The Pivotal Role Of Academic Librarians In Digital Learning

The budget-constrained, rapidly evolving climate of higher education and academic libraries makes it a necessity for academic librarians and administrators to communicate the value of their library to the university. This book explains how to execute this critical task. Authored by a library director and director of library liason and instructional services who formerly served as a faculty member, a librarian, and a professional development instructor, The Pivotal Role of Academic Librarians in Digital Learning establishes the library's role in supporting student learning in an increasingly digital environment by exploring theoretical foundations and sharing concrete examples. The chapters focus on strategies and methods for demonstrating the academic library's value through strategic campus partnerships, creation of learning objects such as video tutorials, research instruction designed to facilitate student collaboration, and participation in assessment of learning on campus. All of the topics addressed within a broad range of subject matter fall within the scope of learning in the "digital age," with particular emphasis on utilizing online learning environments--including social media--to teach students critical thinking and research skills as well as to position the academic library as an integral part of the modern learning environment. This book is a must-read for academic librarians in instructional roles, teaching faculty, academic library administrators and managers who need to communicate the value of the library in relation to student learning, and academic administrators who are obligated to demonstrate the important role of libraries in academic excellence.

The budget-constrained, rapidly evolving climate of higher education and academic libraries makes it a necessity for academic librarians and administrators to communicate the value of their library to the university. This book explains how to execute this critical task. Authored by a library director and director of library liason and instructional services who formerly served as a faculty member, a librarian, and a professional development instructor, The Pivotal Role of Academic Librarians in Digital Learning establishes the library's role in supporting student learning in an increasingly digital environment by exploring theoretical foundations and sharing concrete examples. The chapters focus on strategies and methods for demonstrating the academic library's value through strategic campus partnerships, creation of learning objects such as video tutorials, research instruction designed to facilitate student collaboration, and participation in assessment of learning on campus. All of the topics addressed within a broad range of subject matter fall within the scope of learning in the "digital age," with particular emphasis on utilizing online learning environments—including social media—to teach students critical thinking and research skills as well as to position the academic library as an integral part of the modern learning environment. This book is a must-read for academic librarians in instructional roles, teaching faculty, academic library administrators and managers who need to communicate the value of the library in relation to student learning, and academic administrators who are obligated to demonstrate the important role of libraries in academic excellence.

An academic library’s instruction program reflects and communicates its vision for teaching and learning within the context of its institution, and the instruction coordinator plays an essential role in shaping and advancing this vision. Instruction coordinators and directors in academic libraries may have a variety of titles and wear an entire wardrobe’s worth of hats, but they face many of the same challenges in developing, promoting, and evaluating their instruction programs. This book approaches using the instruction program as the catalyst to further the library’s agenda for teaching and learning and gives instruction program directors a set of resources that will help them map out, enact, and assess the impact of this agenda. This book is ideal for librarians and administrators who direct, coordinate, or lead an academic library’s teaching and learning program and is particularly useful for new instruction program coordinators—either those new to their position or new to their institution.

This book examines the changing roles of the librarian and how working within a rich digital environment has impacted on the ability of professionals to develop the appropriate 'know how', skills, knowledge and behaviours required in order to operate effectively. Expert specialists and opinion-makers from around the world discuss the challenges and successes of adapting existing practices, introducing new services and working with new partners in an environment that no longer recognizes traditional boundaries and demarcation of roles. The book is structured thematically, with a focus on three key strands where the impact of digital technologies is significant: - Rethinking marketing and communication: this strand looks at strategic approaches and practices which harness social media and illustrate the importance of communication and marketing activities in these new online spaces. - Rethinking support for academic practice: this part examines the professional expertise required of librarians who engage with and support new academic and learner practices in digitally rich teaching, learning and research environments. - Rethinking resource delivery: this section investigates the use of strategies to maximize access to online resources and services: harnessing system data to enhance collection management and user choice, designing and managing mobile 'friendly' learning spaces and providing virtual resources and services to an overseas campus. Readership: This timely and inspiring edited collection should make vital reading for librarians, library schools, departments of information science and other professional groups such as education developers, learning technologists and IT specialists.

University libraries around the world have embraced the possibilities of the digital learning environment, facilitating its use and proactively seeking to develop the provision of electronic resources and services. The digital environment offers opportunities and challenges for librarians in all aspects of their work - in information literacy, virtual reference, institutional repositories, e-learning, managing digital resources and social media. The authors in this timely book are leading experts in the field of library and information management, and are at the forefront of change in their respective institutions. University Libraries and Digital Learning Environments will be invaluable for all those involved in managing libraries or learning services, whether acquiring electronic resources or developing and delivering services in digital environments.

Exploring the Digital Library, a volume in The Jossey-Bass Online Teaching and Learning series, addresses the key issue of library services for faculty and their students in the online learning environment. Written by librarians at Athabasca University, a leading institution in distance education, this book shows how faculty can effectively use digital libraries in their day-to-day work and in the design of electronic courses. Exploring the Digital Library is filled with information, ideas, and Discusses how information and communication technologies are transforming scholarship communication Provides suggestions for integrating digital libraries into teaching and course development Describes approaches to promoting information literacy skills and integrating these skills across the curriculum Outlines the skills and knowledge required in digital library use Suggests opportunities for faculty and librarians to collaborate in the online educational environment

Intended for use by both librarians and students in LIS programs, Academic Librarianship Today is the most current, comprehensive overview of the field available today. Key features include: Each chapter was commissioned specifically for this new book, and the authors are highly regarded academic librarians or library school faculty— or both Cutting-edge topics such as open access, copyright, digital curation and preservation, emerging technologies, new roles for academic librarians, cooperative collection development and resource sharing, and patron-driven acquisitions are explored in depth Each chapter ends with thought-provoking questions for discussion and carefully constructed assignments that faculty can assign or adapt for their courses The book begins with Gilman’s introduction, an overview that briefly synthesizes the contents of the contributors’ chapters by highlighting major themes. The main part of the book is organized into three parts: The Academic Library Landscape Today, Academic Librarians and Services Today, and Changing Priorities, New Directions.

This inspiring book will enable academic librarians to develop excellent research and instructional services and create a library culture that encompasses exploration, learning and collaboration. Higher education and academic libraries are in a period of rapid evolution. Technology, pedagogical shifts, and programmatic changes in education mean that libraries must continually evaluate and adjust their services to meet new needs. Research and learning across institutions is becoming more team-based, crossing disciplines and dependent on increasingly sophisticated and varied data. To provide valuable services in this shifting, diverse environment, libraries must think about new ways to support research on their campuses, including collaborating across library and departmental boundaries. This book is intended to enrich and expand your vision of research support in academic libraries by: Inspiring you to think creatively about new services. Sparking ideas of potential collaborations within and outside the library, increasing awareness of functional areas that are potential key partners. Providing specific examples of new services, as well as the decision-making and implementation process. Encouraging you to take a broad view of research support rather than thinking of research and instruction services, metadata creation and data services etc as separate initiatives. Dynamic Research Support in Academic Libraries provides illustrative examples of emerging models of research support and is contributed to by library practitioners from across the world. The book is divided into three sections: Part I: Training and Infrastructure, which describes the role of staff development and library spaces in research support Part II: Data Services and Data Literacy, which sets out why the rise of research data services in universities is critical to supporting the current provision of student skills that will help develop them as data-literate citizens. Part III: Research as a Conversation, which discusses academic library initiatives to support the dissemination, discovery and critical analysis of research. This is an essential guide for librarians and information professionals involved in supporting research and scholarly communication, as well as library administrators and students studying library and information science.