Research Update

I blogged earlier this semester about three projects I'm researching:

• practices & experiences of academic librarians embedded in online courses
• factors that affect the adoption of electronic reference in academic libraries
  
• ...and a project on educational background of academic library deans (with fellow librarian Annie Downey)

So the status updates on those three are as follows:

• embedded librarians project:
• finishing up the presentation portion of the project (organizing it as 6 case studies, with trends and discussion)
• writing lit review for written portion of project
• since this is for a client (as well as my class), I'm planning to format it as a thick binder with tabs for the lit review/trends, each institutional case study, and will also include a matrix of activities, as well as a summary of commonalities and differences in experiences across the case studies
• electronic reference adoption study:
• this is a paper for a statistics course, so it's a statistical analysis...
• I downloaded the Academic Library Survey datasets from NCES (National Center for Educational Statistics) for 1996 - 2006 (though in the end for various reasons I was only able to use 2000 - 2006; I hope to include the other data this summer)
• reformatting all the data and framing it correctly took quite a while!
• I performed an ANCOVA for a binary response variable using the program "R"
• I did some related analyses, and created graphical displays for each
• I'm now writing the results as an article (it's my first quantitative methods article, and it's proving a bit of a tough writing job for me)
• education of academic library deans study:
  
• Annie's got us a head start on the lit review
• we plan to do the majority of the data gathering this summer
• we're currently working on an abstract to propose to ASHE for this fall

I'm proud of myself for actually taking the time to thoughtfully consider this semester's projects as future publications/presentations. And the more I work on the embedded librarians project, the more I see a future dissertation idea coalescing there... it's pointing in many directions, any of which could prove a fruitful topic. It's pretty exciting to feel that I'm not only researching useful topics, but that the last several semesters combined, I've managed to do at least one project each time on library support for distance learning, which I knew I wanted to pursue broadly all along. Huzzah!

And a brief note, in case I haven't mentioned it here before (I've been tweeting it alot): the task management software OmniFocus (and specifically the iPhone version, although I also have the original program on my Mac) has saved my life this semester. It's tracking my personal errands, house projects, work projects, school research, you name it. It's amazing, and if you have an iPhone it will be the best $19 you've spent.

And thus ends my flagrant advertising. (But seriously, busy techie librarians, try it out!) Or at least consider some form of task management software, no matter what computer or handheld you've got.

LE@D Video Shoot (aka Goofy Librarian Skilz)

I used to work for the Center for Distributed Learning at UNT, back before I thought it was a grand idea to both attend school full-time and work full-time. In any case, they were a grand crew of people who had the amusing pleasure of finding out lots of my previously-hidden geeky secrets. Thus, I soon gave up my pretense of being a dignified young professional and acted more like my goofy self in their company.

Thus, when their LE@D (Lifelong Education at Desktop) program needed to shoot a video starring a goofy librarian... I was the first person they thought of.



So yesterday, I spent the morning over-acting my goofy heart out, while being followed around the third floor of the library by a mass of professional-looking camera equipment. The video's scenario is that I'm a librarian trying to take an online LE@D course, but I can't find the time to take it--I'm being interrupted at the reference desk, circulation, public computers, the breakroom, and finally make my escape to a stall in the women's restroom to finish. (I'll post a link here when the video's done on April 1st--both because you all deserve a good laugh and because I'm making a habit of humiliating myself online as much as possible.)

I'll say one thing--I now understand why, in addition to needing a script and camera, it's so important to have a director. You can read, "Starr looks up at patron and seems mildly frustrated by the interruption," and it seems simple, but when it comes to actual expression, body language, etc.... it's surprisingly complex.

So, er, I won't be running off to La-La Land anytime soon to pursue an acting career. But it was certainly an enjoyable experience, and Dr. Arlita Harris, the visionary behind the whole project, not only made it fun but graciously sent me flowers afterward. A big thanks to the CDL folks for thinking of me!

Going the Distance... Learning

I only got to hear the beginning this morning, but the Diane Rehm show on NPR was discussing online higher education (you can now listen to it online). Interesting stats: 1.2 million students in wholly-online programs (both undergrad and graduate-level), but that jumps to 3.2 million when you're counting at the course-level, including students who take both online and on-campus courses (like myself). By 2008, it's predicted that 1 out of 10 students will be taking online courses.

Which reminded me that this Wednesday, 11/15, at 2pm there will be an open house to celebrate UNT's new Center for Teaching, Learning, and Assessment. I'm particularly excited about this, not only because of my personal experience with and interest in online education, but also because while working at UNT's Center for Distributed Learning, I helped research the CTLA project. It is directed by my former boss, Dr. Phil Turner, and the new associate director is Kelly McMichael, one of the talented faculty members on the original Blended Learning project.