guest Editor’s Note

2012 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 85-86
Author(s):  
Christian Dupont

Are those echoes down the hallway, or other voices talking about the same things? Over the past several years, a national conversation has been building around how best to assess the quality and impact of higher education and the contributions that libraries make to research, teaching, and learning. The Institute of Museum and Library Services, the Association of Research Libraries, the Association of College and Research Libraries, and other organizations have been funding studies and initiatives around these important issues, which are becoming increasingly urgent as institutions struggle to adapt to altered and uncertain economic environments. A growing body of . . .

2018 ◽  
Vol 98 (4) ◽  
pp. 490-513 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jillian Baranger ◽  
Danielle Rousseau ◽  
Mary Ellen Mastrorilli ◽  
James Matesanz

Much of the research on postsecondary education effects on incarcerated individuals has focused on men. However, given the increased rates of women’s imprisonment over the past 40 years, scholars should examine the impact of higher education in prison on women. In this qualitative study, the authors assess the social and personal benefits of participating in a college behind bars program delivered in a women’s prison. Data gathered with both program participants and faculty suggest that students in the program experienced a reduction in criminogenic attitudes and behaviors as well as positive changes in self-perception.


2002 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 59-68 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judith A. Sessions ◽  
Alex Schenck ◽  
Aaron K. Shrimplin

This case study presents data generated from Miami University Libraries’ participation in LibQUAL+™ 2000‐2001, a national service quality survey for libraries. Miami’s data are analyzed through a series of questions to identify client service needs, evaluate current service levels, and place local results within the broader context of aggregate scores and score norms from all participating institutions. Finally, questions are raised about the extent of LibQUAL+™’s relevance both for libraries that are not members of the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) and for organizational planning beyond traditional library services.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Justin Schell ◽  
Meghan Sitar

Information literacy at the graduate level can happen at the intersection of research method education and mentorship into a disciplinary community of practice with its own traditions of inquiry, communication, and knowledge creation. Funded by the Institute for Museum and Library Services, the Library as Research Lab Project at the University of Michigan enables graduate students, academic librarians, and information science faculty to engage in a series of research activities together, illuminating tacit knowledge in information studies and librarianship, both as a discipline and as a profession. In the project, three interconnected labs pursue authentic research questions emerging from challenges faced by the Library while providing School of Information students with mentorship, new skills, and a fellowship stipend. A common curriculum across the labs includes research ethics, publishing, project management, and current issues in higher education research. Engaging with the frames of “Research as Inquiry” and “Scholarship as Conversation” from the Association of College and Research Libraries Framework for Information Literacy in Higher Education​, students also learn how to effectively discuss, iterate upon, and present their research activities to different audiences. At the end of the fellowship, students enter the profession with an understanding of complex challenges facing libraries and with new strategies for responding to ambiguity and pursuing new solutions through research. As we complete the final year of the grant, the librarians from the Design Thinking for Library Services Lab will reflect on lessons learned and share student perspectives as a way of discussing how similar initiatives might facilitate positive and critically engaged research projects at other institutions. Attendees will be able to describe strategies for developing similar environments in support of authentic research experiences and will be able to apply strategies documented in a mentoring handbook from the project in their own work.


Author(s):  
Jamie Peter Wood ◽  
Sabine Little ◽  
Louise Goldring ◽  
Laura Jenkins

This paper presents the findings of a survey given to students engaging in educational enhancement activities in inquiry/enquiry-based learning at two Centres for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL). The students involved were asked to comment on the skills they felt that they had developed as part of their roles as 'interns' and 'ambassadors'. These comments were analysed inductively and several strong themes emerged. Students valued the opportunity to engage in such activities, which they felt developed a wide range of transferable skills and impacted positively upon their academic work and their prospects for future employment. While there is a considerable amount of literature on Higher Education and skills development, a growing body of work on how curricular IBL impacts upon students' capabilities, and a plethora of studies on how paid and unpaid extra-curricular activities impact upon students' educational achievement, few studies have sought to relate these areas of research.


2019 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
David Greene ◽  
Michael Groenendyk

Purpose The growing popularity of virtual and augmented reality (VR and AR) technologies, and increased research into their educational uses, has seen them appearing in a significant number of academic libraries. Little is known, however, about how many libraries have actually adopted these technologies or how they have structured library services around them. The purpose of this paper is to answer these questions. Design/methodology/approach The authors surveyed the websites of the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) member libraries to gather information about the availability of VR and AR equipment as well as information about how access is provided. Recorded details about these services included information about staffing, dedicated space, software, what type of technology was offered and whether or not the technology was lent out or only made available for in-library use. Findings Results of the research project showed that a significant number of ARL-member libraries do offer access to VR technology. AR technology was much less widespread. The most common technologies offered were the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive. The technology was most typically offered for in-library use only. There were few details about staff or what software was offered to be used with the technology. Originality/value While there is growing research around how VR and AR is being used in education, little research has been undertaken into how libraries are adopting these technologies. This paper summarizes the research that has been done so far and also takes the next step of providing a larger picture of how widespread the adoption of VR and AR technologies has been within academic libraries, as well as how access to these technologies is being provided.


2013 ◽  
Vol 46 (01) ◽  
pp. 83-89 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary King ◽  
Maya Sen

The American system of higher education appears poised for disruptive change of potentially historic proportions due to massive new political, economic, and educational forces that threaten to undermine its business model, governmental support, and operating mission. These forces include dramatic new types of economic competition, difficulties in growing revenue streams as we had in the past, relative declines in philanthropic and government support, actual and likely future political attacks on universities, and some outdated methods of teaching and learning that have been unchanged for hundreds of years.


2014 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 108-118 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keith J. Roberts

A focus on the past 20 years has shown an evolution in International Higher Education from the concept of teaching to the concept of learning. As universities in developing nations make the transition to become regional and international in quality it is important to the university administrators and the ministries of education to develop strategies to support this evolution from teaching to learning. This paper argues that an integral piece of this transition is the presence of a center for teaching and learning excellence.


2000 ◽  
Vol 61 (3) ◽  
pp. 217-232 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joyce K. Thornton

Job satisfaction is critical to the retention and recruitment of librarians. This study examines job satisfaction of librarians of African descent employed at academic libraries holding membership in the Association of Research Libraries. The results of a three-part job satisfaction survey are presented. The survey identifies areas of satisfaction and dissatisfaction for this group of librarians. There has been no significant gain in the number of librarians of African descent in ARL academic libraries in the past ten years. If libraries are to recruit and retain a diverse workforce, consideration must be given to what makes these employees remain on the job and in the profession.


Author(s):  
Andrea Phillipson ◽  
Annie Riel ◽  
Andy B Leger

Over the past 20 years, interest in the impact of space on teaching and learning has grown, and higher education institutions have responded by creating Active Learning Classrooms (ALCs)—spaces designed to promote active, student-centred learning. While ALC research has explored teaching methods, student experience, and student learning, less is known about how teaching in these spaces affects instructors. We contribute to this discussion by investigating teachers’ educational development in these spaces. We asked new instructors to reflect on their ALC experiences, exploring their pre-course preparation and their perceptions about themselves, their students, and teaching and learning. Their reflections revealed key differences between knowing and learning: Although all participants knew about and were dedicated to student-centred pedagogy before teaching in the ALCs, teaching in these spaces prompted transformative learning through which they shifted both their behaviours and perceptions about student learning and about their own roles in the classroom. Au cours des 20 dernières années, l’intérêt consacré à l’impact de l’espace sur l’enseignement et l’apprentissage a augmenté et les établissements d’enseignement supérieur ont répondu en créant des classes d’apprentissage actif (CAA) – des espaces consacrés à la promotion de l’apprentissage actif centré sur l’étudiant. Alors que la recherche portant sur les CAA a exploré les méthodes d’enseignement, l’expérience des étudiants et l’apprentissage des étudiants, on s’est moins intéressé à la question de savoir comment le fait d’enseigner dans ces espaces affectait les instructeurs. Nous contribuons à cette discussion en examinant le développement éducationnel des enseignants dans ces espaces. Nous avons demandé à de nouveaux instructeurs de réfléchir à leurs expériences en CAA, d’explorer leurs préparations avant les cours et leurs perceptions sur eux-mêmes, sur leurs étudiants et sur l’enseignement et l’apprentissage. Leurs réflexions ont révélé des différences majeures entre savoir et apprendre : bien que tous les participants aient été au courant, avant d’enseigner dans une classe d’apprentissage actif, de la pédagogie centrée sur l’apprenant et y aient été dévoués, l’enseignement dans ces espaces a engendré un apprentissage transformateur qui a abouti à un changement à la fois dans leurs comportements et dans leurs perceptions sur l’apprentissage des étudiants ainsi que sur leurs propres rôles dans la salle de classe.


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