Librarians at the Intersection of Information Literacy and Open Educational Practices in Higher Education

Merinda McLure, Innovative Practices Section Co-Editor, introduces a special theme issue of the journal that explores intersections between information literacy and open educational practices

Perspectives on e-books from instructors and students in the social sciences

Includes bibliographical references (pages 287-288).To explore attitudes toward e-books, the authors conducted focus groups at Colorado State University with instructors (7) and graduate students (12) from four social science disciplines. Participants provided insights into their use of print and electronic texts, their attitudes toward patron-driven e-book purchasing, potential barriers to e-book use and acceptance, and how they view the academic library within the context of their own research needs. The paper includes a review of relevant literature and use studies. It will be useful to academic librarians and administrators concerned with patron-driven and e-book purchasing

Caring for Students in Postsecondary Open Educational Resource (OER) and Open Education Initiatives: Inviting Student Participation and Voice

This paper aims to examine librarians&rsquo; professional motivations and theoretical perspectives to attend to care and student voice, as they pursue open educational resource (OER) initiatives in higher education.</p

Taking Issues: Is the Face-to-Face Conference Still Essential?

Face-to-face conferences entail hundreds or thousands of flights and use up many other environmental, organizational, financial, and personal resources. Some librarians have argued for phasing them out in favor of virtual conferences, while others have said that in-person conferences still provide valuable opportunities that cannot be replicated online. In this final installment of "Taking Issues," our authors consider the question, "Can 'green librarians' justify the face-to-face library conference?</p

A Qualitative Analysis of Open Textbook Reviews Authored by Postsecondary Educators

Open textbooks are a type of Open Educational Resource (OER). They present educators with an alternative to commercial textbooks, afford students and educators permissions granted by open licenses, and reduce student costs. The purpose of this qualitative study is to examine how educators evaluate the quality of open textbooks. We analyzed 954 educator reviews of 235 unique open textbooks. American postsecondary educators authored the reviews between April 2014 and March 2017 and the Open Education Network (OEN; formerly the Open Textbook Network, https://open.umn.edu/otn/collected) and openly published the reviews in the Open Textbook Library (OTL, https://open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/), unedited and with Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licenses (CC BY 4.0). Overall, reviewers found the open textbooks to be of sufficient quality for use. The reviews provide insight into educator concerns and interests regarding the quality and characteristics of open textbooks and may support peer educators&rsquo; consideration, and authors&rsquo; and publishers&rsquo; creation and revision, of open textbooks.</p

Perspectives on E-books from Instructors and Students in the Social Sciences

To explore attitudes toward e-books, the authors conducted focus groups at Colorado State University with instructors (7) and graduate students (12) from four social science disciplines. Participants provided insights into their use of print and electronic texts, their attitudes toward patron-driven e-book purchasing, potential barriers to e-book use and acceptance, and how they view the academic library within the context of their own research needs. The paper includes a review of relevant literature and use studies. It will be useful to academic librarians and administrators concerned with patron-driven and e-book purchasing.</p

Data curation: a study of researcher practices and needs

Colorado State University librarians conducted five focus groups with thirty-one faculty, research scientists, and research associates. The groups explored: (1) The nature of data sets that these researchers create or maintain; (2) How participants manage their data; (3) Needs for support that the participants identify in relation to sharing, curating, and preserving their data; and (4) The feasibility of adapting the Purdue University Libraries' Data Curation Profiles Toolkit interview protocol for use in focus groups with researchers. The authors report their review of related literature, themes that emerged from analysis of the focus groups, and implications for related library services

Data curation: a study of researcher practices and needs

Colorado State University librarians conducted five focus groups with thirty-one faculty, research scientists, and research associates. The groups explored: (1) The nature of data sets that these researchers create or maintain; (2) How participants manage their data; (3) Needs for support that the participants identify in relation to sharing, curating, and preserving their data; and (4) The feasibility of adapting the Purdue University Libraries&rsquo; Data Curation Profiles Toolkit interview protocol for use in focus groups with researchers. The authors report their review of related literature, themes that emerged from analysis of the focus groups, and implications for related library services.</p

Campus Corps Therapeutic Mentoring: Making a Difference for Mentors

College student mentors are increasingly mentoring at-risk youth, yet little is known about the benefits that college students derive from their experience mentoring within the context of a service-learning course. This qualitative study used focus groups to examine college students&rsquo; experiences as participants in a unique program, Campus Corps: Therapeutic Mentoring of At-Risk Youth. This course-based, service-learning program utilizes college student mentors to mentor at-risk youth within a family systems framework. In 19 focus groups conducted with 141 college student participants, the student mentors indicated that they experienced significant personal growth and professional development through their participation in the program and that the program positively influenced their civic attitudes and their orientation toward civic engagement. This article provides a review of related research, describes the program, explores the findings of the focus groups, and discusses implications for college service-learning programs.</p