Rapid shifts in educators’ perceptions of data literacy priorities

To meet the challenges of a data-driven society, high school students need new arrays of literacy skills. In the United States, school librarians, who work across disciplines, are well-positioned to help students improve their data practice, but they first need new domain knowledge. This article presents findings from an evaluating survey and session evaluation data from a virtual data literacy conference, which were part of a federally-funded project to develop data literacy skills among high school librarians and educators. Findings indicated a noticeable shift in participant perceptions of the need and urgency for data literacy instruction across content areas and grade levels concurrent with implementation of content-area data literacy standards. While the conference was geared toward high school educators and librarians, participants represented a broad audience of K-12 educators and K-20 librarians. The findings provide a valuable snapshot of shifting educational standards and priorities, along with needed pedagogical support and resources

Evaluating Library Signage: A Systematic Method for Conducting a Library Signage Inventory

While there is much literature that directs libraries to avoid having too much or insufficient signage, there is no clear guidance on how much signage is “enough” or “too much.” Conducting a signage inventory can be the first step toward determining how many signs a library needs, by establishing how many signs are in the library, of which type, and their condition. This paper proposes a ready-to-use method that any library can use to inventory its signage by adapting the inventory worksheet depending on factors related to the library type. The ultimate goal in developing a standardized method is that it would allow for, comparing results across libraries to attempt development of more specific signage guidelines or a formula that could calculate how many signs are “enough” and “too many” for a library given its type, population, and other criteria

The Potential and Possibilities for Utilizing Geographic Information Systems to Inform School Library as Place

Teacher librarians often consider their students and the internal school environment in planning programs and services but ignore the larger community from which learners originate. The purpose of this study was to provide a review of the ongoing discussions related to the school library in the community context and provide implications for utilizing geographic information systems (GIS) to inform the idea of the “school library as place.” This preliminary exploration, a thematic literature review, indicated multiple possibilities for implementing GIS in school libraries that may enable teacher librarians to better facilitate students’ development of a sense of place, support their learning needs, and ensure that the community is reflected in the library collection and programs

Innovative Partnerships: Exploring School Librarianship through a Global Lens

Institutional ethnography uncovers how institutional factors shape practice in sometimes unrecognized ways. This IE study on Brazilian school librarianship, conducted in the summer of 2013 in Florianópolis, SC, Brazil, uncovers similar challenges experienced by school library professionals the world over, as well as unique approaches informed by Brazilian culture

Are We Leaving Them Lost in the Woods with No Breadcrumbs to Follow? Assessing Signage Systems in School Libraries

In order to successfully navigate space in seeking information, students need to develop their spatial thinking, or the ability to visualize and interpret location, distance, direction, relationships, movement, and change through space. Learning to think spatially has been defined as a vital skill for students to be equipped properly for their future (National Research Council, 2006; National Science Foundation, 2010). Wayfinding refers to the ability of users of the built environment (i.e., a facility) to navigate through that environment to find specific destinations (Mandel, 2010). In the school library environment this means that student users can find and access the information they need for school related tasks and assignments. Developing wayfinding skills contributes to the development of spatial literacy. Often, the school provides a child’s first experience independently navigating spaces, yet there is limited research on assessing the usability and navigability of school library spaces. The purpose of this study is to explore how to improve the effectiveness of wayfinding and spatial awareness tools in a school library environment addressing the research question: How effective are the existing wayfinding aids in communicating spatial information to the user? This report is the results of the pilot study focused on an expert review of the signage systems in a selection of school libraries

Revitalization of the School Library Media Specialist Certification Program at the University of Kentucky: Preparing 21st Century School Library Technology Leaders

In 2010 due to decreased enrollment and university-wide budget cuts, the University of Kentucky School of Library and Information Science made the decision to suspend admission to the School Library Media Certification program. The Kentucky librarian community responded with a campaign to request that this program be reinstated since the University of Kentucky is the only university in Kentucky offering a school library media preparation program within an American Library Association-accredited master\u27s program. As a result, a committee of experts was formed to examine the status of the school library media profession in the state of Kentucky, collect and analyze data of perceptions of differing stakeholders, and make a decision in regards to the future of the School Library Media certification program. This paper presents the study conducted by this committee, the findings, and the implications for the future of the School Library Media certification program at the University of Kentucky

Tracing Birth Properties of Stars with Abundance Clustering

To understand the formation and evolution of the Milky Way disk, we must connect its current properties to its past. We explore hydrodynamical cosmological simulations to investigate how the chemical abundances of stars might be linked to their origins. Using hierarchical clustering of abundance measurements in two Milky Way-like simulations with distributed and steady star formation histories, we find that groups of chemically similar stars comprise different groups in birth place (R birth) and time (age). Simulating observational abundance errors (0.05 dex), we find that to trace distinct groups of (R birth, age) requires a large vector of abundances. Using 15 element abundances (Fe, O, Mg, S, Si, C, P, Mn, Ne, Al, N, V, Ba, Cr, Co), up to ≈10 groups can be defined with ≈25% overlap in (R birth, age). We build a simple model to show that in the context of these simulations, it is possible to infer a star's age and R birth from abundances with precisions of ±0.06 Gyr and ±1.17 kpc, respectively. We find that abundance clustering is ineffective for a third simulation, where low-α stars form distributed in the disk and early high-α stars form more rapidly in clumps that sink toward the Galactic center as their constituent stars evolve to enrich the interstellar medium. However, this formation path leads to large age dispersions across the [α/Fe]-[Fe/H] plane, which is inconsistent with the Milky Way's observed properties. We conclude that abundance clustering is a promising approach toward charting the history of our Galaxy

Photometric Observations of Three High Mass X-Ray Binaries and a Search for Variations Induced by Orbital Motion

We searched for long period variation in V-band, Ic-band and RXTE X-ray light curves of the High Mass X-ray Binaries (HMXBs) LS 1698 / RX J1037.5-5647, HD 110432 / 1H 1249-637 and HD 161103 / RX J1744.7-2713 in an attempt to discover orbitally induced variation. Data were obtained primarily from the ASAS database and were supplemented by shorter term observations made with the 24- and 40-inch ANU telescopes and one of the robotic PROMPT telescopes. Fourier periodograms suggested the existence of long period variation in the V-band light curves of all three HMXBs, however folding the data at those periods did not reveal convincing periodic variation. At this point we cannot rule out the existence of long term V-band variation for these three sources and hints of longer term variation may be seen in the higher precision PROMPT data. Long term V-band observations, on the order of several years, taken at a frequency of at least once per week and with a precision of 0.01 mag, therefore still have a chance of revealing long term variation in these three HMXBs.Comment: Accepted, RAA, May, 201

Barriers and facilitators to recruitment of physicians and practices for primary care health services research at one centre

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>While some research has been conducted examining recruitment methods to engage physicians and practices in primary care research, further research is needed on recruitment methodology as it remains a recurrent challenge and plays a crucial role in primary care research. This paper reviews recruitment strategies, common challenges, and innovative practices from five recent primary care health services research studies in Ontario, Canada.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We used mixed qualitative and quantitative methods to gather data from investigators and/or project staff from five research teams. Team members were interviewed and asked to fill out a brief survey on recruitment methods, results, and challenges encountered during a recent or ongoing project involving primary care practices or physicians. Data analysis included qualitative analysis of interview notes and descriptive statistics generated for each study.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Recruitment rates varied markedly across the projects despite similar initial strategies. Common challenges and creative solutions were reported by many of the research teams, including building a sampling frame, developing front-office rapport, adapting recruitment strategies, promoting buy-in and interest in the research question, and training a staff recruiter.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Investigators must continue to find effective ways of reaching and involving diverse and representative samples of primary care providers and practices by building personal connections with, and buy-in from, potential participants. Flexible recruitment strategies and an understanding of the needs and interests of potential participants may also facilitate recruitment.</p