Library Research Guides
Library Research Guides
The Egan Library is a modern academic library located in the heart of the Juneau campus. The Library consolidates the resources and expertise necessary to promote and facilitate student learning outside the classroom. In addition to traditional library resources and services, the library building houses a Learning Center, Testing Center, Writing Center, Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching (CELT), and a Classroom Technology Support Desk staffed through IT Services. There are five programmatic areas regularly assessed within Egan Library's Regional Library Services, including:
Collections and Resource Discovery
UAS libraries assess for the appropriate level of currency, depth, and breadth of collections to support programs, consistent with its mission and core themes, through the following methods:
analysis of student course evaluations related to adequacy of library resources. Data reveal numerical ratings and student comments are analyzed to determine both actual and perceived areas of need. For actual deficiencies, collections are updated, for perceived deficiencies, faculty are contacted at the course level to offer information literacy assistance.
regular inventory and assessment of the age and use of the collection based on subject area to prioritize ongoing weeding efforts; collection analysis tools include OCLC WorldShare Collection Evaluation, and BlueCloud Analytics recently acquired by the Alaska Library Catalog consortium (ALC).
assessment of whether or not to buy physical or electronic books based on how programs or courses are currently taught; library faculty serve on the Curriculum Committee and Faculty Senate and share information about new courses or expanding (or eliminated) programs to inform collection development.
analysis of physical and online journals and database collection usage; communicate to faculty all proposed cuts, based on metrics such as the per-article cost, and use feedback to make final selections. make alternative suggestions and provide access to open source alternatives when possible. communicate final collections related decisions in an online guide titled Budget Reductions at Egan Library
review textbook circulation trends. funds saved from the closing of the Juneau campus bookstore paid for the initial purchase of many titles; now the collection relies primarily on faculty copies, student donations, and titles acquired through the ebooks for the classroom component of the Open UAS project.
collect scholarly output from UAS for the Institutional Repository Scholarworks@UA.
Teaching and Learning
As with collections, student course ratings are used to evaluate effectiveness of library services, such as reference and instruction. (I will link to the student course ratings tab). In Fall 2018, library faculty also piloted an information literacy outcomes assessment for course-embedded instruction that is being continued in Spring 2019.
reference desk instruction during fall semester has increased 23% (Fall 2016 to Fall 2018) while spring semester is steady (2% increase Spring 2017 to Spring 2019) but with consistently fewer reference interactions.
in-person reference instruction represents the bulk of use (70%) while chat is the preferred format for distance interaction (15%) followed by phone (10%) and email (5%).
Egan library regularly consults Reference Desk usage, calculated using the LibAnalytics tool and reports these interactions in StatSnap infographics created each semester. Reference session effectiveness is assessed by asking during each session if the student received the help they needed and whether their comfort level/confidence using library resources improved as a result of the session in a follow up survey sent at the conclusion of each chat or email reference session. Library faculty track the number of instruction sessions that they do each year, as well as the course numbers, the objectives of the session, students served and any assessments used during the instruction session. This info is collected using an online form and stored in the library’s LibAnalytics data set. Starting in Fall 2018, librarians also began tracking the Frame(s) addressed (from the ACRL Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education). The number of instruction sessions has remained steady at about 60-70 per academic year from AY2015-AY2018.
Library faculty teach one online and one face to face Library Information Literacy course each Spring and Fall Semester. During Spring 2017 and 2018, the online section was not offered due to staff turnover and low enrollment.
Library faculty collaborate with subject area faculty in their liaison areas to help incorporate information literacy concepts and skills into assignments where appropriate.
Online guides have been created for specific courses and program areas.
AY15-16 saw 146 chats/virtual reference, AY16-17 saw 136, and AY 17-18 saw 126. Goal to increase chat reference by 10% was exceeded and then some.
Services to E‐Learners and All Students
Student course ratings are analyzed for feedback from students taking online and face to face courses, and make adjustments accordingly. One improvement was to implement the Curriculum Builder tool which improves access to library licensed articles through Blackboard. Another improvement was to update the proxy server software in coordination with IT Services to provide seamless access to the library databases and ebooks from any location.
Faculty librarian visits Sitka faculty and staff annually, provides support and communications about library services including document delivery, interlibrary loan, and instructional support.
Implementation of Kanopy streaming video PDA (patron-driven acquisition). A new model and new media format provided for the benefit of student services outside of the library walls.
Instruction sessions and materials are developed for e-learners. Information literacy assessment pilot with distance Anatomy & Physiology class taught out of Sitka campus with embedded librarian.
Collections and resource discovery maintained for remote access to library.
Library Instagram followers increased by 40% from October 2018 to March 2019 . Since the start of fall 2018 semester Egan Library has increased Facebook following by 8.7%. Social Media Campaigns in the fall 2018 semester included: "Study Spaces", "#indigenousUAS" (ongoing), "Egan Library Staff Profiles" (ongoing), and "Finals Week-Here for You" content. Social Media Campaigns in the spring 2019 semester include: "New Year, New Books", "#blackhistorymonth", "Egan Library Staff Profiles", "#uasfye", "#indigenousUAS", and National Poetry Month content.
Online course guides created for e-learners.
Library as Place
Implemented many of the changes identified in library self-study and from a student survey of space usage in the library. Nearly every book in the library has been relocated in the past two years due to a huge shifting project in order to have more highly used materials on the main floor and for a variety of other reasons.
Study room usage is regularly assessed and demand for reservable space led to expansion of patron facing reservation system from 2 rooms to all 7.
Library use is consistent with between 26K and 30K visits each semester (~1,800/week) since Fall 2016. New RFID security gates provide more granular (hourly) use data that can inform decisions related to open hours.
There are many positive comments from student in the course evaluations about the importance of having a quiet space on campus to study, collaborate, and take e-learning courses.
Egan Library has tried to maintain library hours. After analysis it was maintained that reducing library hours would not result in a significant savings.
Pursuant to the 25th Anniversary of the Egan Library facility (2015), a Friends of the Library group (FOELN) was established to forge a connection with the broader community and create opportunities for giving. Over the four years since, an Authors’ Receptions has been held annually at Egan Library and the Friends community has grown to over 75 members, some are lifetime supporters. This is due to the success of the yearly event and other incentives provided to attract members. A vital FOELN was one of the strategic goals of the marketing plan.
Information Technology
Completed inventory of all technology in the library including the Learning/Testing/Writing Centers and CELT in AY18/19. Working on a technology replacement plan with IT.
There have been fewer issues with the virtual academic builds in AY18/19.
After initial implementation issues, Egan Library's print management solution provided by Ink Labs has stabilized. New Smart Stations were delivered in Spring 2019 and since that time maintenance and troubleshooting has dropped off substantially. At implementation in 2016, managed printing was a cost shift from the library onto students, but it’s produced a more stable system, a way for students to print when the library’s closed, and a significantly reduced amount of waste.
Surveyed students during open house on what types of technology they own.
Implemented a new security system and self-check-out kiosk.
Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching (CELT)
Assessing Outcomes
The Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching (CELT) Provides regional peer to peer and professional support for UAS faculty in the areas of instructional design and the scholarship of teaching and learning. Measurable outcomes include:
The number of faculty and staff who participate in workshops delivered to all three campuses.
The number of one-on-one training sessions or consultations provided.
The number of faculty enrolled in QM “Improving your Online Course”
Faculty needs related to professional development in the areas of Instructional Design and the scholarship of teaching and learning (through faculty surveys).
Faculty feedback on workshops and events, through an Event Feedback Form sent out to workshop attendees.
Learning/Testing Center
The Learning and Testing Centers assess effectiveness through annual student surveys as well as constant feedback from students. Surveys are sent to students who have used the Center during the year and ask specific questions about how services helped students complete their courses and looks for ways to improve services.
LC staff work closely with math faculty and their ongoing support and approval is a testament to their effectiveness.
LC staff assesses usage of the Center through student sign-ins. It also shows why students came to the center (tutoring help, to study, or to use a computer) and which topics they came to study. This information is used to determine which day/hours have the highest usage for scheduling student tutors. A new system was implemented Fall 2018 for the Learning Center to simplify the sign in process for students and create a similar sign in process with that of the Writing Center.
The Learning Center staff also track the number of exams administered each week in a variety of different subjects.
The effectiveness of the Learning and Testing Center programs is reflected in their stable and consistent student usage - students keep coming in and spending time working with the LC staff and student tutors.
Writing Center
Writing Center usage is up significantly since we’ve had stable staffing and hours. In March 2015 they had 32 tutoring sessions, March 2016 there were 61, and in March 2017, 131 sessions, a 309% increase! Since Spring 2017 our Writing Center usage has stayed steady despite the dip in enrollment. In March 2019, we completed 130 tutoring sessions.
In addition to our formal tutoring sessions, the Writing Center staff also track overall usage of the center as many students come to study independently, work with their peers or meet with professors. Tutors spend a significant amount of their time building relationships and answering quick writing-related questions.
In AY 2017/18, 236 different students used the Writing Center space a total of 1,688. (These numbers don't include our remote tutoring sessions via phone and email.)
The Writing Center has increased the number of distance students staff and student tutors work with by advertising help via phone and email. An appointment calendar was set up to help manage the flow of students. However, 75% of work continues to be with in-person, walk-in students.
Tutors collect information during each tutoring session on what areas the session focused on, and communicate that information back to the student’s instructor via email.
The Writing Specialist also helps with the WRTG110 Portfolio review, one of the main writing specific assessments conducted at UAS.
The Writing Center has aligned their services with the 12 UAS Writing Courses’ SLOs.
Writing Center staff send out use satisfaction surveys that include metrics for gauging student learning, each year.
The Writing Center has piloted two programs to expand our services beyond the first floor of the library. In Fall 2018 we piloted hosting weekly WC tables in the cafeteria. This academic year, we've also placed embedded tutors in 4 classes to provide weekly writing support to students during class. Staff are currently collecting data from end-of-the-term surveys to assess the effectiveness of embedded tutoring.
UAS needs a reading specialist. In the Writing Center, staff and student tutors often see students struggling with their writing assignments because they don’t understand their reading. The ideal reading specialist would be a faculty member who could devote some of his or her time to working with other professors to build reading skills in entry level content classes. In the absence of a Reading Specialist, the Writing Specialist has been guest teaching weekly reading strategy lessons in WRTG090 and 110 classes while supporting students individually with reading comprehension in the Writing Center.
Research Guides by Egan Library | University of Alaska Southeast are licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
