Re-evaluate your Library Website using card sorts

posterPoster explaining how members of the Web Content Team used card sorts to evaluate the current organization of the library website. Responses from the participants helped us make adjustments to the site's hierarch, improving its usability

Examining Adult Learners’ Digital Problem Solving in Libraries Using A Learning Typology

In this presentation, we shared our emerging findings around what constitutes digital problem solving and the approaches and strategies digital problem solvers use

Building Community at the Library With Coffee and Conversation

As communities and individuals struggle with houselessness and housing insecurity, library staff must adapt in order to help our patrons fulfill needs. In 2013, Multnomah County Library (MCL) and the Multnomah County Department of County Human Services surveyed library patrons about library use. The survey identified that about 18.6 percent of visitors to Central Library—the county system’s main branch, located in downtown Portland— are people experiencing houselessness. These patrons visit the library more frequently than patrons who are not experiencing houselessness, and they tend to stay at the library longer than the latter group. Because patrons experiencing houselessness may have negative experiences interacting with staff in businesses, government offices, and other public institutions like libraries, it’s important to start any engagement by building relationships. Staff members need to help these patrons find resources and library materials, assist them with account issues, and show them that the library is the right place for them by making them feel welcome. In order to address this need, staff looked for a way to build relationships between staff and patrons and to create a welcoming environment in the library

Project Summary

Summary of the project, Advancing Digital Equity in Public Libraries: Assessing Library Patrons’ Problem Solving in Technology Rich Environments. The purpose of the research was to examine and understand the digital problem solving processes of vulnerable adults

Observing Digital Problem Solving Checklist

This adaptable tool was developed from research findings from a 3 year research study exploring digital problem solving. It is intended to be used by a librarian/staff/volunteer during an in-person interview and observation context. It is designed to better understand how to shape interactions with a library user when they come into the library for assistance that requires gathering, exploring, and making sense of online resources. The tool can be used to support individual or small group interactions. It contains a series of questions that provide insight into the knowledge and experiences of the library user as well as the level of support the individual or small group may need to successfully engage in digital problem solving in a variety of contexts

Analyzing and Interpreting data from PIAAC’s Problem Solving in Technology Rich Environments (PSTRE) Assessment and Library Use Survey: Quantitative Results

This document contains an explanation of the quantitative analysis conducted using data from a researcher-designed library use survey and PIAAC\u27s PSTRE survey accessed through OECD\u27s Education and Skills Online portal. Data were collected in two phases and are presented using descriptive statistics and through a latent class analysis. The latent class analysis allowed for the examination of the relationship between library activities, library website use, and PSTRE scores. Results indicated that library website use is strong predictor of higher PSTRE scores and competency in digital problem solving

What’s Their Story? Using an Online Assessment Tool to Learn About Patron Skills

We believe our patrons can use our electronic resources, but international assessment data tell a different story. The US population scores below the international average in problem solving in technology-rich environments, so Multnomah County Library and Portland State University are collaborating on a project funded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services to assess patrons\u27 online abilities and how those abilities map to common library tasks. Results will help inform how online library services are presented and will help ensure computer class content includes meaningful skills

Understanding Our Patrons’ Needs in Order to Thrive Together in a Digital Environment

Data from the Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) shows that adults in the US are less skilled in digital problem solving than in many other countries. As more of our communication, creation and learning moves online, how do we help our patrons thrive in a new environment, and how do we transform our training and resources so the library thrives, too? We used a digital problem solving assessment tool from PIAAC to find out if our patrons’ skills matched up with national data, and we mapped the digital skills we assessed to common library tasks. Results will help us take action to transform training and refine our digital resources. By the end of this session, you will be able to advocate for digital literacy training and digital skill building sessions at their own library, understand how digital problem solving skills and common library tasks are related, and bring the tools back to your own library to design a strategy for implementing a large assessment

Exploring How Problem Solving in Technology-Rich Environments Can Be Used to Design Responsive Programming

This session explored a project that assesses community members’ digital skills using Education and Skills Online (ESO) – a valid and reliable assessment tool based on PIAAC that addresses Literacy, Numeracy, and Problem Solving in Technology Rich Environments (PS-TRE). The project will use these data to determine how the abilities of patrons map to the common library tasks that libraries assume patrons are able to access and use in a meaningful way

Using PIAAC’s Education and Skills Online to Examine Adults\u27 Skills Locally

This session will explore Education and Skills Online (ESO) – a valid and reliable assessment tool based on PIAAC that addresses Literacy, Numeracy, and Problem Solving in Technology Rich Environments (PS-TRE). This project will use ESO’s PS-TRE together with the North Star Assessment to assess the digital literacy skills of library patrons