Embedded librarianship at Purdue University

Tucked in the northwest farmlands of Indiana in West Lafayette, Purdue University is recognized as one of the nation’s leading science and mathematics research universities. Spring rainstorms and a packed agenda greeted the 2008–2010 ARL Diversity Scholars when we visited the libraries April 20–21, 2009. Purdue University staff, librarians, and Library Dean James Mullins planned an exceptional program of guided discussions, presentations, and tours of the campus libraries. The team also offered an inside view of the institution’s libraries and a fresh vision for how librarians can place themselves in the daily workings of campus communities

The Embedded Library: Beyond the Course Connection

Several hundred articles have been published in the last few years on the role of the “embedded librarian” and the nature of “embedded librarianship” as well as books on the subject, e.g. Embedded Librarianship: What Every Academic Librarian Should Know (Daughtery & Russo, 2013). “The Art and Environment of Embedded Librarianship” (Saunders & Taylor, 2014) is a good example of an article examining the librarian’s role in a specific course. “Embedded librarianship” has been established as a subject heading in Library and Information Science Abstracts

Perceptions of librarians towards the adoption of embedded librarianship in Tanzania

Academic libraries in Tanzania have not fully adopted or embraced embedded librarianship as an innovative approach to enhance library service delivery. To gain understanding on the adoption of embedded librarianship, the present study explored the librarians' perceptions towards the adoption of embedded librarianship approach in academic libraries in Tanzania. The study mainly employed exploratory research design blended in a mixed research approach where both quantitative and qualitative aspects were used. A total of 166 librarians from six university libraries filled the questionnaire while 6 directors were interviewed. Statistical Product for Service Solutions (SPSS) version 21 was used to perform descriptive statistics. The study revealed librarians' positive perceptions on the adoption of embedded librarianship in academic libraries. Strengthening librarians and user partnership is an important mechanism to enhance library service delivery. Building strong collaboration between library and faculties through MoU, and enhancing librarians' competencies in teaching, research, communication, ICT applications are necessary for effective adoption of embedded librarianship

The One Size Does Not Fit All Approach: Case Studies in Modeling Embedded Librarianship

Paper presentation at the 2022 Distance Library Services Conference. Due to the pandemic and the shift to remote work, the need for distance library services has expanded, with librarians exploring different modes of engagement, including the embedded librarianship model. But have you ever tried to define embedded librarianship? Two academic librarians from different departments at the same large public institution of higher education debated that same question. The literature on embedded librarianship is both plentiful and diverse, with few authors agreeing on how to define the concept. While many articles discuss the importance of integration and collaboration to embedded librarianship, practical advice on how to achieve those goals is often vague or overly generic. In this presentation, we will share our different perspectives and experiences to highlight the complexity of embedded librarianship and underscore that one size definitely does not fit all. One presenter will discuss the experience of shifting from a one shot instruction to an embedded model for first-year general education courses during the pandemic, while the other will discuss experiences being embedded in upper-division, subject-specific courses in the sciences

Embedded Librarian in Higher Education Institutions

The roles of librarians in this modern and ubiquitous digital information era have been changed. The new environment of abundant and ubiquitous information offers librarians to provide a new mode of librarianship. This paper intends to discuss on the concept of embedded librarianship particularly in higher education institutions. The driving factors and attributes of embedded librarianship will be also discussed. The role of embedded librarians in higher institutions will be also explained. Sustaining embedded librarian in organisation and embedded librarian in distance education environment will be also discussed. Finally, a practice of embedded librarian in Dar al-Hikmah Library in International Islamic University of Malaysia (IIUM) will be briefly highlighted in this paper

A Way Forward: Embedding Sustainable Work Practices into Embedded Librarianship

Embedded librarianship has developed over the past score of years to become a high-engagement, high-impact practice with the potential of meeting students where they are rather than expecting students to ask for help. When it is successful, it leads to meaningful faculty-librarian collaborations and higher student engagement with information literacy activities. In advance of assessing and redesigning the Embedded Librarian program at Fitchburg State University, the presenters conducted a literature review of recent publications on the practice of embedded librarianship. Based on the literature reviewed, it became clear that effective embedded librarianship demands massive commitment of time and energy on the part of librarians. Examples of this commitment may include but are not limited to departmental office hours in the academic department, assignment design and assessment with faculty, and creating content in a class learning management system (LMS), in addition to proactive outreach to faculty in order to build opportunities for further embedding. This raises the question of how librarians can develop and maintain a sustainable embedded librarianship program. In a work climate that requires academic librarians to fulfill multiple roles for the institution, it may be difficult or impossible to find the time to build out such embedded programs without contributing to rampant burnout within the field. During this session, we will interrogate the following and propose solutions: - How do we make practices like embedded librarianship that, by necessity, require a high time investment manageable alongside other workloads? - In a perfect world, what would a sustainable embedded librarianship program look like

Embedded Librarian In Higher Education Institutions

The roles of librarians in this modern and ubiquitous digital information era have been changed. The new environment of abundant and ubiquitous information offers librarians to provide a new mode of librarianship. This paper intends to discuss on the concept of embedded librarianship particularly in higher education institutions. The driving factors and attributes of embedded librarianship will be also discussed. The role of embedded librarians in higher institutions will be also explained. Sustaining embedded librarian in organisation and embedded librarian in distance education environment will be also discussed. Finally, a practice of embedded librarian in Dar al-Hikmah Library in International Islamic University of Malaysia (IIUM) will be briefly highlighted in this paper

The public library, exclusion and empathy: a literature review

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a review of the literature within the fields of public librarianship, social exclusion and empathy. Design/methodology/approach – The cross-disciplinary review involved the consultation of material from disciplines including library and information management, politics, social policy and social sciences, cultural studies, psychology, management and organizational theory. It was structured according to the following themes: exclusion, inclusion and social policy, social inclusion in public services and the cultural sector, the role of public libraries in social inclusion and professional empathy and the public library service. Findings –The concept of social inclusion remains at the core of public library policy and strategy, and is embedded in contemporary social theory. Conflicting views have emerged as to the perceived and actual role of the public library in combating social exclusion, with a need expressed for research to be conducted that bridges the gap between the “philosophical” interpretations of community librarianship and the more practical, “real world” studies, in order to fully understand the concept of community librarianship. A critical link is made between social inclusion and public librarianship to professional empathy. Research limitations/implications – The paper provides an edited version of the overall literature review, yet it is felt that it would be of theoretical and practical relevance and value to the professional and academic communities. Originality/value – Empathy is a relatively new concept in librarianship research, and prior to the study of which this review forms a part only limited findings have been available

The embedded librarianship in scholarship and research among academic librarians in the Malaysian research universities / Khasiah Zakaria

This study investigates the concept of the embedded librarianship in relation to scholarship and research support. This study started with the aim of investigating the perception of academic librarianship in scholarship, research and knowledge production. However an embedded librarianship in support of scholarship and research emerged. Embedded librarianship in this study refers to a situation where librarians embedded programme in training users, provide ready reference, perform in-depth topical research, and involve in library resource development. The population of the study comprises the academic librarians from five Malaysian researcher universities. This quantitative method of study used questionnaire as the instrument to collect data. Eighty nine items from three variables formed the basis of a survey instrument using a seven-point interval scale. The instrument was distributed to the two hundred twenty academic librarians working in the five Malaysian research universities. A total of one hundred and thirty nine (59%) respondents returned the questionnaire. A combination of descriptive statistics, means ranking, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), independent-samples t test, regression and Pearson’s Product Moment Correlations were used in this study using the SPSS version 19.0. The findings revealed that the level of scholarship roles among academic librarians is quite high, particularly in the teaching of information literacy such as accessing and using information. Academic librarians are involved in research support activities but only at a moderate level

Embedded Librarianship: Invaluable Campus Contributions

Academic librarians are increasingly playing a role in the teaching and research process for students and faculty. Learn how librarians are active in the classroom and becoming partners in research