Post on 11-Nov-2014
description
December 2013
Serving the DIY Patron: Library Instruction at the Point of NeedMeredith Farkas, Portland State University
Help-seeking in libraries: a history Then
Closed stacks
Mediated searching
Information scarcity
Now
Open stacks
Search tools designed for the end-user
Self-checkout, patron-driven acquisitions, unmediated ILL, etc.
At the same time...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/intersectionconsulting/7537238368/
Plus, most millennials think they’re research...
Information = AbundantTime = ScarceAttention = scarce____________________Do the traditional models still work when information isn’t scarce?
What has this meant for reference?
Reference usage has declined
“According to Association of Research Library (ARL) statistics, the number of reference transactions taking place in ARL libraries has declined by more than half since 1995. Control that statistic for enrollment and the decline is greater: in 1995, ARL libraries provided an average of 10.1 reference transactions per student FTE; in 2009 the number was 3.6, a decline of over 60%.”
Anderson, Rick. (2011). “The Crisis in Research Librarianship” Journal of Academic Librarianship, 37(4).
Reference transactions in U.S. academic libraries Source: NCES
Reference transactions in public libraries Source: NCES
Reference transactions in CA public libraries Source: NCES
Reasons patrons might not ask for help
Library anxiety
Low academic self-efficacy - asking for help means admitting they lack ability.
Gender - girls “lose their voice” during adolescence
Lack of understanding of the role of the librarian (marketing problem?)
They are “DIY patrons”
The DIY patron
Wants to figure it out themselves
Is accustomed to using Google and other web services
Is accustomed to using quick help sites like WikiAnswers, Yahoo! Answers, etc.
Wants things to be intuitive
Looks for pointers about how things work
“We desperately need to invest serious thought and effort into ways that we will not only provide access to information, but also maintain the connections between the wired user and the information expert to demonstrate that the added value that we provide users in this information-saturated environment is far greater than the mere convenience of ‘getting it all online.’”
Brette Barclay Barron, “Distant and Distributed Learners Are Two Sides of the Same Coin,” Computers in Libraries 22 (Jan. 2002):
24–28.
The answer then for reference instruction
Disintermediate whenever possible
Develop instructional content that mimics answer services on the web like Yahoo! Answers (small, specific bits of content)
Make that content available and easily findable at their points of need 24/7
For academic/K-12 librarians: Embed instructional content into the fabric of classes
Online learning objects
Learning objects
Learning objects
INSTRUCTIONINSTRUCTION REFERENCEREFERENCE
Learning objects
Learning objects
INSTRUCTIONINSTRUCTION REFERENCEREFERENCE
INSTRUCTIONINSTRUCTION REFERENCEREFERENCE
LEARNING OBJECTS TO SUPPORT A
COURSE
LEARNING OBJECTS TO SUPPORT A
COURSE
LEARNING OBJECTS FOR
POINT OF NEED INSTRUCTION
LEARNING OBJECTS FOR
POINT OF NEED INSTRUCTION
These are two different things
Do students come looking for this?
Or this?
So what about these?
Great when assigned
Useless when not part of a class
Focused on specific needs
Discovering needs
Reference transactions
Web statistics
Usability testing
Ethnographic research
Models that support DIY patrons
Library DIY @ Portland State
Reference librarian in a box Small pieces of instructional content
Based on questions we get at the reference desk
Each one answers just one question
If in-depth help needed, link out
Information architecture gets students to just the info they’re looking for
Response and next steps
User testing in winter
Placement and marketing to make it visible at students’ points of need
On the library website
In the library
On campus
Making content findable at points of need
And how findable is this?
Links to tutorials
Under research resources/start your research
Under help/research help
Under Services
Under Library Services --> Instruction
Within LibGuides
Unfindable from some library websites
http://www.flickr.com/photos/yogendra174/5980718184
Get in their flow
Where might patrons look for/need help on your library website?
Ask a Librarian page
Any help type of pages
Research guides
Databases page (and inside databases)
Catalog
Webpages for specific services (ILL, gov docs, etc.)
“The library needs to be in the user environment and not expect the user to find their way to the library environment”-Lorcan Dempsey http://orweblog.oclc.org/archives/000688.html
Go where your users are
in the Learning Management System (LMS)
on an Intranet
in any local social networks or relevant community websites
on Facebook
on mobile devices
in computer labs (on the desktop)
Digital research help in the physical world
Link patrons to library instructional content where they need it In the library
In the stacks, places people get lost
By collections patrons have trouble using
Machines patrons have issues with
Other places people have information needs
Buses, business support organizations, daycare centers, community centers, high schools, academic department offices, residence halls, computer labs, etc.
QR Codes
Short for Quick Response
Originally developed for inventory control
Need a QR code reader to read
Scan a QR code to access info or take action
Hicks, A., & Sinkinson, C. (2011). Situated Questions and Answers. Reference & User Services Quarterly, 51(1), 60–69. Placed posters with QR codes in the library in places where
patrons encountered difficulties
For the journals area: Poster says “How do I...
find older issues of the journal?
find the call number for the journal I need?
find a scanner?
find a copy machine?
get more help?
QR Codes are a stopgap
Near Field Communications
A way for devices to receive information at close range
RFID is an example
User no longer has to take the initiative to scan
In the meantime
Use QR codes with shortened URLs (bit.ly, goo.gl, tinyURL, etc.)
Another way to reach DIY students
Embed information literacy instruction seamlessly into the DNA of classes
Create learning objects, activities, and self-paced tutorials that faculty can easily integrate into their courses
Embed library instruction meaningfully into classes (beyond the one-shot)
Requires a tremendous amount of relationship-building with faculty + time
Questions? Comments?
Find me at
http://meredith.wolfwater.com/wordpress
mgfarkas (at) gmail.com
twitter: librarianmer
facebook: meredithfarkas
Slides and links at
http://bit.ly/1bXpMrt