Libraries Without Walls 6: Speakers’ Abstracts and Biographies
Keynote Speaker: Sue McKnight
Title: Involving the Customer in Library Planning and Decision-making
Abstract
There are many ways of measuring the effectiveness of particular aspects of library services. However, it is much more problematic to gauge the overall 'health' of the library service. General customer satisfaction surveys are not all that helpful in providing sufficient data on which to base future plans and decisions. Customer Value Research, on the other hand, does. This paper outlines what is involved in the process and how the results can be used to guide planning and decision making, drawing on examples in two university libraries, one in Australia and one in the United Kingdom. The benefits of customer value research are many, including establishing a dialogue with consumers of services and placing them in the centre of decision-making, providing in-depth data on areas for service improvement as well as areas that must be maintained and nurtured because of the value placed on these by the customers, and creating a culture of continuous improvement within the service organisation.
Biography
Sue McKnight is Director of Libraries and Knowledge Resources at Nottingham Trent University, a position she took up in August 2004. In this position, Sue is responsible for library services across three campuses and is establishing an Educational Development Unit to lead the University's strategic developments in e-learning. Prior to this, Sue was Executive Director, Learning Services and University Librarian at Deakin University, Australia. As Executive Director, Sue was responsible for the University's library services, the design, development, production and manufacture of all course material associated with online or distance learning, the management of the library and learning management systems, and for the professional development of Faculty staff.
Sue is a frequent speaker at conferences internationally, having twice presented papers at LWW conferences, at IFLA, ICDE conferences, WebCT User conferences as well as other national professional forums in Australia and now the UK.
Sue has been active in professional associations, being twice president of the Victorian Branch of the Australian Library & Information Association, and also State President of the Australian Council of Library & Information Services. She is also a member of the Open & Distance Learning Association of Australia, the International Council on Distance Education, The Association of Learning Technologists (ALT) and is an Associate Fellow of the Australian Institute of Management. Currently she is Information Officer and Acting Secretary of the University and General Research Libraries Section of the International Federation of Library Associations and is Coordinator of the IFLA Quality Issues in Libraries Discussion Group. Sue has also served on the international Product Advisory Board of a major VLE vendor.
Presenter: Bo Öhrström
Title: Denmark ’s Electronic Research Library: Evaluation of services through user surveys and usability testing
Author: Bo Öhrström
Abstract
Denmark 's Electronic Research Library (DEF in Danish) is a co-operative organisation for Danish research libraries. Several evaluations using user surveys and usability-tests which examine the impact of electronic services on users have been carried out. A large survey of three university libraries, based on the European Customer Satisfaction Index (ECSI) model will be presented, and the results of a usability test of the websites of 11 of the biggest research libraries in Denmark will be discussed.
Biography
Bo Öhrström is currently Deputy Director of the Danish National Library Authority, and is based in Copenhagen. Prior to this he was IT Manager at the Royal School of Library and Information Science in Denmark, and has worked in IT consultancy, with particular responsibility for research and development.
Presenter: Jenny Craven
Title: Beyond the guidelines: Assessment of the usability and accessibility of distributed services, from the users’ perspective
Author: Jenny Craven
Abstract
Assessment of the accessibility of electronic services can be achieved using well documented guidelines or automated approaches. However, it is also important to consider the users and their requirements. This paper presents research undertaken for the European Internet Accessibility Observatory project, which has been exploring accessibility from the user’s perspective as a way of informing the development of an automated web accessibility checking tool.
Biography
Jenny Craven is a Research Associate in CERLIM at Manchester Metropolitan University, UK. She has worked on a number of research projects relating to accessibility and usability of web-based resources and information seeking by blind and visually impaired people. She is currently working on an EC funded project: the European Internet Accessibility Observatory. Jenny is a member of Council for the National Library for the Blind and has facilitated workshops on improving the accessibility of library services for blind and visually impaired people.
Presenter: Emmanouel Garoufallou
Title: Online services v online chaos: Evaluating online services in a Greek academic library
Authors: Rania Siatri and Emmanouel Garoufallou
Abstract
Based upon recently collected qualitative and quantitative data, this paper presents the results of the assessment of online services of the Central Library of the Technological Educational Institution of Thessaloniki, Greece. It looks into user satisfaction with the online services and the chaos that unorganised electronic services can cause for the library. Finally, it presents the outcome of the evaluation of library’s website and investigates accessibility issues on this matter.
Biographies
Emmanouel Garoufallou is a lecturer at the Department of Library Science and Information Systems at the Technological Educational Institution of Thessaloniki, Greece. He also works as a consultant in academic, public and special libraries, in museums and information centres. In 1993, he established the DELTOS Research Group that aims to develop research, publish books and a journal, and organise training programmes and conferences in the field of Information and Library Science. He holds a PhD and a MA in LIS from UK. Some of his main interests are digital libraries, academic libraries, electronic information resources, portals and information retrieval.
Rania Siatri is a lecturer at the Department of Library Science and Information Systems at the Technological Educational Institution of Thessaloniki, Greece. She also organises and works as a trainer in various training programmes regarding information professionals. She is the vice-director of DELTOS Research Group. She holds a MA in LIS and currently is completing her PhD. Some of her main interests are information seeking, information retrieval, Virtual Learning Environments, academic libraries and electronic information resources.
Presenter: Claudine Xenidou-Dervou
Title: The Hellenic Academic Libraries Consortium (HEAL-Link) and its effect on library services in Greece : the case of Aristotle University Library System
Author: Claudine Xenidou-Dervou
Abstract
The services offered by HEAL-Link have played a catalytic role in the development of library services in Greece and have changed users’ attitudes toward e-services. An example of the above is given by describing the change in library services at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
Biography
Claudine Xenidou-Dervou is the librarian of the Science Library at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece, and the coordinator of the steering committee of HEAL-Link. She is also the coordinator of two projects at Aristotle University. One funded by the Ministry of Education aims to develop new library services and one funded by the Ministry of Culture concerns the digitization of a collection of manuscripts of modern Greek authors.
Presenter: Richard Hartley
Title: Information seeking in large-scale resource discovery environments: users and union catalogues
Author: Richard Hartley
Abstract
The paper reports research which evaluates both physical and virtual union catalogues as search tools in the emerging digital information environment through the use of simulated searches, interviews and focus groups. This is believed to be the first research to evaluate union catalogues on the basis of use rather than just opinion.
Biography
Dick Hartley is Head of the Department of Information and Communications, and Director of The Information Research Institute at Manchester Metropolitan University, UK. He has also been a Visiting Professor in the Department of TEI, Thessaloniki, Greece. He has extensive experience in academic, national and public libraries. He was a member of the Librarianship, Archives and Information Science Panel of the AHRB from 1997 to 1999. He has been an invited reviewer for LIS education in Greece (1999) and Estonia (2001), and serves on a number of editorial boards. Dick is also a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (FCLIP).
Presenter: Ken Eason
Title: A ‘joined-up’ electronic journal service: user attitudes and behaviour
Authors: Ken Eason, Ross MacIntyre and Ann Apps.
Abstract
Studies are reported of user attitudes and behaviour with the zetoc service before and after the implementation of a ‘joined-up’ service using OpenURL technology. Positive attitudes translated into usage behaviour in only some circumstances. A model of user behaviour is advanced to explain the factors that mediate attitudes and behaviour.
Biography
Ken Eason is Director of the Bayswater Institute in London and Professor Emeritus at Loughborough University, UK. He is a specialist in user behaviour with computer-based systems and sociotechnical systems design. He has evaluated user behaviour with many library systems including the SuperJournal project and is author of three books and over 100 papers.
Presenter: Dawn McLoughlin
Title: Climbing the ladders and sidestepping the snakes: achieving accessibility through a coordinated and strategic approach
Authors: Dawn McLoughlin and Ruth Wilson
Abstract
This paper will explore the themes of distance student expectations and the tensions these may engender for service providers attempting to meet those demands. Learning Services at Edge Hill College of Higher Education, UK, has developed a 'life cycle' approach to the provision of resources, skills and learner support. The paper will outline the developmental process from initial assumptions through modifications to the position to date. This will include the plans for cross service agreements and hybrid posts.
Biography
Dawn McLoughlin is Academic Support Manager at Edge Hill College of Higher Education in Lancashire, UK. Her current role involves managing the teams that provide support for student learning over a number of areas including, information literacy, ICT, media development, study skills and support for students with specific learning differences (e.g. Dyslexia) within Learning Services. Within this role Dawn is interested in how to integrate and develop different literacies for students.
Presenter: Alison Brettle
Title: The impact of library and information services on health professionals’ ability to locate information for patient care
Author: Alison Brettle
Abstract
This paper describes some of the problems involved in measuring the outcomes of health library and information services. It then describes a research project that aims to examine the effectiveness and impact of information skills training and librarian mediated searching within North West UK National Health Service libraries, on health professionals wishing to locate information for patient care.
Biography
Alison Brettle has over 10 years experience in health related information science. She began by managing an information service on health outcome measurement at the University of Leeds, UK. Currently working at the Health Care Practice Research and Development Unit, University of Salford, she has been responsible for providing information support for various research projects, undertaking systematic reviews, providing information skills training and developing a research portfolio relating to information skills training, the evaluation of library services and effective searching within systematic reviews.
Presenter: Dianne Nelson
Title: We know we are making a difference but can we prove it? Impact measurement in a higher education library
Author: Dianne Nelson
Abstract
This paper describes the participation of the University of the West of England (UWE) Library in the national SCONUL/LIRG Impact Measurement Initiative, evaluating the impact of higher education libraries on learning, teaching, and research. The chosen area of study was the impact of Electronic Information Services (EIS) on users at the University.
Biography
Dianne Nelson (BSC., MPhil., Dip.Lib. MSc.IT.) is the Project Manager for the UWE Impact Study. She has been at the University of the West of England since 1989, where she is Faculty Librarian for the Computing, Engineering and Mathematical Sciences Faculty. Prior to that she worked in Pharmacology research.
Presenter: Juliet Eve
Title: Proving our worth? Measuring the impact of the Public Library system in the UK
Author: Juliet Eve
Abstract
This paper will provide an overview of developments in the methods and tools for evaluation in the public library sector, and argue that, in light of the current debates about the future and role of the service, we need to examine carefully what we need to measure, and how.
Biography
Juliet Eve is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Brighton, UK, where she teaches on library and information science and media and communications degrees. She has considerable experience in the evaluation of ICT services in public libraries, and is currently a partner in a European funded project looking at Open Learning Centres in European public libraries.
Presenter: José-Marie Griffiths
Workshop Title: Outcomes and Impacts, Dollars and Sense – Are libraries measuring up?
Author: José-Marie Griffiths
Abstract
This workshop will present the methodologies and results of a landmark 2004 study of public libraries that collected and analyzed library use and user data, and applied benefit/cost, cost-effectiveness, impact and return-on-investment measures to that data to identify return on investment as well as user perception of value of public libraries in the United States.
Biography
Dr. José-Marie Griffiths has over 30 years experience in libraries and information science. She is presently Dean of the School of Information and Library Science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and is finishing her work as the Doreen E. Boyce Chair & Director, Sara Fine Institute for Interpersonal Behaviour and Technology, University of Pittsburgh. She has served as University Chief Information Officer ( University of Michigan ) and Vice Chancellor for Information Infrastructure ( University of Tennessee ) among other prestigious positions. She was recently named to the President’s Information Technology Advisory Committee after a six year term on the U.S. National Commission on Libraries and Information Science.
Presenter: Blanca Rodriguez
Title: The use of electronic journals in Castilla y Leon academic libraries
Authors: Blanca Rodriguez and Luisa Alvite
Abstract
This paper presents a longitudinal evaluation of the use of electronic journals by the Spanish academic community. In particular the libraries analyzed are the Universities of Burgos, León, Salamanca and Valladolid in Castilla y León ( Spain ). The study focusses in particular on digital content acquired by means of consortium purchase, namely Emerald, ScienceDirect, SpringerLink-Kluwer Online and Wiley InterScience The chronological period of collection of data is from 2002 to 2004.
Biography
Blanca Rodriguez is Doctor and Professor of Library and Information Science at the University of León in Spain. She is an experienced researcher specializing in Organizing Knowledge and Information Retrieval. Blanca Rodríguez is, moreover, the Head of the Academic Library and director of a research project evaluating electronic publications providers. Blanca has published articles and papers about the provision of digital content.
Presenters: Ursula Nielsen and Marie-Louise Axelsson
Title: The integration of libraries in the academic world – a practitioner’s view
Authors: Ursula Nielsen and Marie-Louise Axelsson
Abstract
This paper will present insights into and the results of practical project experiences. Working closely with lecturers as users the authors wanted to integrate library resources into the “class-room” and to help lecturers understand the need for information literacy in the pedagogical situation. They also aimed to improve the quality of information retrieval activities that lecturers were performing to satisfy their own needs.
Biographies
Ursula Nielsen is a senior librarian at Linköping University Library, Sweden. Ursula is involved with library marketing and with the web. She also leads projects such as the one discussed in this presentation.
Marie-Louise Axelsson is a Librarian working at Linköping University Library and is Subject Librarian for Behavioural Sciences with special responsibility for Education and Psychology at the library. She was one of the participant librarians in the project.
Presenter: Rob Davies
Title: The self-assessment of progress made by European countries against the Oerias Declaration
Author: Rob Davies
Abstract
The Oeiras Manifesto and its 10-Point Action Plan, agreed at the PULMAN
Policy Conference in March 2003, set out goals for the development of public library services and helped drive forward the next phase of innovation amongst public libraries, archives, museums and other local public cultural institutions in Europe. The Manifesto is a catalyst for action in realising the goals of the e-Europe action plan, and was one of the most important outcomes of PULMAN, the Accompanying Measure for local cultural institutions funded by the European commission under its IST FP5 research programme.
Following the publication of the Manifesto and Action Plan www.pulmanweb.org it was agreed that monitoring of its implementation was required and a self-assessment was established. An instrument was designed for this purpose and circulated to PULMAN Country Co-coordinators with a request that they complete it in consultation with other national experts, as appropriate. Responses were received in the period October 2003-March 2004. This paper provides an assessment of the responses.
Biography
Rob Davies is a consultant with MDR Partners. He was Scientific Co-ordinator of the PULMAN project and is now playing a similar role in CALIMERA, its successor project under IST FP6.
Presenters: Chris Awre, Ralph Quarles and Steven Smail
Title: Enabling the library in university systems: trial and evaluation in the use of library services away from the library
Authors: Chris Awre, Ralph Quarles and Steven Smail
Abstract
The activities of the CREE and Twin Peaks projects in making library resources available at the point of need for the learning and teaching community will be reported. This will include a comparison and discussion of the contrasting development approaches taken: early user assessment versus early rapid prototyping.
Biographies
Chris Awre is Integration Architect within the e-Services Integration Group at the University of Hull, UK, advising on the integration of university systems and processes. He is Project Manager of the CREE project. Chris previously worked for the JISC and as a systems librarian at Imperial College, London.
Ralph Quarles is Assistant Director & Operations Manager within the Indiana University Libraries Information Technology Team, Indiana, USA. He is Project Manager of the Twin Peaks project. Ralph previously worked as an electronic warfare engineer in the US Navy and as Director of IT for an engineering company.
Steven Smail is a Programmer/Analyst with the Indiana University Libraries Information Technology team, Indiana, USA. He handles software development for the Twin Peaks project. Steven previously worked in the content management and Internet technologies industries.
Presenter: Li-Hsiang Lai
Title: Toward An Integrated Theory of Digital Library Evaluation from Users’ Perspectives
Authors: Li-Hsiang Lai, Ming-der Wu and Yeu-Sheng Hsieh
Abstract
Because of the complex nature of digital libraries and other influencing factors, digital library evaluation is facing a conceptual and pragmatic challenge. For the conceptual challenge, it urgently needs a theoretical model for evaluating digital libraries, which clearly presents the relationship of the variables in the model and leads to a more insightful research findings. The main purpose of this study is to construct a conceptual model with integrated dimensions of digital library evaluation from users’ point of views to answer the question: how do users perceive a digital library as successful? This study also attempts to develop criteria to measure digital library success. Eventually, it will assess how the characteristics of users influence their evaluation of digital library success.
Biography
Li-Hsiang Lai is a Ph.D. candidate of the Department of Library and Information Science at National Taiwan University, and Research Assistant with the Division of Training and Promotion of National Digital Archives Program at the National Science Council in Taiwan. Her research interests include digital library evaluation, informetrics, user study, and information organization.
Presenters Steve Cohen, Susan Eales, Michael Fegan and Dean Rehberger
Workshop Title: The role of digital libraries in helping students attend to source information
Authors: Steve Cohen, Susan Eales, Michael Fegan, Dean Rehberger
Abstract
The Spoken Word project is part of the Digital Libraries in the Classroom Programme, an international programme funded jointly by the National Science Foundation (NSF) in the USA, and the Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) in the UK. The Spoken Word team is developing two new technologies to teach and assess sourcing skills. This paper will inform readers of the progress made in using these technologies to assess the role of digital libraries in sourcing instruction and to evaluate how students use and understand the materials they find.
Biographies
Steve Cohen works as a Project Evaluator for Serious Assessments. Until recently, Steve was Senior Learning Technologist at Tufts University, Massachusetts, USA, where he developed a broad range of technologies to improve learning across fields as diverse as veterinary anaesthesiology, statistics, and criminal justice. Steve helped develop a pedagogical method for sharing courses and curriculum, between the US and African nations.
Susan Eales currently manages two programmes within the JISC Development Group, Exchange for Learning (X4L) and Digital Libraries in the Classroom. Both these programmes are concerned with enhancing learning and teaching in further and higher education using collections of electronic resources. Susan was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts in February 2004.
Michael Fegan is Chief Technical Officer at Matrix. Michael has developed some of Matrix’s most successful online projects. He has done training and development across the United States, Africa and Scotland on the digitization and delivery of online multimedia objects.
Dean Rehberger is Associate Director of Matrix and also Associate Professor at Michigan State University. Dean specializes in using online technologeis and developing educational resources for the World Wide Web. His primary areas of research include information design and architecture; digital libraries, museums and archives; Internet technologies in the classroom; and hybrid learning environments.
Presenter: Elizabeth Mallett
Title: A DiVA for every audience: lessons learned from the evaluation of an online digital video library
Authors: Elizabeth Mallett, Agnes Kukulska-Hulme, Anne Jelfs and Chetz Colwell
Abstract
This paper presents the evaluation methods and findings of the Digital Video Applications Project (DiVA). DiVA created a searchable digital library of Open University video resources using cutting edge automatic indexing software. It was evaluated with a number of users: course production staff, remote and residential school students, disabled students and library cataloguing staff.
Biography
Elizabeth Mallett is the Learning Resources Project Manager at the UK's Open University Library and Learning Resources Centre. From 2000 - 2004 she managed the Digital Video Applications Project (DiVA). Her professional interests are libraries and e-Learning, and the archiving and preservation of digital learning materials.
Presenter: Anne Morris
Title: Human-Computer interaction evaluation of Ebrary and Overdrive online systems
Authors: Anne Morris and Panos Balatsoukas
Abstract
E-book sales is the publishing industry's largest growing sector (Macworld, 2004, Byrne, 2004). The purpose of the research was to evaluate the user interface and assess the usability of ebrary and Overdrive, online e-book provision systems. A variety of research techniques such as heuristic evaluation, usability (task) tests and questionnaires were used to meet the objectives. The paper will include the identification of the “strengths and weaknesses” as well as the “opportunities and threads” of both systems and guidelines for future designers and/or evaluators of e-book aggregator systems.
Biography
Anne Morris is a Reader in the Department of Information Science at Loughborough University and an Associate Director of The Higher Education Academy for Information and Computing Science. She has extensive research, consultancy, academic and teaching experience, including the management of research grants. She is currently Director of the Faculty of Science Postgraduate Research Training and has been the Director of Research and also the Director of Learning and Teaching within the Department. Her main interests lie in the value and impact of public library services, and the design, use, evaluation and impact of information systems.
Presenters: Ellen Safley
Title: Tearing down the walls: Demand for e-books in an academic library
Authors: Ellen Safley and Carolyn Henebry
Abstract
The Library at the University of Texas at Dallas was an early adopter of NetLibrary, and was surprised by the enthusiastic response of its users to this e-books service. In response to this positive feedback from users, a much broader collection of e-books has been acquired, and formal longitudinal survey instruments put in place to ensure that user expectations are being met, and user preferences considered. The Library considers such evaluation essential in their bid to improve library services to best meet the needs of researchers in the 21st century.
Biography
Dr. Ellen Safley is the Senior Associate Director for Public Services and Strategy at the University of Texas at Dallas, USA. Her academic interests include anthropology and public policy. Ellen's creative talents are displayed in her paintings and landscaping endeavours. Dr. Safley is active in ALA and the activities of the Texas State Library. She helps to choose electronic books for the UT System Libraries.
Both Carolyn and Ellen have an Amigos library grant to study the feasibility of creating an educational curriculum library totally in electronic format.
Presenters: Peter Brophy and Jenny Craven
Title: Longitude II: Assessing the value and impact of services over time
Authors: Peter Brophy and Jenny Craven
Biographies
Peter is Director of The Centre for Research and Library and Information Management (CERLIM) and Professor of Information Management at Manchester Metropolitan University
Jenny Craven is a Research Associate in CERLIM at Manchester Metropolitan University, UK. She has worked on a number of research projects relating to accessibility and usability of web-based resources and information seeking by blind and visually impaired people. She is currently working on an EC funded project: the European Internet Accessibility Observatory. Jenny is a member of Council for the National Library for the Blind and has facilitated workshops on improving the accessibility of library services for blind and visually impaired people.
Presenters: Doina Popa and Sorina Stanca
Title: RFID solutions for libraries: LIBER-IMMS Project - Public Library RFID based system for interactive Internet & Mobile Messaging Services
Authors: Doina Popa and Sorina Stanca
Abstract
Taking advantage from the fully interoperability of RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) applications with traditional data repository system and automatic messaging systems (internet and sms mobile communication), the Project will provide a fully integrated set of services (LIBER-IMMS)with the scope of measure libraries benefits & users acceptance.
Biographies
Doina Popa is Director of the “Octavian Goga” Cluj County Library and President of National Public Libraries Association. She is expert in provision and generalization of a new way to report statistics in Romanian public libraries (which was put to work since 2001) and establishment of data and statistic information categories which have to be collected by libraries; creation of specific instruments for data and information statistics collection. She was country coordinator for the following European Projects: LIBECON- Libraries Economics in Europe ; CALIMERA- Cultural Applications: Local Institutions Mediating Electronic Research Access; CERTIDoc- Certification European certification on information and documentation.
Sorina Stanca is Head of Information and Documentation Department at “Octavian Goga” Cluj County Library, Romania. She is a participant in the LIBER-IMMS Project.