11 Number of years ago that International Open Access Week was first observed. In 2007, a coalition of US college students, researchers, and librarians celebrated Open Access Day, which was extended to Open Access Week the following year and has evolved into a global effort. 72 Number of countries represented by groups discussing issues of … Continue reading By the Numbers: Open Access Week
It’s an example of learning analytics, the use of data to understand and optimize learning and learning environments. The general concept isn’t new—the university’s announcement noted that student retention has been studied for more than 30 years—but the amount of data that is easy to generate with card swipes has exploded in recent years. And … Continue reading Data Collection and Privacy
There was only one problem: We had never created a library video before. The process was as much an introduction to video making for us as the finished product was an introduction to the library for our students. Assembling the cast and crew As with any Hollywood blockbuster, a team had to be assembled to … Continue reading Pounce into the Spotlight with a Library Introduction Video
When researchers need to study these or other pieces of American ephemera created after 1876, they head to the Ray and Pat Browne Library for Popular Culture Studies at Ohio’s Bowling Green State University Libraries. Founded almost 50 years ago, the library holds one of the largest comics collections in the country, as well as … Continue reading Bookend: Pop Culture Paradise
The biggest competitions in the world of e-sports—of which the most popular include League of Legends, Super Smash Bros., and Overwatch—fetch top players millions of dollars in prizes, and in 2017 the industry is estimated to have earned $696 million in revenue. Universities across the country have established e-sports teams, and some of the top … Continue reading Wide World of E-Sports
The rally was hosted by the UW College Republicans, who invited Patriot Prayer—a right-wing group based in the Pacific Northwest—as a way to exercise free speech rights. As many open-carry advocates, white supremacists, and neo-Nazis voiced their intentions to attend the rally, fears of maintaining campus safety increased. (Just last year, a protester was shot … Continue reading Institutional Neutrality Isn’t Reality
In K–12 and academic libraries, this is becoming increasingly possible with learning analytics systems that aggregate student data to make trends visible. The systems also allow advisors, instructors, and other stakeholders to use the trend data to identify a student at risk based on specific characteristics or behaviors. They allow educators to intervene, often before … Continue reading We Can, But Should We?
Today, sexuality and sexual issues remain at the forefront of news, from the rise of the #MeToo movement to the acceptance of gay marriage. Kinsey began the open discussion of sex with a marriage course he taught to seniors and married students 80 years ago in 1938 at IU. With the support of IU President … Continue reading Researching Sex
University of Victoria (B.C.) Libraries is home to the largest physical collection of transgender-related material worldwide. Lara Wilson, university archivist and director of special collections, explains how the Transgender Archives has evolved from cataloged items to community outreach in its seven years. RSI was established in Chicago and open from 2001 to 2004. Its collection … Continue reading An Archive for All
Oberlander is one of an increasing number of academic library directors who oversees what are variously called “reflection rooms” or “meditation rooms.” Around the US, students are using these spaces for prayer, yoga, scripture study, or simply for an escape between tough classes. It is a recent and growing trend for colleges, where a rising … Continue reading A Space Apart
In that first professional job, at a small library, all librarians—from the director to the systems librarian to the head of technical services—taught classes. None of us had been prepared by our coursework to teach, and no on-the-job training was provided. While my initial efforts to teach information literacy were cringeworthy at best, I learned … Continue reading Learning to Teach
As both the academic library for Oglala Lakota Tribal College and the public library for the reservation, the Woksape Tipi Library oversees 13 branch libraries scattered over nearly 3,500 square miles. “We’re all about local access,” says archivist Tawa Ducheneaux (pictured), one of six library employees. If a staff member isn’t present at a branch … Continue reading Bookend: Tribal Heritage
