It can be challenging to get students (particularly undergraduates) to utilize special collections in their research. They may be unaware of the resources special collections have to offer, or intimidated by the extra effort and special procedures which are sometimes required. A number of libraries have made videos about their special collections to help bridge this gap.

Certainly, you couldn’t do a much better job of conveying the excitement of special collections than…

The 13th edition of the Oxford English dictionary defines orientation as “the placing or position of a church, house, tomb, or other structure relative to the points of the compass, or other specified points.”  In 1937, Henry Wriston stated that library orientation is “really putting the cart before the horse; a student does not learn by being told how to use the library, but by using it.” (Bulletin of the Association of American Colleges, vol. XXIII, no. 3, November 1937, p. 2). …

I'm feeling a bit like the conduit to SLIS at SJSU, but there are a number of activities underway there that I believe can add to our learing and thinking about how to leverage our expertise and resources. This latest journal featuring student research is not only interesting from a content perspective, it's an interesting vehicle to disseminate student reseach!

New Journal Features Student Research

On July 15, the San Jose State University School of Library and…

 SLIS at San Jose State has just announced a global, virtual conference on the current and future states of libraries. What is especially intriguing to me is the collaboration between librarians and educators in the conference design -- a conversation I think is extremely important, especially in academic library circles. And the price is right... who can argue with FREE!!! See preliminary information below:

Save the Dates – Library 2.011 Worldwide Virtual…

A Moratorium on Angst: Academic Library Utopias

 When we consider the future of academic libraries, there's no shortage of angst.  Tightened budgets, print vs "e", the very need for librarians is all in question. See, for example, these recent articles and associated comments/references:  http://chronicle.com/article/Academic-Library-Autopsy/125767/,…

There's an incredible amount of professional development opportunities for librarians... anyone going to this inaugural one-day TED conference? Looks like an opportunity for all of us to be thinking about opportunities to reposition/rethink the value we bring as a profession, as individuals, and as organizations. See:

http://www.tedxlibrarians.com/event-details/

I've been following this work for a couple of years now... very comprehensive (covers all stakeholders & levels of education) so helps us think beyond our "academic" sphere. Like the ELI's Horizon Report (aka trend-spotting), it's interesting to see how various groups predict "the future." See information on the 2020 Forecast update below:

Future of Learning…

ACRL NEW ENGLAND ANNUAL MEETING MAY 13, 2011:

CREATIVE COLLABORATIONS: REMAKE. REMIX, REMODEL

Keynote: Developing Innovative and Entrepreneurial Leaders for a Global Technological World

Mark P. Rice, Dean, School of Business, Worcester Polytechnic Institute

I. Creativity/Innovation Concepts and…

Following the "Fireside Chat" and a delectable lunch, our participants were divided into small groups at four tables and guided through the process of designing their very own "learning object."  Each table then presented their research tool to the larger group, focusing on what they learned from the experience.  Here are their notes, followed by some observations I made listening to the table discussions.

Table #1

1. See value of collaboration and…