Resources

Web-scale discovery services promise fast, easy searching from a single Google-like box, pleasing users and making library resources more discoverable. Some librarians embrace the concept of giving users what they have come to expect from Google, while others are concerned that this will “dumb down” searching and undermine information literacy. In this article we explore the potential impact of Web-scale discovery tools on information literacy, focusing particularly on undergraduate research skills. We review the existing literature and present findings and experiences from two mid-sized academic libraries that have adopted EBSCO Discovery Service as their library home page portal.Web-scale discovery services promise fast, easy searching from a single Google-like box, pleasing users and making library resources more discoverable. Some librarians embrace the concept of giving users what they have come to expect from Google, while others are concerned that this will “dumb down” searching and undermine information literacy. In this article we explore the potential impact of Web-scale discovery tools on information literacy, focusing particularly on undergraduate research skills. We review the existing literature and present findings and experiences from two mid-sized academic libraries that have adopted EBSCO Discovery Service as their library home page portal.

Teach students to love the library.

2013 article looking at recent trends with librarians and tenure

A statement prepared by the Joint Committee on College Library Problems, a national committee representing the Association of College and Research Libraries, the Association of American Colleges (now the Association of American Colleges and Universities), and the American Association of University Professors. Reaffirmed 2007.

Annoyed Librarian' Blog entry looking at reasons for and against librarians getting tenure.

Blog post from In the Library with the Lead Pipe. Highlights similarities and differences between information literacy and critical thinking, especially as they relate to library instruction.

Article by Stephen J. Bell and John Shanks in College and Research Libraries News (July/August 2004). Provides an overview of the concept of the blended librarian and provides six principles of blended librarianship.

Article in Diskus: The Journal of the British Association for the Study of Religions (2013) by Stefanie Sinclair. Considers issues of digital literacy in the context of religious studies. Suggests ways in which technology can contribute to teaching and learning religious studies.

Blog post by Char Booth in American Libraries Magazine (April 2010). Claims that librarians can ease transition to teaching roles by building their instructional literacy. Offers USER method (Understand, Structure, Engage, and Reflect) for good teaching practice.

Dec 2013 blog post from The Unquiet Librarian. Offers four steps for successful collaborative partnerships between librarians and faculty.