Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Is There A Place For “Plagiarism Detection Software” In An Academic Library?, Anna Wigtil

UNL Libraries: Faculty Publications

Many colleges and universities use Turnitin, SafeAssign, and other “plagiarism detection” software to detect, and deter, academic dishonesty. Since 2005, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries have provided students direct access to SafeAssign and Turnitin as teaching tools to help them identify improper citation of sources. Students appreciate having free access to these products when similar software can be cost-prohibitive. However, Turnitin commonly finds false positives in student papers, and students may find Turnitin’s originality reports difficult to understand. Therefore, it is unclear how helpful it is to offer this library service to students, versus focusing on teaching proper citation of …

Academic Libraries And Writing Centers: Collaborations At Us Public Research Universities, Mary Bolin

UNL Libraries: Faculty Publications

The websites of 71 US research universities were the source of data on the relationship of academic libraries and campus writing centers, which provide support for developing written communication skills. All 71 institutions have writing centers, generally administered by the academic success operation, the English department, or a college such as arts and sciences. Just under half (n=35) of the institutions have a writing center located in the library. In 16 of those institutions, the library is the only location of the writing center. The general issues of academic success and “library as place,” as well as the space that …

From The Trenches To The Writer’S Desk: Establishing A Collection Of Children’S Books Authored By Military Veterans In An Academic Library, Casey D. Hoeve

UNL Libraries: Faculty Publications

Kansas State University possesses a collection of juvenile literature to aid Education and English Department programs. KState is also the university with the largest military population in the state. It was discovered that several famous children’s authors were military veterans. Building upon this research, over 160 children’s authors who served in the military were identified. K-State Libraries NEH Endowment Committee funded the curation of a military veteran children’s literature collection, the only known academic library to possess such a collection. The collection enabled the libraries to provide outreach through access to the materials, internet resources, and special collections exhibits.

Academic Library As Learning Space And As Collection: A Learning Commons' Effects On Collections And Related Resources And Services, Deeann Allison, Erica Defrain, Brianna D. Hitt, David C. Tyler

UNL Libraries: Faculty Publications

A tremendous amount has been written about the library as a learning space and about this model's two most popular outgrowths, the information commons and the learning commons. Little to nothing, however, has been written about how reshaping an academic/research library and repurposing library space affects the library as a collection, its resources, and its collections-related services. This study looks at the immediate impact of opening a learning commons in an academic/research library on circulation, document delivery and interlibrary loan requests for returnables, and on- and off-campus database accesses at one institution.

Additional tables and statistical analysis are contained in …

How Important Are Data Curation Activities To Researchers? Gaps And Opportunities For Academic Libraries, Lisa R. Johnston, Jacob Carlson, Cynthia Hudson-Vitale, Heidi Imker, Wendy Kozlowski, Robert Olendorf, Claire Stewart

UNL Libraries: Faculty Publications

Introduction: Data curation may be an emerging service for academic libraries, but researchers actively “curate” their data in a number of ways—even if terminology may not always align. Building on past user-needs assessments performed via survey and focus groups, the authors sought direct input from researchers on the importance and utilization of specific data curation activities. Methods: Between October 21, 2016, and November 18, 2016, the study team held focus groups with 91 participants at six different academic institutions to determine which data curation activities were most important to researchers, which activities were currently underway for their data, and how …

Faculty Perceptions Of Teaching Information Literacy To First-Year Students: A Phenomenographic Study, Lorna M. Dawes

UNL Libraries: Faculty Publications

This study examines faculty perceptions of teaching information literacy and explores the influence of these perceptions on pedagogy. The study adopted an inductive phenomenographic approach, using 24 semi-structured interviews with faculty teaching first-year courses at an American public research university. The results of the study reveal four qualitative ways in which faculty experience teaching information use to first year students that vary within three themes of expanding awareness. The resulting outcome space revealed that faculty had two distinct conceptions of teaching information literacy: (1) Teaching to produce experienced consumers of information, and (2) Teaching to cultivate intelligent participants in discourse …

High-Impact Educational Practices: An Exploration Of The Role Of Information Literacy, Catherine Fraser Riehle, Sharon A. Weiner

UNL Libraries: Faculty Publications

There is an expectation that college students graduate with competency in information literacy. Ideally, institutions of higher education integrate these competencies throughout their curricula in a progressive manner. High-impact educational practices contribute to student success. The purpose of this article is to examine recent literature about five of the high-impact educational practices (capstone experiences, learning communities, service learning and community-based learning, undergraduate research, and writing-intensive courses) to understand the extent to which they include the integration of information literacy competencies. The article includes recommendations for practice and research in the areas of assessment, pedagogy, and program planning.

Differently Able: A Review Of Academic Library Websites For People With Disabilities, Mary Cassner, Charlene Maxey-Harris, Toni Anaya

UNL Libraries: Faculty Publications

This research is based on the Library Services for People with Disabilities Policy, which was approved by the American Library Association in 2001. The policy identified focus areas for libraries including library services, facilities, collections, and assistive technology. Library websites frequently convey this information to users. Our study examined and compared academic library websites for the differently able. What services do academic libraries offer to the differently able? Is there a basic level of services that libraries identify or should offer? Are websites for people with disabilities easily located from the library’s home page?

Multicultural E-Resources: An Exploratory Study Of Resources Held By Arl Libraries, Charlene Maxey-Harris

UNL Libraries: Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study was to discover what libraries belonging to the Association of Research Libraries are subscribing to in support of multicultural and diversity research. A list of bibliographic and digital collections was created and searched for in the online public access catalogs of academic and research libraries in 2005 and 2008. A list of recommended e-resources was derived based on the ownership of Association of Research Libraries member libraries and Magazine for Libraries 2006 and 2009. During the three-year interval there was a 45.8 percent increase in subscriptions to the multicultural and diversity databases.

Content And Design Of Academic Library Web Sites For Distance Learners: An Analysis Of Arl Libraries, Kate Adams, Mary Cassner

UNL Libraries: Faculty Publications

College and university libraries use the Web to communicate with distance learners about library services. How easy is it for distance learners to determine which library services offered by their home institution are available to them? Do academic libraries provide a comprehensive Web page intended specifically for distance learners? This study evaluates the Web pages of Association of Research Libraries member libraries for content and design of pages intended for distance learners.