Digital Commons Network^™

Hidden Opportunity: The Advantages Of Synchronizing Multiple Knowledge Bases, Emily Gross, Soley Somma, Jon Crossno

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Presentations

There are many advantages to synchronizing your knowledge bases that benefit your library. However, with reduced staff, the rapid changes across e-Resources, and working with multiple vendors, synching knowledge bases can seem daunting. Panelists will share why and how they chose to synchronize knowledge bases to support their library's strategy.

Library Response To Black Liberation Collective: A Review Of Student Calls For Change And Implications For Anti-Racist Initiatives In Academic Libraries, Lumarie Guth, Amy Bocko, Micha Broadnax

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Publications

This article examines seven case studies concerning college libraries addressing demands collated by the Black Liberation Collective in 2015. Six years out from the publication of the lists, we evaluate statements issued by the libraries and posted on their websites, the promises that have been made to address inequities, and the ensuing actions the libraries have taken to create a welcoming, inclusive community. In solidarity with the protests’ student activists at universities across the United States and Canada organized into the Black Liberation Collective and held the first #StudentBlackoutOut day of protests on university campuses on November 15 followed by …

Do Students Dream Of Electric Cats (Or Dogs)?: Using Robotics For A Unique Exam Week Activity In The Library, Jonathan Scherger, Juliana Espinosa, Autumn P. Edwards, Chad Edwards, Bryan Abendschein, Patricia Fravel Vander Meer

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Publications

During two nights at the library, students were invited to interact with one of nine robotic animals. Five of the robots look and react like cats, four look and react like dogs. The robots mimic the motions and sounds of live animals, including purring and barking. Students took a stress pre-test prior to interacting with the robots and a stress post-test at the conclusion of their interaction. Faculty from the School of Communication and the University Libraries were on hand to observe the interaction and gather feedback. The aim of this chapter is to demonstrate how a partnership with a …

Agile Electronic Resource And Systems Management, Geraldine Rinna

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Publications

Many people not entrenched in electronic resource management (ERM) are under the impression that with a mouse click or two in a library services platform (LSP) or an ERM system, users have the ability to discover millions of electronic items. In actuality, ERM is much more complex than it would seem, and the iterative nature of this work means that it is never complete. Currently, there is no single application that can provide the functionality for all the work necessary for the management of electronic resources. Additionally, because there are so many disparate systems and applications used in ERM, it …

2020 Aacsb Accreditation Standards: Τι Συνεπάγονται Για Τους Βιβλιοθηκονόμους Των Σχολών Διοίκησης Επιχειρήσεων [What They Mean For Business Librarians], Ilana Stonebraker, Lumarie Guth

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Presentations

The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB International), which accredits over 530 business schools in the United States alone, released a new business school accreditation standards document in 2020.

In this presentation the speakers will briefly track the movement in the field by giving a retrospective of library relevance in the AACSB standards and an overview of the development of the new standards. They will focus on sections of the new standards where business librarians can play an important role, giving librarians a potential blueprint for how they can like the work they do in business information literacy …

Framing The Frame: "Information Has Value" For Business Library Instruction, Gary Arave, Lumarie Guth, Ilana Stonebraker, Grace Liu

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Presentations

Four business librarians will share their experiences of retooling th ACRL Information Literacy frame "Information Has Value." This presentation will focus on four different learning approaches, pillars of persuasive argumentation, critical thinking discussions, a matrix, and role-play. One librarian outlines some of the problems with student understanding of the value of information based on the experience of teaching a massive 2500-student onboarding course for incoming Freshmen in which “Information Has Value” is addressed from both rhetorical and practical angles. Another librarian will present how they use “Information Has Value” in processes of reflection for decision making, exploring the frame through …

Business Information Literacy In The Early 21st Century: An Analysis Of Instructional Practices And Trends, Lumarie Guth, Amanda Click

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Presentations

Business librarians were surveyed in 2003, 2015, and 2019 to explore how they designed, delivered, and assessed their information literacy (IL) instruction. Data from these studies will be compared to paint a picture of the changing landscape for business librarians in the first two decades of the 21st century. Survey questions explored (1) business librarian demographics, (2) librarian perceptions and use of the ACRL Standards and Framework, (3) collaborative practice, and (4) IL assessment. This talk will focus on how business librarians have found relevancy (and irrelevancy) in specific aspects of the Framework and as they gained familiarity with the …

Aacsb Accreditation Standards: What They Mean For Business Librarians Past, Present, And Future, Lumarie Guth, Ilana Stonebraker

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Publications

The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB International), which accredits over 840 business schools globally, released a new business school accreditation standards document in 2020. In this paper, we briefly give a retrospective of library references in the AACSB standards over time and an overview of the development of the new standards. We then analyze sections of the new standards where business librarians can play an important role and outline how business librarians can use them in their collaboration with business faculty by mapping library information literacy to the programmatic goals of business schools.

The Drama Of Information Literacy: Collaborating To Incorporate Information Literacy Into A Theatre History Curriculum, Dianna Sachs, Michael J. Duffy Iv

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Publications

Information literacy (IL) has been studied extensively, but little has been written about IL applied to the study of theatre. This study addresses that lacuna by evaluating the success of a librarian-faculty collaboration to integrate IL throughout a year-long course of study. Using a pre- and post-test methodology, researchers assessed students’ knowledge on a range of IL concepts. The results were used to modify the IL curriculum to place greater emphasis on IL concepts that students struggled with, and to de-emphasize IL concepts for which students demonstrated adequate incoming knowledge. This paper will provide recommendations for librarians and other instructors …

Migration As Catalyst For Organizational Change In Technical Services, Geraldine Rinna, Marianne Swierenga

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Publications

This article describes the changes within the Western Michigan University Libraries Technical Services Department during a five-year period from 2012 to 2017, which involved a reorganization of staff and the migration to Alma/Primo, Ex Libris’ next-generation library management system and discovery solution. The aim of this case study is to understand the role these two significant events played in the transformation of the department.

Using Robot Animal Companions In The Academic Library To Mitigate Student Stress, Autumn P. Edwards, Chad Edwards, Bryan Abendschein, Juliana Espinosa, Jonathan Scherger, Patricia Fravel Vander Meer

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Publications

The purpose of this paper is to interrogate the relationship between self-reported levels of acute stress, perceived social support, and interactions with robot animals in an academic library. The authors hypothesized: 1. participants would report lower stress and higher positive affect after their interaction with a robot support animal; 2. perceived supportiveness of the robot support animal would positively predict the amount of stress reduction the participants reported.

The authors hosted a robot petting zoo in the main library at a large Midwestern university during finals week. Participants were asked to rate their stress level prior to interacting with the …

Arts À La Carte, Marianne Swierenga, Susan Steuer, Michael J. Duffy Iv

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Publications

Instructions on how to create a series of events to bring music, art, creative writing, and dance into the library, fostering an open, dynamic, and creatively charged library atmosphere.

From Service Role To Partnership: Faculty Voices On Collaboration With Librarians, Maria A. Perez-Stable, Judith M. Arnold, Lumarie Guth, Patricia F. Vander Meer

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Publications

Librarians at two research universities surveyed faculty practices and views about collaboration with librarians to gain insight into likely partners and strategies for information literacy (IL) instruction. Quantitative data on methods of collaboration revealed the most often-practiced method of working together was having a librarian deliver an instruction session, followed by developing an online course guide. Statistical differences by disciplinary area and years teaching were examined; experienced faculty reported a greater range of collaboration methods. Thematic analysis of open-ended responses on motives for collaboration, a factor less frequently studied, found the top reason was to improve student IL skills, followed …

Composers Of Color In Our Libraries: A Study Of Composers Of Color Included In Rob Deemer's Composer Diversity Database And How They Are Represented In Worldcat, Michael J. Duffy Iv

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Presentations

Michael Duffy will present a study of composers listed in a crowdsourced database of composers of color coordinated by composer Rob Deemer, identifying the corresponding Library of Congress name headings as applicable, and noting how many bibliographic records for scores are listed, and how many libraries hold the most widely-held score upon searching their names in WorldCat.

What High School Students Want To Know About Music: An Information Literacy Instruction Course For A High School Music Camp, Michael J. Duffy Iv

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Publications

The SEMINAR High School Summer Music Camp at Western Michigan University provided an opportunity to offer intensive music related information literacy instruction to a small group of high school students over a two-week session. These students participated in an assessment study in which they provided answers to questions related to information literacy learning outcomes before and after the course of instruction. This case study presents a model for lessons and curricular structure for an information literacy course in music for high school students.

Topic Development In The Freshman Engineering Paper: Finding A Focus, Edward J. Eckel

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Publications

Topic development and focus are relatively neglected areas of the student research process. This study examined how students in a freshman engineering writing class developed initial research paper topics into focused thesis statements. A mixed methods approach was used, incorporating online surveys, qualitative interviews, and a rubric to track topic development and assess thesis statement focus. The survey results and student comments indicated that participants were more competent at the mechanics of finding sources and writing than at developing appropriately scoped thesis statements. Closer collaboration between writing instructors and librarians is urged to more effectively support and scaffold topic development.

Scholarworks 2017 Year End Report, Maira Bundza

ScholarWorks Repository Information

Year end report for Western Michigan University's institutional repository ScholarWorks includes statistics on the number of items in ScholarWorks, significant additions in the past year, downloads and communities & series in the repository.

Information Literacy For Music Graduate Students: A Framework Application, Michael J. Duffy Iv

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Presentations

The syllabus for a graduate-level bibliographic research course in music at Western Michigan University (WMU) provides an opportunity to link Frames of ACRL’s Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education, as reflected in the WMU Libraries’ recently developed Information Literacy Core Competencies (ILCCs), to graduate instruction in music. I have had multiple opportunities to teach this graduate-level bibliographic research course, Introduction to Research in Music. Over the course of the semester, the course includes activities related to each of the Frames in the Framework.

These activities include in-class evaluation of reference and research resources, comparison of articles from Grove Music …

Contemporary Analysis Of Information Literacy In Music: A Literature Review And Selected Annotated Bibliography, Michael J. Duffy Iv

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Publications

Since 2004, the body of literature dedicated to information literacy in music has expanded, reflecting themes of definitions and standards of information literacy, the role of information literacy in accreditation and assessment, instructional relationships with faculty and students, and online instruction. In addition, the literature also explored themes of information ethics, embedded librarians, unconventional instructional modes, and the implications of user behavior for information literacy. This literature review and selected bibliography traces these themes across 57 writings, published or in-press, highlighting potential application of some of the ideas in these writings as well as potential for further exploration.

Telepresence Robotics In An Academic Library: A Study Of Exposure And Adaptation Among Patrons And Employees, Lumarie Guth, Patricia F. Vander Meer

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Publications

Purpose

Librarians are working with telepresence robotics for various uses, particularly as a communication method inhabiting a space between video chat and face-to-face interactions. The library at Western Michigan University partnered with the Western Michigan University Communication and Social Robotics Lab to showcase this emerging technology in a high-traffic setting utilized by students of every level and major. The purpose of this paper is to discuss patron reactions to this technology exhibition in the library, beta testing of a telepresence robot in various public services tasks, and library employee attitudes toward this unfamiliar technology before and after one-on-one training.

Design/methodology/approach …

Scholarworks Annual Report 2016-17, Maira Bundza

ScholarWorks Repository Information

The fiscal year report on WMU's institutional repository ScholarWorks includes statistics, projects, status of journals published in the IR, colleges served, usage statistics, staffing, decision making, connection to university and library strategic plans.

What High School Students Want To Know About Music: An Information Literacy Instruction Course For A High School Music Camp, Michael J. Duffy Iv

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Presentations

This program will present the results of a case study of an information literacy course offered to high school students during the SEMINAR High School Summer Music Camp at Western Michigan University in July of 2016. The curriculum of the course is geared toward the Standards for the 21st-Century Learner, the information literacy standards of the American Association of School Librarians for grades K-12, and informed by the MLA Information Literacy Instructional Objectives for Undergraduate Music Students. Teaching this course offers an opportunity to teach pre-collegiate information literacy skills, and to demonstrate the potential of our information resources in the …

National Trends In Adoption Of Information Literacy Standards Versus Framework And Impact On Instructional Best Practices: 2005-2015, Lumarie Guth, Dianna Sachs

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Presentations

This session will present results of a national study investigating the ways in which liaison librarians are incorporating the new Framework into their information literacy curriculum, compared with early adoption of the Standards fourteen years ago. The presentation explores connections between adoption of the Framework, assessment, and collaboration with teaching faculty. Despite the controversy surrounding the Framework, data show that librarians are adopting the Framework at a significantly faster pace than they did the Standards.

Partnering Library Research With Presentation And Writing Services At Western Michigan University’S Hcob Communication Center, Lumarie Guth, Marty Deming Maytnier

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Presentations

The development of the learning commons and embedded librarianship are two of the most recent responses to the downward trend in traditional reference statistics for academic libraries. Reference librarians are rethinking how to demonstrate the added value of their services and reach users at their point of need both online and face‐to‐face. Trends in the building of learning commons and service centers have led to the integration of support services such as tutoring, writing assistance, computer access, collaborative study zones, and research help in order to provide a one‐stop shop for students. For the past two years, business librarians for …

Creating Journals In Scholarworks, Maira Bundza

ScholarWorks Repository Information

These are the slides for a training workshop for the editors of one of the new journals in ScholarWorks where we went through not only the use of the Digital Commons platform, but also the steps an article takes from submission to publishing and all the tasks involved. Using one of our most successful journals as an example, some suggestions on personnel, marketing were given.

Hidden Gems Of The Library, Maria A. Perez-Stable

Hacking the Stacks: The Inside Scoop on Library Resources for Graduate Level Research

Hidden Gems of the Library

• Become more conversant with searching library catalogs, especially for books and electronic books
• Select and explore relevant databases in their respective disciplines
• Do more thorough literature searches on their topic by using advanced features and techniques

Hacking The Stacks: The Inside Scoop On Library Resources For Graduate Level Research From Wmu's Research Experts, University Libraries

Hacking the Stacks: The Inside Scoop on Library Resources for Graduate Level Research

Flier for workshop with schedule and description of sessions.

Citation Management & Avoiding Plagiarism, Kate Langan

Hacking the Stacks: The Inside Scoop on Library Resources for Graduate Level Research

The Ethics of Writing & Citation Management

• Identify the benefits and usefulness of citation management software (CMS)
• Learn how to get the most out of CMS to organize different research projects
• Define plagiarism and various forms it takes and where to go to help avoid plagiarism
• Discuss the ethics of writing, plagiarism in particular, and how CMS can help you
• Learn how to fold ethical writing practices into your research in order to avoid plagiarism

Textual Appropriation And Attribution In Engineering Theses And Dissertations: An Exploratory Study, Edward J. Eckel

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Publications

This exploratory study seeks to build a clearer picture of the extent to which engineering graduate students use and attribute unquoted verbatim source text in the literature review sections of their theses and dissertations. In addition, it explores whether or not there are differences between master’s and doctoral engineering students in these patterns of copying and attribution and what this might indicate about their potential skill levels in source use.

The study asks the following research questions: (1) Do the literature review sections of engineering master's theses contain longer average verbatim text matches than the corresponding sections of engineering doctoral …

The Choice Is Yours! Researchers Assign Subject Metadata To Their Own Materials In Institutional Repositories, Maira Bundza

University Libraries Faculty & Staff Publications

The Digital Commons platform for institutional repositories provides a three-tiered taxonomy of academic disciplines for each item submitted to the repository. Since faculty and departmental administrators across campuses are encouraged to submit materials to the institutional repository themselves, they must also assign disciplines or subject categories for their own work. The expandable drop-down menu of about 1,000 categories is easy to use, and facilitates the growth of the institutional repository and access to the materials through the Internet.