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December 2023 Library & Learning Newsletter, Minnesota State University, Mankato. Library & Learning Dean’S Office Communications Team

Library & Learning Newsletters

PDF version of the December 2023 (Volume 2, Issue 5) Library & Learning Newsletter.

Aha! Centering Student Voices To Better Understand An Instruction Program, Andrea Wilcox Brooks, Cathy Craig, Meredith Riney

Communications in Information Literacy

This article describes using aha moments as an assessment approach to gain a better understanding of student learning in relation to the six frames in the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education. Librarians asked students to share an aha moment following information literacy instruction sessions during the fall 2022 semester. Researchers coded responses to one of the six IL frames and found that student insights most often reflected learning aligned to the “Searching as Strategic Exploration” frame, though “Information Has Value” also had a strong presence. The results provided a holistic picture …

An Exploration Of The Impact Of Playing A Puzzle Game On Collaborative Problem Solving Skills, Dima Kassab

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

The purpose of this research was to gain a better understanding of the impact of game mechanics on developing collaborative problem solving (CPS) skills. CPS skills are important for the complex work environments of the 21st century, and games appear to provide potential learning experiences where such skills can develop. The research questions of this study tackled how collaborative problem solving skills developed and how game environments through game mechanics can contribute to such development. Following a qualitative approach, the interactions between dyads in a puzzle game was analyzed using the PISA Collaborative Problem Solving framework (2015). This research contributed …

Cyber Insurance As An Effective Cyber Risk Management Strategy For Local Government Resiliency: The Case Of Municipalities In New York State, Elisabeth V. Dubois

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

In an era of escalating cyber risks, municipal governments grapple with mounting challenges stemming from their increasing reliance on IT systems and limited resources. This dissertation presents a novel exploration into the uncharted realm of cyber insurance adoption within municipalities, aimed at enhancing their cyber resiliency by exploring to what extent municipalities utilize cyber insurance to manage their cyber risks and what effect this has had on their cyber resiliency. With a focus on New York State, a dynamic backdrop offering diverse municipalities, notable cyber incidents, robust security regulations, and economic influence, this study delves deep into the extent to …

High Throughput Phenotyping: Field Based Triticale Breeding And Educational Resource Impact, Catherine Kay Mick

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Triticale (Triticosecale) is a multifunctional hybrid cereal crop that adopted the hardiness of rye and wheat's high-yielding and nutritional qualities. Plant breeding programs work to improve the quality and number of varieties available to producers through multiple rounds of evaluation and selection. However, traditional phenotyping methods are labor-intensive, time-consuming, and destructive, creating a phenotyping bottleneck. Remote sensing using unmanned aerial systems has the potential to alleviate this issue and change the evaluation of phenotypes in a breeding. Demand for educational resources to advance public awareness and prepare the workforce has increased with the utilization of more technology in …

Usage Statistics: Project Counter R5 Ir_M1 Report Fy2023 - Multimedia Item Requests, Andrée J. Rathemacher

Technical Services Reports and Statistics

Project COUNTER R5 Report IR_M1 for the University of Rhode Island for the period from July 1, 2022 - June 30, 2023. The IR_M1 report is defined as "Multimedia Item Requests." This report presents an annual total only and only includes those platforms successfully configured for automated harvesting via SUSHI.

File for download is Excel spreadsheet generated by Alma Analytics.

Results:

Total Item Requests - 4,864

Usage Statistics: Project Counter R5 Dr_D1 Report Fy2023 - Database Search And Item Usage, Andrée J. Rathemacher

Technical Services Reports and Statistics

Project COUNTER R5 Report DR_D1 for the University of Rhode Island for the period from July 1, 2022 - June 30, 2023. The DR_D1 report is defined as "Database Search and Item Usage." This report presents an annual total only and only includes those platforms successfully configured for automated harvesting via SUSHI.

File for download is Excel spreadsheet generated by Alma Analytics.

Results:

Searches Automated - 101,532

Searches Federated - 10,516

Searches Regular - 1,059,387

Total Item Investigations - 519,728

Total Item Requests - 219,645

Usage Statistics: Project Counter R5 Tr_B1 Report Fy2023 - Book Requests (Excluding Oa_Gold) By Title, Andrée J. Rathemacher

Technical Services Reports and Statistics

Project COUNTER R5 Report TR_B1 for the University of Rhode Island for the period from July 1, 2022 - June 30, 2023. The TR_B1 report is defined as "Book Requests (Excluding OA_Gold)." This report presents an annual total only and only includes those platforms successfully configured for automated harvesting via SUSHI.

File for download is Excel spreadsheet generated by Alma Analytics.

Results:

Total Item Requests - 118,197

Unique Title Requests - 46,803

Usage Statistics: Project Counter R5 Tr_J1 Report Fy2023 - Journal Requests (Excluding Oa_Gold) By Title, Andrée J. Rathemacher

Technical Services Reports and Statistics

Project COUNTER R5 Report TR_J1 for the University of Rhode Island for the period from July 1, 2022 - June 30, 2023. The TR_J1 report is defined as "Journal Requests (Excluding OA_Gold)." This report presents an annual total only and only includes those platforms successfully configured for automated harvesting via SUSHI.

File for download is Excel spreadsheet generated by Alma Analytics.

Results:

Total Item Requests - 836,365

Unique Item Requests - 625,288

A Framework For Flourishing: Belonging, Confidence, And Connectedness In Academic Libraries, Kathleen Anne Langan

Dissertations

Academic libraries support students to be successful in their lives post-graduation by adopting more human-centered missions, visions, and measurable outcomes Support and success in this sense means developing programmatic outcomes that bolster the concepts of human flourishing – potential and purpose – that drive students toward happiness in their personal, professional, and civic lives. Students are more than learners, they are whole persons with social, emotional, and life-long goals that go beyond classroom learning, and academic performance. Currently, academic libraries rely heavily on measuring the value they add to institutions of higher education (IOHE) through library initiatives for academic support, …

Exploring The Role Of Information Literacy Instruction In Student Co-Creation Of Community-Based Research Products, Robyn Hall

Communications in Information Literacy

Supported by institutional commitments to community engagement, undergraduate students at universities across North America are participating in community-based research projects. These experiential learning activities allow students to collaborate with community partners to address issues in their communities, often resulting in co-creating research products that seek to have a real-world impact. This article reports on ways that academic librarians can support students engaged in these activities, informed by interview data gathered from university administrators and faculty members from across Canada with expertise in conducting and overseeing students' participation in research connected to university–community partnerships. This growing area of scholarly activity in …

An Exploration Of Two Information Literacy Open Learning Object Repositories: Value, Content, And Engagement, Tiffanie Lynn Ford-Baxter

Communications in Information Literacy

Information literacy (IL) open learning object repositories (LORs) provide a space for librarians to find and exchange instruction resources and lessons. Given many librarians enter the workforce with little or no formal training or educational opportunities to learn about pedagogy, these repositories are indispensable resources to the Library and Information Science field. This study explored the contents of two popular IL LORs, Project Cora and the Association of College and Research Libraries Framework for Information Literacy Sandbox, to uncover how users engage with the resources and how the repositories differ. This study's findings suggest that while resources within the LORs …

Swimming Upstream In The Academic Library: Exploring Faculty Needs For Library Streaming Media Collections, Elsa Loftis, Carly Lamphere

Library Faculty and Staff Publications and Presentations

Objective - To compare Portland State University’s (PSU) local experience of using streaming media to national and international trends identified in a large qualitative study by Ithaka S+R. This comparison will help librarians better understand if the PSU Library is meeting the needs of faculty with its streaming media collection through a series of faculty interviews.

Methods and Intervention - Two librarians from PSU participated in a large, collaborative, two-part study conducted by Ithaka S+R in 2022, with 23 other academic institutions in the United States, Canada, and Germany As part of this study, the authors conducted a series of …

Digital Public Library Ecosystem 2023, Rachel Noorda, Kathi Inman Berens

English Faculty Publications and Presentations

The Digital Public Library Ecosystem is the network of digital book collection and circulation specifically through public libraries. Digital book collection and circulation have never been more important than they are today. Nearly 1 in 3 Americans has read an ebook in the last 12 months. Audiobook listening is also high; nearly 1 in 4 Americans has listened to an audiobook in that same time period. Libraries are one way in which readers gain access to ebooks and audiobooks. Despite this, a holistic view of the digital library ecosystem is largely opaque. Three factors contribute to current confusion about the …

The Information Literacy Class As Theatrical Performance: A Qualitative Study Of Academic Librarians’ Understanding Of Their Teacher Identity, Mark Aaron Polger

Publications and Research

This qualitative study examines how academic librarians understand, conceptualize, and describe their teacher identity. The role of the academic librarian has greatly changed due to the advent of information technology. Traditionally, they were generalists, who were responsible for selecting and maintaining library collections. Academic librarian roles have evolved into web developers, information literacy (IL) instructors, emerging technology innovators, marketing and outreach coordinators, open education resources (OER) advocates, and scholarly communication experts. This research investigates the academic librarian as teacher phenomenon, how they describe their professional identity as teachers, the skills, knowledge, and competencies they teach, and their beliefs of how …

Expanding On The Frames: Making A Case For Algorithmic Literacy, Susan G. Archambault

Communications in Information Literacy

Traditional information literacy skills (e.g., effectively finding and evaluating information) need to be updated due to the rapidly changing information ecosystem and the growing dominance of online platforms that use algorithms to control and shape information. This article proposes additions to the current ACRL Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education that relate to algorithmic literacy. The “Authority Is Constructed and Contextual” frame can be applied to recognizing the need to question algorithmic authority (including algorithmic bias), the "Information Has Value” frame can be used to acknowledge online platforms’ use of proprietary algorithms allowing third parties to access personal data, …

United States Social Security Administration Response To The Office Of Science And Technology Policy Memo, 2022: Public Access Plan (December 2023)

Copyright, Fair Use, Scholarly Communication, etc.

SSA response to OSTP memo, 2022: Public Access Plan (December 2023)

Expanding On The Frames: Making A Case For Algorithmic Literacy, Susan G. Archambault

Librarian Publications & Presentations

Traditional information literacy skills (e.g., effectively finding and evaluating information) need to be updated due to the rapidly changing information ecosystem and the growing dominance of online platforms that use algorithms to control and shape information. This article proposes additions to the current ACRL Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education that relate to algorithmic literacy. The “Authority is Constructed and Contextual” frame can be applied to recognizing the need to question algorithmic authority (including algorithmic bias), the "Information Has Value” frame can be used to acknowledge online platforms’ use of proprietary algorithms allowing third parties to access personal data, …

Open Access, Anne Shelley, Rachel E. Scott

Faculty and Staff Publications – Milner Library

[Conclusion] While the embrace of Open Access within music scholarship and librarianship has been somewhat spotty and circumstantial to date, there are some patterns to celebrate. Music librarians have collaborated with stakeholders to create a number of high-value and openly-licensed online collections, libraries and publishers are exploring models that will better fund OA research by arts and humanities scholars, professional societies are responding to members’ prompts and formalizing their support through new OA publications, and the increased incorporation of linked open data standards will better connect information that was once siloed. It is challenging to predict the state of the …

Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, And Access Annual Report, Fiscal Year 2023, April K. Anderson-Zorn, Elizabeth Babin, Karmine Beecroft, Rebecca Fitzsimmons, Mallory Jallas, Laura Killingsworth, Heather Koopmans, Maddi Loiselle, Jean Macdonald, Joshua Newport, Vanette Schwartz, Lindsey Skaggs, Caitlin Stewart, Cassie Thayer-Styes, Angela Yon, Eric Willey

Reports and White Papers - Milner Library

Report of Milner Library's activities and initiatives related to Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access in Fiscal Year 2023.

Demystifying The Panorama Of Electoral Violence In Nigeria: Exploring Education And E-Library Resources As Antidotes, Grace Ogechukwu Ugwonna, Phd, Chizoba Jovita Akudike, Josephine Ngozi Morah, Anthony Chikadibia Ugwonna

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

The incidence of electoral violence in Nigeria and the involvement of youth, has remained a threat to the survival of Democracy. Given the damaging impact it has on the socioeconomic, cultural, religious, and political lives of the people and its threat to human existence, scholars have continued to explore ways of dealing with the enigma. This study therefore sought to ascertain the extent to which Civic education and voter education are relevant in curbing electoral violence among the youth and the extent of using e-library resources by the youth to access political information. This research effort was driven by the …

Characteristics Of Award-Winning Children’S Books About Agriculture: An Analysis Of Content, And The Perspectives Of Authors, Illustrators, And Publishers, Addison L. Beckham

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this two-article qualitative study was to characterize children's literature about agriculture and to describe the perceptions of authors and illustrators who are responsible for writing and designing these successful publications. This will result in the ability of organizations like Feeding Minds Press to provide writers, illustrators, and publishers with effective strategies and techniques to improve the accuracy and overall quality of children’s literature about agriculture. Few parameters exist for authors of children’s books about agriculture (Biser, 2007). These parameters are necessary to ensure the quality and accuracy of these educational efforts (Serafini, 2012). Though Feeding Minds Press …

A Study Of Using E-Resources By Research Scholars In Selected Institutions Of Southern Tamilnadu: Regression Analysis, Senthur Vel Murugan Librarian

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

The present examination has been grasped to answer what is the impact of e-resources. This investigation relies upon the customer capacity of the assessment researchers of the picked association of southern Tamilnadu. E-Resources, particularly in advanced education and research, is getting a prime spot in scholastic exercises. The scholarly network is gradually exchanging over from utilizing print assets to e-assets. Changing the need for the scholarly network for e-assets makes another test to the library of the executives at chosen organizations. Studies are directed to think about the need for and utilization of e-assets for scholarly purposes. This investigation is …

Research Performance Analysis Of Top Six Heis In Wb Based On Nirf-2021 Ranking: An Evaluation-Based Study, Debdas Mondal

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

The Indian higher education system is the third largest education system in the world, however, no Indian universities have been found in the list of top 100 universities in the world. The Government of India has taken several initiatives to improve the quality of education in India and its ranking position so that Indian universities improve their quality and provide the best quality education and research. NIRF is one such initiative. As per NIRF, all the HEIs are evaluated on the basis of certain stipulated performance of parameters score, such as ’Quantitative Research (QNR)’, ’Qualitative Research (QLR)’, ’Students and Faculty …

Practicing And Marketing With Empathy In Libraries, Wren Daniel Ambroise

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

In 2017, Abigail Phillips, a postdoctoral fellow at Utah State University wrote, “The role of empathy in the library has been infrequently researched in library and information science (LIS) literature. However, as demonstrated in the reactions of libraries and librarians during recent social movements, empathy is a critical component of librarianship and routine library work” (Phillips 1). Over the last twenty years, numerous researchers have argued the same; this paper enters into conversation several texts from the late 2000s to the early 2020s that conceptualize the intersections between empathy marketing and librarianship and/or put them into practice. It first defines …

Possible Futures For Colonial Collecting Institutions: A Study Of Historical Societies In The United States, Jen Hoyer

Publications and Research

This article explores how collecting institutions with deeply colonial roots can move into a decolonial future existence, through an in-depth study of historical societies in the United States. Examining their historic roots in colonialism of the United States and the persistence of these colonial identities in spite of a variety of evolutionary trends over the 20th century, this article asks: what decolonial possibilities exist for their future? If institutional shifts have not undone the colonial identities of some collecting institutions, what can? Turning to Sarah Ahmed’s theory on queer use and Saidiya Hartman’s method of critical fabulation, I suggest practical …

Bibliometric Study Of Desidoc Journal Of Library And Information Technology, Roopendra Singh, Abhishek Yadav, Babita Yadav, Neeraj Kumar Verma

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

This study provides a bibliometric analysis of the DESIDOC journal of library and information technology during 2012–2022. Research data for this study has been exported from the SCOPUS database. A total of 638 articles published during the study period were analyzed to determine the most cited articles, most prolific author, growth of publication, occurrence of keywords, citation pattern, and authorship pattern. To visualize the occurrence of keywords and the co-citation of the author network, Vosviewer software was used. This study also reveals that bibliometric, scientometrics, e-resource, and citation analysis are the most prolific research areas.

Enhancing Public Library Services: A Future Outlook On Digital Libraries In Pakistan, Muhammad Sohail Haider, Chen Ya Prof, Md. Nurul Islam, Muhammad Danyal, Muhammad Hussain

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

Objective: Governments consistently aim to enhance services and establish online connections to efficiently deliver necessary information. This study aims to evaluate the future potential of digital libraries in public libraries in Pakistan by examining various projects that have introduced innovative approaches to foster the development of digital library services.

Methodology: The analysis utilized the Amos 24 version, employing the Structural Equation Model (SEM) for assessing model fit indices and validating hypotheses. Additionally, Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 24 was employed for Pearson correlation and factor analysis.

Findings: The results suggest the appropriateness of discussing three out of the …

Building An Institutional Repository With Student Scholarship, Scott Bacon

Library Faculty Publications

Student scholarship should be an integral part of any institutional repository, as it can showcase the important work that students do during their time at the institution. This chapter proposes that an initial focus on student scholarship can aid colleges and universities in building their institutional repositories quickly. This method of collection building can also help to quickly achieve buy-in from campus stakeholders. University administrators will like seeing strong initial usage numbers and can feel confident that the repository will be a good project to fund into the future. Faculty members will see a stable system in which they can …

Contemporary Library Censorship Tactics: Reviewing The Literature, Lex Faller

PSU McNair Scholars Online Journal

Library censorship efforts in the U.S. have broken records annually since 2021, spurred by social, technological, and political developments. These censorship efforts most frequently target diverse media representing Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) and/or lesbian, gay, bisexual+, trans+, queer, intersex, and asexual+ (LGBTQIA+) communities in and at libraries. The current surge in attempts to censor library materials constitutes part of a greater conservative political strategy in the contemporary culture wars. This literature review analyzes the academic and professional literature alongside the gray literature regarding these censorship efforts to make sense of these trends. By investigating bodies of knowledge …