Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Are Honors Students Losing Place In Cyberspace?, Steffen Wilson, Sarah Carty, Bruce Maclaren

Steffen Wilson

No abstract provided.

An Exploratory Analysis Of The Use Of Cognitive,Adaptive And Behavioural Indices For Cluster Analysis Of Asd Subgroups, Vicki Bitsika, Christopher Sharpley, Sharon Orapeleng

Vicki Bitsika

Background Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) includes symptoms that vary in severity and frequency between children. Consequently, multiple psychometric assessment procedures are recommended to detect an ASD, including scales which asses the presence and nature of ASD-related behaviour. However, to date, few studies have examined the relative and specific contribution which such behaviourally oriented scales can make to the diagnosis of individual children with ASD. Method Cluster analysis was used to explore the common characteristics of a group of 53 preschool and elementary school children with an ASD, based upon scores on tests of cognitive ability, adaptive behaviour and behavioural checklists …

A Standardized Approach To Assessment: Results From A Pilot Study Of Library Instruction Sessions At San Jose State University, Shannon M. Staley

Shannon M. Staley

Introduction
We explore the use of a psychometric model for locally-relevant, information literacy assessment, using an online tool for standardised assessment of student learning during discipline-based library instruction sessions.

Method
A quantitative approach to data collection and analysis was used, employing standardised multiple-choice survey questions followed by individual, cognitive interviews with undergraduate students. The assessment tool was administered to five general education psychology classes during library instruction sessions.

Analysis
Descriptive statistics were generated by the assessment tool. Results. The assessment tool proved a feasible means of measuring student learning. While student scores improved on every survey question, there was uneven …

Using The Read (Reference Effort Assessment Data) Scale© To Assess Reference Work, Maira Bundza

Maira Bundza

Surveys have shown that librarians are not completely satisfied with the statistics used for reference services, so Bella Karr Gerlich at Dominican University developed the READ (Reference Effort Assessment Data) Scale, which has now been tested by 14 academic libraries. In October 2008 the Central Reference Department at Western Michigan University Libraries started using the READ Scale to record reference transactions. Instead of just writing down tick marks for each question answered, each question was rated on a six-point scale, based on the difficulty of the question and the time it took to answer. This low-tech tool was easy to …

Yes, We're Open: Library Hours And What Patrons Really Want, Jennifer Link Jones

Jennifer L. Jones

The Georgia State University Student Government Association (SGA) announced a plan to petition the University Library to extend its hours. Specifically, SGA wanted the library to remain open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The library kicked into assessment mode and gathered data to determine whether longer library hours were appropriate, especially during a time of budget cuts. The library used the data to advise SGA, as well as to inform staffing and hours of operation decisions. Do patrons really want libraries to be open 24x7? Georgia State’s Training & Assessment Librarian will present her findings during this …